From the pandemic to the effects of climate change, chronic staff shortages and supply chain disruptions, the need for infrastructure to change and respond to new demands has never been clearer or more urgent. Productivity improvements through digital asset inspections, remote sensing and intelligent automation are effective, but there is much more that can be done.

The Internet of Things Alliance Australia (IoTAA) Construction Workstream is surveying the industry to better understand the extent and nature of IoT deployments in the sector and identify where there are immediate opportunities to demonstrate the value it can offer. IoT in construction takes many forms; this survey will help estimate the baseline to help the industry better harness IoT and reap the benefits.

The Construction Workstream is looking to identify projects that are:

- Currently leveraging IoT in any form
- Potential candidates to embed IoT technologies in the project.

“While many construction sites haven’t yet fully embraced IoT, there’s a lot of innovation happening in construction companies at project level that solves pockets of need - and we want to raise these companies’ profiles,” says Construction Workstream member, Max Girault from Inauro.

What do we mean by IoT?

IoT (Internet of Things) is “an infrastructure of interconnected objects, people, systems and information resources and the ‘intelligent’ services that allow them to process information from the physical and virtual worlds and react”.

This could be as simple as the automated refuelling of site fuel tanks, the pumping out of site waste based on tank level readings or the use of more complex IoT systems to provide transparency on the quality of concrete pours in a slab.

What does an ideal project look like?

- Mid-sized (under 24 months)
- Replicable (so we can compare the benefits of the use of IoT)
- Identified stakeholder challenges (e.g. noise)
- ESG reporting requirements (energy / fuel use)
- Digital ready (no major connectivity requiring deployment)
- Value to be created (e.g. fixed price builds)

“Smart use of technology through the design and build phases helps identify potential conflicts and delays due to material and equipment choices, enabling alternatives to be identified and impacts on the construction program, costs and schedule to be managed,” says Construction Workstream Co-Chair, Steve Lennon from GHD.

“Adopting digital solutions like a digital twin approach, which can be augmented with IoT, can make the design and management of infrastructure assets far more dynamic,” he added.

If you are aware of any such projects across the design/build phase of a construction project, please click on this link and answer the questions in this brief survey by Friday 16 September 2022.

Steve Lennon is Co-Chair of IoTAA’s Construction Workstream and Practice Director – Australia at GHD.

Max Girault is a key member of the Construction Workstream and Chief Commercial Officer at Inauro.