Emirates: Industries and markets are evolving quickly than ever because technology is a constant in this journey. In the construction industry, this rings true when solving and addressing specific tasks, from snagging to document management. With increased remote collaboration in the post-Covid-19 environment, the industry should provide tools that connect the dots and offer value. Only then will the industry unlock the greatest level of performance which real-time insights can offer.

Currently, the challenge for construction companies is not in capturing data but in extracting valuable insight from it. Our commissioned research found that over two-thirds (71 per cent ) of construction managers surveyed in the UAE are still using outdated manual tools, like spreadsheets, to measure performance. This explains why only 24 per cent rated their level of visibility of performance as 'very high' and others were incomplete, inaccurate, and duplicated insights (over 38 per cent).

Technology is notably helping construction businesses to thrive in the ability to access and use real-time insights to gain visibility of an entire construction life cycle, as well as overall business performance. With this information, businesses are making informed decisions and experiencing a wealth of benefits-including saving them time and money. For instance, real-time insights showing how many days a particular trade takes to resolve the issue can allow project managers to identify the best partners to work with moving forward.

However, the benefits of real-time insights are not purely time and money-quality and safety are also two areas to be improved. Almost half of those surveyed (49 per cent) registered fewer defects; 48 per cent reported better tracking of safety records. As a company with a data-driven culture, Visioneer Builders continually strive for industry excellence in quality and safety and is an example of how real-time insights can leverage to set new performance benchmarks.

Real-time insights are helping to save businesses both time and money. Our survey found that every manager, on average, saves nearly a full day's work (almost five hours) each week, while businesses as a whole save Dh 1,275,000 per year. In contrast to those without visibility, globally lose 3.5 hours each week, for Dh1.3 million per year.

Single-platform technology enables applications and tech tools to talk to each other and offers the ability to gain insights to improve workflows and processes - something which is more challenging with point solutions, Excel spreadsheets and traditional pen and paper.

As we head towards a new era of smarter construction, accessing the right technologies and real-time insights will transform the UAE's construction industry.