The construction industry for instance, has witnessed an escalating growth over the last few years. And with the IoT technology, the construction job-site industry has beyond the confinements of labor and material management. Today, it includes highly advanced and smart devices such as Gen Z wearables, invariably advanced drones and sensors. The level at which the Internet of Things is creating the buzz is remarkable. According to a report, the total number of Internet of Things connected devices globally stands at 23.14 billion in the current scenario. It is expected to upsurge at 31 billion by 2020. Another profit booster that would probably ignite your mind to go for the drive is the encouraging IOT global market stats. You would be utterly pleased to note that it would scale up new heights to around $457 billion by 2020. Therefore, the time is right for you to shift the gears of your construction business. Chad Hollingsworth, Co-Founder, and CEO of the Triax Technology view that this futuristic technology would become the epicentre of data collection at the job site. It would automatically record all information on the number of workers, tools and equipment, project site and environment sending it into a cloud. It would get added support from other software and analytics tools. He further adds that if the construction-based companies succeed in gathering the data, the data technologies can offer new impetus to business. The IoT connected devices in association with sensors would aid in proper waste management and disposal, find the threats and hazards for workers, automate time and attendance, and increase the level of productivity and safety. IoT and BIM Software and IT giant IBM correlates the Internet of Things with Building Information Model. It says that the data from the connected devices and sensors would be transferred to Building Information Model (BIM). Believe it or not, this would be a huge blessing for the building. It would unlock vital parameters such as the fluctuations in the temperature, monitor the humidity and motions. In fact, the purpose behind initiating the BIM model is to check how a building reacts to the exterior weather and environmental conditions. Recently, we have witnessed a number of sudden bridge collapses even claiming a few lives as well. Now, this is where the BIM model would come to the rescue. Its data from the sensors would offer pivotal insights on the neighbourhood ongoing constructions and its impact on the bridge. In addition, it would also indicate if the bridge has the capacity to bear the overload. You can get familiar with vital information on the wear and tear of the building or bridge after a prolonged period. IBM has also developed an IBM Watson IoT service to keep a track record of unlike data that building produces over time. This helps the managers take quick decisions regarding the upkeep of building. IoT a Boon for Working Site The Internet of Things isn’t only a handy customer for evaluating the condition of the building but also the sensors help to measure the pollution in the atmosphere. If the level of dust and other toxic gases increase, the sensors send an immediate alert to the workers to take precautionary measures. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics states that one out of every five private company is involved into construction business, which affects the health and efficiency of about 7 million U.S. construction workers. Austin Conti, founder and CEO, Tenna, opines that data received from RFID sensors and IoT devices keep the track record of the driver behavior and is also operational in managing the fleet of trucks moving and out of the construction site. In fact, the IoT sensors attached to the vehicles are more than useful in reducing the number of accidents. The GPS technology supports the managers to track the location of the drivers. It keeps a vigilant eye on the supply chain of the materials. Any loss or theft of materials is instantly recorded and the data is transferred to the concerned authority or the contractor. The RFID helps managers know when the product will be delivered to them. The RFID technology is a great asset for the construction industry. Using this, the managers can identify where the machine is being employed at the site. In addition, they can also check the prevailing condition of the machine and determine if it requires maintenance. Plus, if the machine has developed a snag, it can be identified in real-time using the sensors attached to it. Real-world Challenges of IoT in Construction To tell you the plain truth, IoT will do a word of good for the construction industry if implanted in the proper manner. It surely has to face a few challenges as well. Firstly, the biggest test is to train the on-site managers and workers more importantly in deploying the correct skills. The workers need to be data literate in order to comprehensibly take advantage of this modernizing technology. There are a few concerns related to the security of some IoT devices. The risk is associated with data hacking, which needs to be addressed. Wrapping up the Discussion The Internet of Things has become the most modernized widespread technologies in the current arena. AppDirect, a company that specializes in IoT services, cloud data management software is of the view that seven out of ten Fortune100 Companies offer IoT products, services, or initiatives. So, you should also start thinking of integrating the IoT connected devices and sensors to keep pace with the business world and future technology. You would be surprised to note that the JCB machines has been connected to 10k construction machines to monitor the performance and aid in resource planning. All the professional individuals working in construction sector will hugely get benefited from it.
