The Construction Leadership Council has published a research report stating that construction product manufacturers must put more focus on digitisation
The report focused on senior management figures within construction product manufacturing companies, and asked them their views on digitisation.
The report warns that not enough focus is on digitisation
The research, consisting of 80 interviews, found that:
• Most manufacturers do not see digitisation as a major concern.
• Over half see no need to digitise.
• Most provide product information largely via pdf or hard copy only.
• Only 8% have ever made or commissioned a BIM object.
The report also found that, counterintuitively, the majority of construction manufacturers think that digitisation improves profitability.
In spite of the Building Safety Act and Golden Thread guidance making digitised product information a requirement, coupled with the strong benefits for construction manufacturers in digitising information, they are still not digitising information as much as they should.
Construction manufacturers face challenges in digitising information
The issue of digitisation is ranked much lower than many other challenges by respondents, highlighting that construction manufacturers tend to focus on short term challenges much more than long term challenges.
The number one highlighted concern is cost increases, but digitisation is also superseded by staff training/upskilling, carbon footprint/sustainability, and brand perceptions & positioning, amongst others.
Furthermore, the two key barriers for construction manufacturers to digitisation are money/resources, and feeling a lack of need to digitise. Other barriers mentioned include having more urgent priorities, lack of skills, and a lack of clarity on how to digitise.
The president for UK & Ireland at Atkins Réalis, Richard Robinson, said: “80% of the 80 manufacturer leaders interviewed for this research understood the importance of digitisation, however only a few placed digital highly in their priorities, well behind other pressing concerns. We also found that digital transformation journeys are fragmented, and our investment into digital is sometimes misplaced due to a poor understanding of what is possible and what it means to digitalise. I urge you to read this report and consider how it can influence your policy decisions.”
