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Dive brief:
- Most contractors believe that artificial intelligence will have a profound effect on the construction sectoraccording to a new survey by the Dodge Construction Network.
- According to the report, Dodge, in partnership with CMiC, a provider of financial and project management software for the construction industry, surveyed 235 general and commercial contractors in the US through September and October.
- Of the builders surveyed, 85% expect to spend less time on repetitive tasks, while 75% anticipate that AI will help them learn from past projects using historical data, according to the study.
Diving knowledge:
The report adds to a broad consensus in the construction industry: that AI will transform the construction sectoreven as builders are still behind in their adoption of technology
Despite limited adoption so far, more than half of the companies surveyed are taking steps to add the technology to their arsenals, such as through pilot programs or staff training, according to the report. For example, 51% of respondents are actively evaluating various potential AI-related changes to their teams, while 40% are allocating a dedicated AI budget.
Contractors and related professionals have experimented with AI to perform key functions in their businesses, including in processing and management of invoices, arbitration functions, security improvements and for contract review.
“The research indicates that the construction industry is approaching an inflection point for AI adoption,” said Steve Jones, senior director of industry insights analytics at Dodge, according to the press release announcing the survey results. “With high awareness, strong interest and powerful validation from early adopters, contractors appear poised for significant expansion in their use of AI-enabled tools.”
Builders also believe AI will help them build a competitive advantage over their peers, the report found, although that belief is bounded by company size. In this regard, 86% of large contractors believe that AI will give them a competitive advantage, compared to only 69% of small or medium-sized companies in these companies.
This belief has developed since the arrival of AI in the construction industry, as construction companies are currently in the midst of an AI arms racewhere companies must adopt new technologies in order not to risk being left behind by more avant-garde colleagues.
As other studies show, however, builders still have significant concerns: 57% of respondents listed the lack of reliability or accuracy in AI production as a top concern, while 54% noted data security and privacy risks as another key issue.
Other differences also emerged due to company size. Among smaller companies, for example, 49% saw the cost of investing in AI as a bigger issue, while only 26% of large companies reported the same.
