400 leading representatives from the construction industry were surveyed, including almost 40% from Europe.

It is no secret that the construction industry brings up the rear not only in terms of the low productivity growth of 1% but also, and above all, in the area of digitalization. According to the McKinsey Industry Digitization Index, only Agriculture and Hunting less digitized - that should have given us food for thought long ago:

At the same time, however, the ranking also shows that real estate is well ahead of construction and is even described as the digital leader within the less digitized sectors - another signal for the construction industry.
You often hear the saying "we've always done it this way, we don't have time for digitalization at the moment". However, in parallel to digitalization, the construction industry is also lagging well behind other industries in terms of growth, as this illustration from the McKinsey "Reinventing Construction" Paper shows:

The current study clearly summarizes the reasons for this - construction projects are complex and always associated with new / increasing requirements, while at the same time we are struggling with an increasing shortage of skilled workers.
It is not news that the construction industry needs to be digitized - this process has already begun, but it is being accelerated by the impact of COVID-19. Not dealing with digitalization is a luxury that we can no longer afford.
The McKinsey study also describes other important factors - such as industrialization and the introduction of new materials and business models, which are summarized in this diagram:
All this leads to 9 factors (top center) that will shape our future:
- Product orientation
Construction is increasingly being transferred from the building site to factories, where building components are assembled automatically using defined modules in a similar way to vehicles on production lines and then simply assembled on site. - Specialization
In order to remain competitive, a high degree of specialization is expected, in which individual companies can offer the highest possible quality and expertise in certain areas (niches). - Higher utilization of the value chain
Planning and construction is highly fragmented today. In the future, we will have to move closer together in order to exploit the full potential of new technologies such as BIM. - Growing together
Due to the aforementioned product orientation and specialization, many areas will grow closer together. - Customer centricity and brand awareness
Today, the motto in many areas is "the cheapest gets the contract". However, with increasing demands and quality requirements, this point will also change and will be strongly influenced by the brand and reputation of a company with regard to the quality of its services. - Investment in technology and equipment
Our product orientation will inevitably lead us to invest not only more in production facilities, but also in new technologies such as robots and automation, as well as discovering new subject areas. - Investment in employees
All of the areas already mentioned are not possible without trained and committed employees, which is why topics such as further training and employee development will play an increasingly important role. - Globalization
Standardization will make it increasingly easy to offer services across borders in the future. However, this process could be slowed down somewhat by COVID-19. - Sustainability
Topics such as the carbon footprint of buildings and the impact of the construction industry on climate change are playing an increasingly important role and will become even more prominent.
According to McKinsey, additional profits of up to USD 265 billion per year are possible in the construction sector worldwide over the next 15 years - we currently seem to be voluntarily foregoing this.
COVID-19 has so far proven to be a major driver of digitalization. It will not and should not be "as before" - rather, we should emerge stronger and not only be better prepared for similar situations in the future, but also increase our productivity.
Hello Mrs. Secerbegovic,
You mention a few interesting points. But the construction industry is diverse.
to point 1:
In some areas, the use of prefabricated elements will certainly enable a significant increase in productivity. But I hope that this does not mean the restoration of the prefabricated building aesthetic according to the socialist model from the Eastern Bloc/GDR - I am writing this as a native Saxon ;).
Point 2:
This is already partly true today. However, this does not per se result in increased productivity through or with the increased use of digital work tools. Less competition on the market tends to lead to a reduction in productivity growth... the "market pressure" is missing.
to point 3:
Whether the holy trinity in Germany consisting of client - planner - contractor will actually be broken up according to the "rest of the world" model remains to be seen - and whether this is to the benefit of quality as well.
to point 4:
It remains to be seen whether, following the usual pattern in many areas of the economy (the IT sector is certainly an inglorious example), oligopolies or even monopolies will conglomerate from the currently still colorful mix of companies.
to point 5:
This depends to a not inconsiderable extent on the overall economic environment.
to item 6:
In some cases yes, in the area of conversions and extensions and in many special construction areas (in my case water management and urban water management) this is less true.
to item 7.
was probably
to item 8.
The construction industry is rather conservative...this is also reflected in the industry language. And language (especially German) is still a massive obstacle to globalization. And: without domestic service providers, "the Chinese" will also fail due to the German approval system.
to item 9:
but this is more of an obstacle in terms of increasing productivity...digitalization or not.
The over-regulation on the part of the authorities is becoming increasingly grotesque. More and more "administrative clerks" are working in the authorities who have no idea about construction and bully planners with pointless demands.
Good luck from Freiberg/Saxony
M. Bucher, aqua-saxonia GmbH