Five Ways the IoT is Changing Project Management

The use of IoT has revolutionized the way businesses operate, and construction project management is one vertical that has simplified operations through its usage. A study1 by Markets and Markets estimates the growth of construction project management globally at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of around 16.4%. The global IoT market was $12.3 billion in 2022, projected to reach around $26.5 billion in 2027.

Construction project management has the below similarities with regular project management.

1. Assessing needs

2. Site inspection 

3. Estimation of budget

4. Selection and allocation of resources

5. Managing procurement

6. Charting a strategy, identifying challenges, risks, and opportunities

7. Mitigating bottlenecks

8. Tracking progress

9. Testing 

10. Support and Maintenance.

So, how can IoT help transform and simplify construction project management? Here are the top five ways.

Monitoring Construction and Development with IoT

1.Placing sensors on vehicles and supplies allows automatic real-time data monitoring.

IoT sensors on equipment track and analyse key maintenance indicators, such as temperature fluctuations, humidity, weather changes, etc. IoT devices on vehicles give a complete overview of fleet management and delivery timeframes.

With IoT sensors across the construction site, project managers can monitor the activity and the timeframe of completion without being physically present on the site.

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2.Reduce Costs

IoT devices help reduce material waste from a project. Tracking individual construction vehicle usage via IoT sensors eliminates unnecessary spending on underutilized equipment. It also helps them monitor the proper disposal of waste. IoT sensors track power and fuel consumption, ensuring less wastage.

Another way IoT is saving costs is by reducing material construction waste from projects. Using prefabricated building components saves a project more capital and reduces unnecessary waste. IoT-based monitoring enables the timely delivery of large-scale prefabricated components.

3.Simplified Equipment Ordering

IoT sensors aren’t limited to construction equipment. There are sensors explicitly designed to track and document the inventory of certain components. Knowing when to order components is challenging—even on smaller construction jobs. If a construction project manager orders them too soon, storage challenges arise. The project will hit a bottleneck with delayed procurement.

4.Workforce Allocation

Accurate workforce allocation is one of the major challenges project managers face. Now, using historical data, the IoT can simplify this daunting task. By automatically tracking progress and storing data in a simplified dashboard, project managers get the required visibility.

IoT equips your staff with wearable devices that detect any threat the workers face, such as medical issues or moving to a hazardous zone without proper protocols.

5.Historical Data and Predictive Analytics

IoT sensors placed on specified units holding building components facilitate tracking updates in real-time and are accurate when ordering equipment and raw materials. Such devices are also leveraged by analytical tools to get a predictive analysis of raw materials and equipment requirements, based on usage trends.

With IoT, project managers can access many analytics and information throughout the project’s lifetime. This historical data predicts maintenance needs on the finished project.

IoT sensors are placed on various systems to monitor and track environmental conditions. For example, configured IoT devices autonomously shut off an A/C unit on a mild summer day if the temperature drops below a specified mark.

IoT is beginning to change and shape today’s marketplace. IoT enables tracking construction vehicles and components, reducing costs, accurately allocating manpower, and using historical data and predictive analytics to provide the most up-to-date information.

Contact us for more information on how IoT can help you save costs and resources and accurately align with design specifications.

References:

1. https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/iot-construction-market-214544022.html