AI Enables Smarter Construction

What if your building could remind you to change the lights, warn you about a pipe leakage, or automatically turn off the lights after you fall asleep? And robots laid the bricks for your home, and by speaking your ideas to software, it could instantly turn your ideas into a full house design? Sounds like something out of a sci-fi movie. It’s no longer just fiction. It’s already unfolding, powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things (IoT), and Robotics.

AI refers to the process of mimicking the way humans think, interpret, and make decisions. In short, ChatGPT and Yeti videos that you see on your social media are some examples of AI in action. Similarly, IoT refers to the wide network of devices connected to each other through the internet. Fitness trackers that monitor your heart rate and sleep, and home assistants like Alexa, controlling your lights, AC, and music, are all part of IoT. These technologies are now being implemented in construction and could revolutionise the industry in the near future.

Habitation on Mars

In 2016, Apis Cor, a 3D printing construction company in Russia, built the world's first 3D-printed house on the construction site, which was completed within 24 hours. Many believe that this technique is a potential solution for human habitation on Mars. Similarly, the idea of a machine laying bricks has been around since the 1900s. But it has gained more popularity after the 2010s as companies like Semi-Automated Mason (SAM) developed bricklaying robots. These bricklaying robots are seen laying bricks at six times the speed of humans. Also, body-worn gadgets such as the exoskeleton created by Hilti are said to reduce physical effort by half, enhancing safety and productivity. 

Doxel, an AI robot, is capable of monitoring construction sites and providing information about progress and quality of work on the construction site. There are plenty more examples of construction robots, and their potential is overwhelming. Research shows that AI is projected to deliver a 36 per cent compound annual rate of growth in the construction sector from 2024 through 2031. Thus, AI in the construction sector has a promising future. Construction sites continue to report a high rate of worker fatalities. According to data, the construction sector averages 200 accidents per 1,000 workers, which is very large in comparison to other sectors. Hence, construction safety is a serious issue, and here is how integrating technologies can help to reduce these numbers. 

These technologies can help us detect potential safety issues in advance, such as poorly positioned machinery, faulty equipment, and risky actions like not wearing helmets. These can be detected early, and appropriate actions can be taken in time to prevent accidents. Similarly, using sensors on infrastructures like bridges, roads, and buildings can help us detect potential failures early enough to fix them before they result in serious consequences.

Furthermore, labour shortage is a growing problem in the construction industry. People are backing off from construction jobs because they still view these jobs as low-status or undesirable. By integrating robotics and AI in construction, we will be able to reduce this scarcity to some extent. AI and construction robots are best suited for heavy, monotonous, and difficult jobs that put human workers at risk. Thus, these jobs can be replaced by robots. This raises a common concern: Will robots replace workers entirely? Not quite so. While robots are capable of performing tasks more accurately than humans, they still need human assistance in many tasks. Their work quality needs to be checked, and a touch of human creativity is always necessary. Therefore, for now, they will be assisting workers rather than replacing them.

These concepts began way earlier in other countries, but they are not widely used in Nepal yet. However, there are some early examples of these technologies being adopted in Nepal. The Landslide Early Warning System (LEWS), experimented in Sundarwati village of Dolakha, is an example worth mentioning. It triggered warning sirens after detecting early signs of landslides, potentially saving the entire village. Nepal’s mountains and geographical structures have created hurdles for development. Unstable hills are prone to unpredictable landslides and flash floods, claiming lives and causing huge economic losses. 

Preventive measures

Technologies like LEWS, an IoT-based system, are used to collect data and predict potential landslides and floods in advance, thus allowing us enough time to take preventive measures. Nepal is also vulnerable to earthquakes, and integrating Structural Health Monitoring (SHM) systems that detect any potential structural failure in buildings and bridges can prevent catastrophes from their collapse, thus saving millions of people from natural disasters. There are numerous companies in Nepal that have been providing home automation solutions like smart locks, security cameras, smoke detectors, automatic gates, and remote appliance control. But Nepal still has a long way to go in this front.

The construction industry is undergoing a revolution. With the help of AI, IoT, and robotics, we are enhancing worker safety, speeding up project timelines, and creating intelligent buildings, thus redefining what’s possible. While global industries are moving fast, countries like Nepal are just beginning to explore the potential. Early pilot projects like LEWS and local smart-home solutions have inspired the use of technology. But we are still behind others. In order to catch up with this global trend, we must invest in researching its potential in Nepal and call on scientists, engineers and policymakers to work together. It’s time for Nepal to move from pilot projects to national strategies — not just to catch up with the world, but to build a safer, smarter, and more resilient nation.

(Pudasaini is a civil engineer and a researcher focused on smart construction and innovation.)