The construction sector’s embracing of technology will play a crucial role as Australia embarks on the building of nationwide renewable megaprojects, writes Rob Bryant, from construction project management software company InEight.
When the Federal Government’s whole-of-economy Long Term Emissions Reduction Plan was announced in 2021, former Minister for Industry, Energy and Emissions Reduction Angus Taylor acknowledged it was “technology not taxes” that would serve as its backbone. Progress has since been made by the construction sector to steer Australia towards achieving net zero by 2050, however the clock is ticking and more must be done to avoid falling short of the target.
The journey to net zero is a mammoth change-management undertaking for companies and nations. To achieve Australia’s ambitious net-zero goals, the government and private sector will need to turbocharge the pace of energy infrastructure while compressing costs. The construction industry will be a key player in this process, needing to execute accurate and affordable bids; managing megaprojects swiftly with full environmental, social and governance compliance; and minimalising risk to budget and schedule when pace and cost are under sharp focus. This is no easy ask in today’s constrained supply chain and labour shortage environment.
The Long Term Emissions Reduction Plan’s technology investment roadmap includes three pillars: priority low-emissions technologies such as hydrogen and solar, emerging technologies such as reduced methane livestock feed, and infrastructure for deploying low-emissions technologies. Australia has recently moved to address a problem other nations are grappling with while leading the decarbonisation charge: delivering and storing clean energy is a logistical problem because the pace of solar and wind deployment outpaces transmission deployment.
The need for speed in renewables construction
In 2015, China erected 57-storey energy efficient skyscraper Mini Sky City in just 19 days. In 2022, a 75km stretch of highway in India was built in five days. New York’s Empire State Building went from design to opening in 20 months, and was built in one year and 45 days in 1930 and 1931. To build the clean infrastructure needed to meet climate targets, organisations must radically shorten development and construction timelines.
Contractors aiming for massive renewable energy infrastructure projects will be unable to win bids or deliver with efficiency if they are still using manual project management processes. Many renewable projects are first-of-their-kind projects on a unique scale, creating a sharp learning curve in the industry.
There is a major lack of benchmarking around building pipelines or windfarms compared to what exists for building tunnels and bridges. Forward-thinking renewable construction firms are leveraging tech for dynamic, adaptable benchmarking, resulting in less wasted time, materials and labour. As an industry reluctant to lean into the digital transition, failure to recognise the role of technology could mean disastrous consequences for profitability and the planet.
Interoperable technology cultivates frictionless collaboration
Open, interoperable tools are key to encouraging and enabling open and collaborative project management models. They provide a single source of truth to keep all eyes on the same project data. Replacing traditional siloed, sequential project delivery methods with agile and collective approaches will drive leaner and faster development. The development and preconstruction stage is when digital solutions can make the most potent impact in unearthing efficiencies that keep projects on time and prevent surprises.
Contractors such as AG Coombs are using building information modeling – used on the International Convention Centre Sydney – to produce precise virtual models that construction, engineering and procurement teams can see. This translates into fewer changes throughout the build while reducing potential rework that results in wasted materials, time and money.
A single source of truth in renewable construction project data makes a complete real-time view of projects possible, saving significant time when generating and distributing reports, and making important decisions. Construction management tech can help prevent delays and costly surprises when, inevitably, field issues or scope and design changes pop up.
Global management consultancy McKinsey reports onsite productivity can be increased by as much as 50 per cent by implementing a cloud-based control tower that assembles accurate data in near real time that is backwards looking and predictive. By automating scheduling, resource allocation, contracts, procurement tasks and communications, infrastructure project managers can reduce delays and cost overruns.
Inclusive industry ecosystem
Australia’s audacious vision to reimagine its decarbonised energy grid will be at risk if electricity transmission deployment doesn’t catch up with electricity generation, and megaproject stakeholders can’t deliver on time and to budget. Policymakers have set goals and launched incentives but successful execution of a sustainable, efficient and resilient renewable future requires a cooperative effort from the public sector, clean energy generators, clean energy transmitters, communities and other private sector stakeholders.
Rob Bryant is executive vice president, Asia Pacific and Japan, at construction project management software company InEight.