The construction industry is not implementing digital transformation as fast as other industries are and this presents many opportunities for companies.
This was outlined at a Navigating the Future of Projects event, hosted by Oracle Construction and Engineering, in Johannesburg, on Wednesday.
Oracle is supporting this drive toward digitalising the construction industry through the provision of a number of products and services, which assist global organisations in planning, building and operating strategic assets.
Oracle offers technologies, such as its PODS innovation, to create digital construction sites.
PODS uses database architecture to store critical information and analysis data about systems, which can then be managed and visualised digitally.
As part of its efforts and investment in digital transformations, Oracle also recently opened its Innovation Lab, with phase one unveiled on August 23.
This facility, located outside Chicago, in the US, is aimed at allowing project and asset focused organisations to interact with the latest technologies.
Phase two is set to be completed in 2020, Oracle Construction and Engineering global VP Andy Verone said on Wednesday.
Digitalisation also requires a clear strategy to have a properly connected platform across a business and this can be achieved through the use of building information modelling (BIM) software, noted BIM Institute director Vaughn Harris.
However, he noted that using BIM in organisations does result in some challenges, such as education hurdles, and seeking an Africa-centred model.