National + Apartments | March 29, 2021

NAIOP Report: Construction Industry Turns to New Technologies

The NAIOP Research Foundation reported that technology is making an impact on construction, an industry that had been historically slow to embrace innovation. Titled “An Overview of Emerging Construction Technologies,” the report identifies technologies currently in use, including modular construction and building information modeling, along with emerging technologies such as mass timber and robotics.

The construction industry’s complexity and its fragmentation among many small, specialized firms have slowed the adoption of new technologies, the report says. Most projects’ unique requirements have also limited the opportunities to create economies of scale that support investment in technologies.

“However, recent advances are increasing the efficiency, flexibility and adaptability of many emerging construction technologies, making them more cost-effective for firms to adopt,” the report says. “A significant and protracted labor shortage in the construction trades is also increasing the costs of conventional construction methods, making labor- and time-saving technologies more attractive.”

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About Paul Bubny

Paul Bubny serves as Senior Content Director for Connect Commercial Real Estate, a role to which he brings 13-plus years’ experience covering the commercial real estate industry and 30-plus years in business-to-business journalism. In this capacity, he oversees daily operations while also reporting on both local/regional markets and national trends, covering individual transactions across all property types, as well as delving into broader subject matter. He produces 15-20 daily news stories per day and works with the Connect team and clients to develop longer-form content, ranging from Q&As to thought-leadership pieces. Prior to joining Connect, Paul was Managing Editor for both Real Estate Forum and GlobeSt.com at American Lawyer Media, where he oversaw operations at both publications while also producing daily news and feature-length articles. His tenure in B2B publishing stretches back into the print era, and he has served as Editor in Chief on four national trade publications. Since 1999, Paul has volunteered as the newsletter editor of passenger rail advocacy groups (one national, one local).