More Construction Companies Filling Labor Gaps With Tech

Answering the crippling labor shortage, many construction companies are raising their base pay, while others are implementing new tech and software to supplement the need for on-site workers.

According to survey data from the Associated General Contractors, more than 25 percent of construction firms are using off-site prefabrication, drones, robots, laser- or GPS-guided machinery to cut back on the number of workers needed, and for the length of time they are needed. The Houston Chronicle notes that more companies say they are "very comfortable" with moving their documents to the cloud than in 2017, up 7 percent to 31 percent.

Dustin Anderson, Sage Construction and Real Estate's vice president of sales, however, observed that a number of companies, especially older ones, resist the idea of the cloud due to cybersecurity concerns. "They're willing to do it with more project-oriented data, things that are more qualitative," he said. But sensitive information, such as how much they will charge for certain projects, could jeopardize their businesses if other companies got ahold of it, since having the lowest bid often means winning a project.

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