Early adopters report a spectrum of results from AI technologies, ranging from successes to unexpected challenges, according to a panel session during the National Institute of Science Building Innovation Conference of the Construction of 2023.
AI has been around for years, like smart homes and smart phones. But as apps like ChatGPT, an AI-powered language model, or Midjourney, an AI-powered program that generates images, continue to capture the interest of the general public, construction executives are beginning to wonder how to use these tools in their operations.
Even the US government recently expressed curiosity about AI use cases, said Jay Kline, director of project management at NIBS, during the Sept. 6 panel in Washington, DC. This is a step in the right direction for the construction industry.
For example, the Federal Highway Administration recently announced a new $85 million grant program that state transportation departments can use to fund construction technology. This program will focus on digital construction methods such as computer modeling and 3D design.
“Construction is at the bottom of the digitization world,” Kline said. “While there has been much progress, there are still many opportunities for business, growth and efficiency.”
Consigli, a general contractor based in Milford, Mass., already recognizes these opportunities for AI adoption. The general contractor identified precision, performance and materials as three areas where AI is already making an impact, said Roger Grant, vice president of construction technology at NIBS.
For example, accurately, Grant said roof plans are a challenge for design teams. But a computer can generate a very precise roof plan or mechanical room layout, he said.
“In buildings, there are a lot of materials that go into a 20,000-square-foot building. There’s, say, 3.6 kilometers of pipe or cable trays, or 17 kilometers of pipe, and so we can use AI to reduce material usage,” Grant said. “The idea is that AI increases what the designer does to identify what the requirements are and then use AI to optimize. That’s the main idea.”
Another simple use case involves uploading PDF documents to a low-cost tool, such as ChatGPT, to generate quick estimates, said Kimon Onuma, president of Onuma, a Pasadena-based architecture and planning firm. California
“We had a 100-page plan for a Tokyo project that included things like resilience, risk and what we do in case of earthquakes, how many houses we want, everything that was written there,” Onuma said. “We basically fed it into ChatGPT and asked it to summarize it for us. Then we used that to start planning.”
Challenges remain for widespread adoption
A common misconception about AI is that it’s a quick plug-and-play tool for construction executives. That expectation can leave practitioners disappointed, Onuma said.
There are actually hundreds of AI tools available. For this reason, it’s important to experiment with these tools to find the application that works best for individual projects and workflows.
Onuma compares this process to iPhone apps, for example, where a user might download and then delete an email or music app in search of their favorite experience. A similar process of trial and error should also be expected with AI, Onuma said.
“It’s not perfect, but it’s important to experiment and then use the lessons learned in your real projects,” Onuma said. “That’s what we’re doing.”
AI also lacks the “human perspective,” Kline added, which includes real creativity and emotion. So while AI can help with code compliance or design plans, the tools still lack the creative flair that humans possess.
“You can automate things today, there’s no reason to wait,” Onuma said. “But you also have to be careful with what the AI tells you because it makes mistakes, which means the eyeballs have to be on top.”
