Boosting productivity through automation
It's no secret that the construction industry struggles to operate at peak productivity. In fact, there's barely been any growth in productivity over the past 20 years - largely due to the industry's fixed ways of working and unwillingness to change. But this unwillingness to change is negatively impacting not only productivity, but also profit margins.
Take mechanical, electrical and plumbing installations, for example:
- Mistakes in planning and execution can lead to inefficient on-site improvisations and costly reworks
- Coordinating multiple players with overlapping applications can be complex and expensive
- Repetitive work can be time-consuming, error-prone and demoralising
- Overhead work can be inefficient and physically demanding
- Skilled labour shortages can result in poor-quality installations that need to be redone
But even a slight bump in productivity can translate to a significant amount of money, especially on large and major projects. So, if increasing productivity is key to long-term success, where do you start? You start by evaluating your workflows end-to-end, identifying their inefficiencies and finding ways to optimise and then automate the processes.
The automotive and agriculture industries have already demonstrated that automation and digitisation can significantly boost productivity. A similar transformation can benefit the construction industry too. After all, it’s a relatively systematic and controlled industry - meaning it’s well positioned to take advantage of automation and digitisation.