Emerging Construction Technologies: State of Standard and Regulation Implementation

Abstract

In recent times, construction operations have reported enhanced performance as a result of utilizing reality capture technologies, robotics, and the Internet of things (IoT). However, recent studies indicate that these technologies could struggle to diffuse across the construction industry at an acceptable rate. One reason for the predicted stagnation is the lack of standardization and regulations for these technologies. Given the importance of standards and regulation to technology adoption and the need to keep construction stakeholders informed with industry trends, it is essential to synthesize and document the current state of industry standards and regulations associated with emerging construction technologies. Presently, a few studies have evaluated the current state of regulations affecting some promising construction technologies. However, these studies were limited to national regulations and focused on a specific technology without pointing out important trends, opportunities for interoperability standards, and synergies across multiple technologies. To fill this gap, a global search was conducted to identify and streamline the available standards and regulations governing four promising construction management technologies—exoskeleton, IoT, LiDAR, and UAVs. Technology implementation experts from six countries were interviewed to qualitatively analyze the intersection between standards and regulations and the diffusion of emerging technologies. Results from the study suggest that although there is a growing development and implementation of technology standards and regulations in Western Europe and North America, construction-specific standards and regulations are sparse. In closing, recommendations that could help accelerate the development of standards and practical regulations that drive adoption are provided.