Construction Project Management Tech Trends for 2020 and Ahead

Construction projects are often huge and complex and managing them is easier said than done.  Project managers need to adopt innovative ways to handle crews, manage materials and minimize costs, all the while ensuring that projects run within timelines. Considering the same prevalent issues, growing needs and immense competition in the industry, technology has become its mainstay today. So when it comes to the current and upcoming trends in the domain, they would always be backed by technology in one way or the other. For project management, firms are greatly relying on software solutions to manage each aspect, from tasks to budget, operations to resource scheduling and risk management. Though construction project management software have been around for some time now, they have now metamorphosed into advanced systems that empower project managers and the industry as a whole. Despite these advancements, there is much on the horizon. Let us list the construction project management trends for 2020 and ahead.

Firms will realize the benefits of tech adoption

A trend that will emerge strongly in 2020 is the growing adoption of construction tech by firms, regardless of the size and scale of projects they handle. While currently, the tech adoption lingers at the lower end of the spectrum in construction, the ease of accessibility and migration along with demonstrated advantages will dominate the push towards it. Given the global disruption by COVID-19, managers and owners would also want to deploy feasible means to reclaim costs and timelines, which can be effectively facilitated by embracing technology. Software vendors will go one step ahead to establish the benefits of leveraging software instead of the legacy paper-based systems. Further, there would be a focus on creating solutions that benefit owners, managers and consultants alike. Product demos will be a part of sales education to ensure value-delivery to the firms. Obviously, stakeholders will be able to see the hard and soft savings they would make by adopting a construction project management solution, in terms of improved management procedures and higher profitability.

Software approach will be purpose-driven

The objective of any software application is to bring efficiency in the accomplishment of tasks and projects with minimum efforts. And when it comes to construction project management, the approach to software development will be more purpose-driven than ever before. Vendors will need to bring a fresh perspective, with the focus on holistic outcomes rather than the individual features of the tool. Needless to say, construction is a domain where clients see the big-picture. Paying too much attention to the individual features of the application takes things in the wrong direction because the users often end up being overwhelmed by the details. The idea is to showcase the business benefits, in terms of how using the solution would help project managers clear away the typical roadblocks and complete the projects within budget, scope and timelines while surpassing quality expectations.

Software solutions will be more user-friendly

Essentially, any technology will yield the desired business benefits only if it is user friendly to the core. The same applies to construction management software solutions as well. User-friendliness and a simple learning curve are, therefore, going to be the top trends for these applications in 2020 and ahead. Consider the fact that all project managers or contractors may not be tech-savvy enough to become proficient with the software unless it is easy to learn and use. Therefore, vendors will look for developing applications that are easy to embrace even for layman users. For example, Zepth takes the lead in this direction, with its simple interface and relevant tools that are easy to access and use. Apart from ensuring the simplicity of the applications they create, vendors will also come ahead with training solutions. Good customer support will also matter because a lot depends on the availability of the vendor to answer questions and clarify the concerns of the users.

Data will be the key

Without any doubt the future belongs to data and it will be all the more crucial for construction project management. The right information and data available at the right time can go a long way in enhancing the project outcomes. So businesses can expect software solutions that offer real-time reporting for budgets, cashflows and contracts. Easy to use and role-based dashboards are an added advantage that vendors can provide in the tools they create for empowering managers and firms with useful data. Clearly visible and accurate data will give managers the opportunity to make better decisions for balancing cost, reliability and performance to deliver projects that match the expectations of clients in every way possible. So data management will be a part of project management solutions of the future. And it will be a vendor initiative to assist their customers in making a move from their legacy systems to a cutting-edge technology-based platform.

While these will be the innovations that are likely to transform construction management tech in 2020, some things will remain the same. Primarily, these will relate to the efficiency expectations from the software solutions because managers will want them to deliver the current features while making them just bigger and better. Streamlining stakeholder communication and interactions will continue to be the top priority as it lowers friction and increases control. At the same time, these tools should be capable of automating scheduling, messaging and loads of other typical tasks to reduce the chaos that project managers and builders face every day. Overall, 2020 will be all about ramping up construction tech to open new opportunities and drive simplicity for the industry as a whole.