Construction sector sees analytics, AI and ML as key growth area

More than 90% of capital project and construction professionals in APAC are optimistic about their organisation’s future with 78% citing digital transformation as a key growth opportunity, according to InEight Inc. Global Capital Projects Outlook.

In APAC, 78% of respondents saw data analytics, artificial intelligence and machine learning as most critical for success for the next one to three years.

The respondents were, however, divided on the ongoing impact of the economic situation, with 59% identifying economic recovery as an opportunity and 52% identifying economic stagnation or recession as a risk to their organisation’s growth in the coming year.

When it comes to delivering projects on time, 61% of respondents in APAC said that, in the last three years, the number of projects delivered on or ahead of schedule has increased, compared to 56% and 54% in Europe and the Americas respectively.

Delivering projects on budget remains a challenge within the APAC region, with 20% of APAC respondents revealing that the average cost of a project that goes over budget is 15–20% over the original approved budget.

However, encouragingly, 89% of APAC respondents are confident of completing future projects on or ahead of schedule and 91% are confident of doing so on or under budget. These figures reflect the highest levels of confidence in comparison to the 83% and 82% reported globally.

Commenting on the outlook, Rob Bryant, EVP APAC, InEight, said, “While investment in the sector is increasing, organisations increasingly acknowledge the importance of digital transformation to keep projects on time and on budget.

“Respondents in the region are acutely aware that lagging behind competitors in their digital transformation efforts presents the biggest risk to their organisations in the coming year. In fact, more than half of respondents list this as the biggest threat, compared to 30% in the Americas and 37% in Europe.

“The region shows strong appetite to invest in digital transformation, but this enthusiasm is being hampered by difficulties with integration and implementation, as well as issues such as a lack of available capital and return on existing investments.”

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