The Impact Of Big Data On Different Phases of Construction

By their nature construction projects tend to be massive endeavors. And huge projects naturally involve the use of huge quantities of data. The construction and building industry is steeped in big data that’s available in all the records and plans of any structure ever built.

This data is becoming bigger and bigger over time and springs from varied sources such as material supply chains, earthmovers, on-site workers, cranes and even the building structures themselves. Construction business owners are opting for dedicated big data strategy consulting to discover hidden patterns, complex correlations, and other valuable insights.

Let’s have a look at how big data is already being leveraged by the construction industry by examining the design-build-operate lifecycle that is increasingly being used for construction projects at present.

Design phase

In this phase, data including stakeholder input, environmental data, digital media discussions and historical reports can all be consolidated to determine not only what to build but also where it should be built.

The Ivy League school, Brown University in the US successfully used big data to determine the venue of its new engineering centre, to facilitate optimum benefit for both students and the university.

Additionally, historical big data is being studied to figure out probabilities and patterns of construction risks, in an effort to ensure successful construction projects and steer away from potential challenges. Armed with big data strategy consulting your construction projects will easily align with the project roadmap.

Build phase

Synthesized big data from sources like traffic, weather, as well as business and community-related activity, can be studied to establish optimized phasing of the construction plans.

Inputs from sensor-based machines on site, which gauge the active and idle time can be analyzed to reach decisions about the ideal mix of buying and leasing the equipment in question and the best way to use fuel efficiently to decrease costs as well as the impact on the ecology.

Fitting out the equipment with geolocation gives you efficient logistics, sufficiently available spare parts and eliminates any possible downtime.

Operate phase

Big data extracted from in-built sensors in bridges, buildings and any other structures constructed allows you to track their performance on various levels. Office blocks, smart buildings and malls can be monitored to check whether their energy conservation levels conform to the initial design objectives. 

Sensors will be able to gauge levels of flexing and traffic stress information in bridges and forecast any potentially dangerous outcomes. Data from this phase can also be entered into building information modelling (BIM) systems to set up maintenance requirements, when necessary.  

Big data and analytics are paramount to the future of businesses in all sectors. Construction business owners can harness this raw data and turn it into actionable insights. This gives them the capacity to make informed decisions and accelerate their business value.