Trends for 2019 in tools and software impacting those in the construction industry

by Brianna Crandall — January 21, 2019 — As many facilities managers (FMs) have experienced when involved with building projects, with every passing year, there are new changes in the construction industry, especially with the rapid development of construction technology (“ConTech”). As the new year approached, real-time construction management software provider GenieBelt took a look at the most exciting areas in construction and construction technology, and selected top noteworthy trends readers should expect in 2019.

According to GenieBelt, five of the Top 10 construction tools and technology trends for 2019 are:

  1. Augmented reality (AR) — Benefits from using augmented reality in construction processes are becoming more obvious. AR is seen to have even more potential in construction than virtual reality.
  2. Data ecosystem — The emergence of a construction data ecosystem is expected, where all the innovative players of the industry will come together and share data, experience and project knowledge.
  3. Construction softwareReal-time collaboration software is already regarded as an essential component of the entire building process. Nevertheless, its impact on the sector is expected to increase substantially in the near future.
  4. BIM — This is one of the hottest construction trends already. BIM technology could be the catalyst for a fundamental change in how we manage, design and develop a construction project.
  5. Increased prefabrication, modularization, and eco-friendliness — There have been growing trends towards multi-trade prefabrication, off-site construction (a.k.a. modularization) and, as a result, improved eco-friendliness in construction processes.

Among other construction trends in 2019, GenieBelt noted:

  • Self-healing concrete
  • Drones
  • Robotics
  • Cloud and mobile technologies
  • Advanced uses of GPS
  • New scanning solutions
  • Wearables, and others

[To see more on how IoT is impacting the 2019 construction industry, see this recently published construction trends article on FMLink.]

For GenieBelt’s complete detailed list of Top 10 construction technology trends for 2019, visit the Copenhagen-based company’s blog.