Industry Trends – Construction Industry R&D

Construction Industry Innovation

In the first quarter of 2021, the construction sector showed rapid growth, with the CPA forecasting that output will rise by 12.9% this year. We look at some construction industry R&D trends that will help realise this.

Current Trends

Creating Something New

  • Experimenting with new materials to create lighter, stronger, more resilient or easier-to-process products.
  • Actualising architects’ designs with custom-built structures.
  • Developing bespoke mechanical (e.g. waste shoots) or electrical systems for buildings.
  • Repairing faulty construction with new remedial solutions.
  • Establishing environmentally sensitive techniques, processes or structures

Restoring Something Old

  • Replicating or refurbishing a building’s traditional features.
  • Safe removal of Asbestos
  • Developing new scaffolding solutions to support refurbishments.

Improving Processes

  • Offsite construction – designing, pre-building, and transporting construction elements to sites.
  • Advancing equipment for the manufacturing or onsite process.
  • Investing in bespoke technology or software for:
    • Manufacturing
    • Specialist training
    • Customer relationships (CRM software)
    • Job management and workflow

Future Trends

Following the Grenfell Tower fire and the Hackitt report the government created a Draft Building Safety Bill last year. The bill is now being brought before parliament and is expected to introduce improved building and fire safety legislation.

Although a positive step, the reform is predicted to require significant investment in innovation by the construction and engineering sectors as they develop new products and processes to meet any new legislations.

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