AN INVESTIGATION ON THE IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGICAL ADVANCEMENT ON THE PERFORMANCE OF CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

The performance of construction industries depends on several factors. With the increasing level of sophistication in the construction industry, companies are turning to innovative technologies and approaches to gain a competitive advantage (Renz et al., 2016). At the same time, construction technologies are being developed faster than the rate of their implementation, and the industry is yet to benefit from their full potential (Construction Industry Institute, 2021). An analysis by McKinsey and Company of Venture Capitalist (VC) investments trends has found that VC investment growth in construction technologies has outpaced VC investment growth in other industries by approximately 15-fold, with clear indications of continuing momentum (Bartlett et al., 2020).  

Beyond that, building Information Modeling (BIM) has been found to be fast, more efficient, and more accurate planning and construction, increasing productivity as well as cost and time savings, and enabling simultaneous contribution to the system from all project stakeholders (Guo et al., 2017; Torres et al., 2018; Dadi et al., 2022). Also, artificial intelligence has helped contribute to the improvement of services and business operations, and improved automation processes of industries to give them a competitive advantage (Abioye et al., 2021). similarly, drones have contributed to overall cost reduction and fewer project delays, improving the safety record, and provided the capability of generating high resolution aerial imagery used for more accurate data collection and surveying (McGuire et al., 2016; Hatoum and Nassereddine, 2022).

Additionally, robotics and autonomous machinery  has facilitated construction processes, and has been found to considerably reduce costs and time spent on construction tasks, as well as improve the quality of executed product (Prasath Kumar et al., 2016; Hatoum and Nassereddine, 2020). Hence, professionals in the construction industry need to make use of construction technologies in order to stand a chance to be competitive in the industry. The establishment and efficient use of these innovative technologies will surely increase the competitiveness of construction industry.Also, It is of great importance for construction industry to start making use of more innovative construction technology, especially in the current era. According to Tahum(2019), he said that it is very important for construction firms to make use of innovative technologies because it will enable them to firstly win more projects, and secondly, it will also help them to gain better financial results on the project.Further more, within an industry, technological advancements and information management increases overall efficiency, and eases the process of disseminating necessary information to related projects, which in turn facilitates project completion on schedule per specification guidelines. Therefore, a survey will be conducted in order to investigate on the impact of technological advancement on the performance of construction industry.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

In the construction industry, many problems are more likely to be caused by the lack of adequate supervision and failure of frontline supervisors to provide the necessary planning, information, support, and motivation (Howell, 2019). Frontline supervisors have a critical responsibility of ensuring safe and healthy work practices, and they create the missing communication link between management and the craft workforce (Uwakweh, 2015; Oswald and Lingard, 2019; Ramadan et al., 2022) Additionally, construction industry is plagued with numerous workforce challenges. The skilled craft labor shortage has been a consistent and unfortunate recurring struggle for the past 3 decades (Construction Industry Institute, 2016). Moreover, recent trends show that the construction workforce has been aging rapidly, aggravating the labor shortage challenge and negatively impacting project performance in terms of cost, schedule, safety and technology advancement(Taylor et al., 2016). An important issue facing the construction industry is the declining rate of worker productivity and performance (Shehata and El-Gohary, 2021). Factors involving tools and construction equipment, materials, and technologies were found to have a major impact on the industry performance (Dai et al., 2019). Additionally,  construction industry lacks workforce diversity, particularly gender diversity, where women make up only 4% of the construction craft workforce in the US (US Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2021; Ramadan et al., 2022). Furthermore, the industry has not been able to consistently attract and retain skilled workers due to industry image problems, insufficient training, and inadequacy of technological infrastructures (Tucker et al., 2019). It is in the light of these that the study seeks to investigate on the impact of technological advancement on the performance of construction industry.

 1.3  Objectives of the Study

The main purpose of this study is to investigate on the impact of technological advancement on the performance of construction industry.. Specifically, the study will;

1.  Determine the extent advanced technologies are adopted in the construction industry.

2.  Ascertain the impact of technological advancement on the efficiency and productivity of construction companies.

3. Identify the factors affecting the use of advanced technologies in the construction industry.

1.4 Research Questions

The following questions have been prepared for the study:

1. To what extent are advanced technologies adopted in the construction industry?

2. How has technological advancement impacted the efficiency and productivity of construction companies?

3. What are the factors that affect the use of advanced technologies in the construction industry?

1.5  Significant of the Study

An investigation on the impact of technological advancement on the performance of construction industry will be revealed to construction companies in fostering innovation, and contributing to sustainable and efficient development. Furthermore, this research will be useful to construction workers, on the effectiveness of technologies in workforce.

Additionally, subsequent researchers will use it as a literature review. This means that other students who may decide to conduct studies in this area will have the opportunity to use this study as available literature that can be subjected to critical review. Invariably, the result of the study contributes immensely to the body of academic knowledge with regard to an  investigation on the impact of technological advancement on the performance of construction industry.

1.6 Scope of the study

The scope of this study is boarded on  an investigation on the impact of technological advancement on the performance of construction industry. Geographically, the study will be delimited to staff in Brunelli Construction Company, Nigeria.

1.7 Limitation of the study

In the course of carrying out this study, the researcher experienced some constraints, which included time constraints, financial constraints, language barriers, and the attitude of the respondents.

In addition, there was the element of researcher bias. Here, the researcher possessed some biases that may have been reflected in the way the data was collected, the type of people interviewed or sampled, and how the data gathered was interpreted thereafter. The potential for all this to influence the findings and conclusions could not be downplayed.

More so, the findings of this study are limited to the sample population in the study area, hence they may not be suitable for use in comparison to other schools, local governments, states, and other countries in the world.

 1.8 Definition of Terms

Technology: machinery and equipment developed from the application of scientific knowledge for practical purposes, especially in industry.

Performance: the action or process of performing a task or function.

Construction industry: refers to the industrial branch of manufacturing and trade related to building, repairing, renovating, and maintaining infrastructures