Breaking Ground: The Latest Trends in Construction Company Services
Construction companies have seen remarkable advancements over the past few decades in an industry markedly unchanged for centuries. As the largest sector in the world, construction is an essential part of the world’s growth, but its practices have rarely changed to keep up with the times.
Until now.
The innovations in technology since the World Wide Web have impacted every industry. These advancements integrated into construction, coinciding with population booms in major cities across the globe.
Between virtual technology and the demand for new growth, those in the construction industry can no longer afford to sit still and hold onto old practices. The times, they are a-changing, and these trends coming down the pipeline over the next decade promise to make construction look significantly different.
1. Virtual Design Is Taking Over
The pandemic paved the way for many businesses to choose fully virtual implementation. Now that it’s become part of life, the construction industry has embraced this digital shift by implementing virtual design practices like Building Information Modeling (BIM).
Those in the construction sector with skills in virtual design and construction (VDC) help clients turn their visions into reality through artificial intelligence (AI). Using these technologies, structures are built virtually from start to finish before any action begins in the real world.
With virtual environment construction, engineers and architects predict and observe problems, make blueprint changes, and perfect the designs. This saves time and money and effectively reduces faulty buildings and safety issues.
2. Wellness and Sustainability Are Key
Climate change and saving the environment for future generations have been hot topics since before the 21st Century. However, since the pandemic, living sustainably and living well have become the priorities for millions of people — and are included in local, state, and federal construction regulations.
Construction companies actively seek new, green-friendly strategies and incorporate them into their practices. In some situations, this enhances the structure’s affordability or aids the client in long-term cost savings through reduced utility bills.
Other companies add wellness features like fitness centers to their list of skills. The fitness industry is also rising, but designing and constructing these buildings requires specialized knowledge and adherence to zoning, regulation, and safety codes. This article by ZP Architects discusses the details behind fitness center construction.
Whether sustainability or wellness is the goal, the trends show that companies that integrate these two factors into their construction processes will see a profit increase over the next few years.
3. Fast, Efficient Building With Prefab and Mod Construction is Default
Decades of research into prefabrication and modular construction trends have revealed these building practices are efficient, safe, and long-lasting — more than a passing trend. Construction companies use these methods to build over half of a structure off-site, saving time and money.
With prefab practices, parts of a structure are designed, assembled, and manufactured in a dedicated warehouse. Those pieces are then transported and connected to the building.
What began as a tentative experiment with a handful of parts continues to grow into a multi-billion dollar industry. With the knowledge and trust of years of experimentation, the types of prefab parts built off-site will continue to grow.
Modular construction is similar to prefab, with the entire building created off-site in small, transportable sections called modules. Industries like healthcare, multifamily structures, hotels, and motels benefit from these cost-saving methods. Repetitive blueprints for similar rooms, offices, or apartments make it simple to design a piece of the structure, replicate it off-site, and affix it to the larger building on the property when it’s finished.
4. Smart Construction
Homes and businesses integrated with the Internet of Things (IoT) have incredible advantages. As smart construction expands, these interconnected structures become the norm.
These smart devices are more convenient and enhance the safety and sustainability of a home or business. Connecting the structure’s environment to an app lets the user control the temperature, lock and unlock doors, open or close the garage, and much more — all from anywhere in the world.
Safety practices let manufacturers, security, and property managers monitor appliances from a distance, stepping in before small problems become expensive headaches.
Smart technology is still a work in progress, but the growth in this construction industry sector is expected to continue at remarkable speeds. Companies that offer smart integration are in demand, and the benefits of learning and applying cutting-edge technology make it worth the time and effort of getting certified.
Conclusion
Trends often change, with what was once en vogue becoming passé. But when the construction industry decides to embrace something, you can rest assured it’s a method that will stand the test of time. The trends we see today and on the horizon will grow and expand, shifting the industry into a more efficient, streamlined, and affordable process from inception to construction.
