The World of Robotics, Physics and Engineering

Construction firms are grappling with labor shortages. Recent data suggests there were 88,000 fewer construction workers at the end of 2021 compared to pre-pandemic levels. Competition for workers is fierce as firms fight to take advantage of increased demand for infrastructure, housing and other projects.

Over the last several years we’ve seen a major shift in the ways teams work together. With greater pressure to deliver positive project outcomes, many organisations are moving towards integrated or lean methods for project delivery. Technology gives construction firms the opportunity to adapt their processes but this alone isn’t enough. Teams need to be trained on these updated methods and partnering organisations need to “buy-in” to new technology use. Which is why it is so important to find technologies that fit the entire project team.

Medical device manufacturers are struggling to manage the ever-increasing complexity of modern products. Product documents and data are being managed with relatively simple tools, such as Excel, Access, PowerPoint, etc. While these applications are heavily used at manufacturing companies throughout the world, they do not provide engineers with overview, easy accessibility, and traceability over product documents and data.

With fully autonomous construction equipment on the horizon and semi-autonomous equipment already at work on job sites, ENR will talk to some of the early adopters and technology providers for autonomous equipment and sensor-heavy job sites about the benefits and challenges of these new technologies.