Survey: Construction growth harmed by ‘legacy tools’

Almost a third of respondents admitted that their current tools are causing them to lose out on projects

The construction industry is seeing historic growth but legacy tools and hiring difficulties are the top concern for industry professionals, according to a recent study commissioned by Planera, a US-based visual scheduling and planning solution company.

The Construction Tech and Workforce Report, which surveyed construction industry managers and executives within the US, gathered data on the integration of new technologies into the pre-construction planning process and the associated challenges.

When asked about modernising their tech stack, 90% of respondents stated that tech modernisation is important, but 37% of respondents said that it is difficult to find people with the experience necessary to integrate and utilise these tools.

While most of respondents (91%) are using a scheduling solution, 66% think their solution is too complex and challenging to use. Almost a third (31%) of respondents admitted that their current tools are causing them to lose out on projects and, in turn, profit.

Although 89% of respondents are prioritising investments in construction planning tools as the market grows, the difficulty finding talent is a major obstacle; 27% said it’s a challenge finding and recruiting people with the right skills to execute projects.

More than half of respondents said they need to recruit talented people and improve the technology infrastructure to execute new projects, with only 38% saying that they feel sufficiently staffed to handle an influx of new construction projects. However, only 48% of respondents have a plan to address talent shortages.

“The critical need for tech modernisation to simplify and streamline the construction planning processes is well-recognised by the industry, but many construction professionals are still using outdated legacy tools to schedule their projects,” said Nitin Bhandari, founder and CEO of Planera.

“In order to keep pace with the influx of new projects and a continuously growing market, it is imperative for construction leaders to find solutions that are both technologically advanced and easy to use. This positions them to not only have the tools necessary to prepare accurate bids and schedules for projects, maintaining both efficiency and profitability, but also prevents them from having to hire employees with a specialised skill set to manage this technology.”