Industry body the Construction Industry Development Board (cidb) places great importance on the role of women in the evolution of South Africa’s construction industry.

Ahead of the cidb ERWIC Awards, set to take place in August, the advancement of women and a greater adoption of new and emerging technologies such as drones, AI and broader construction 4.0 tools in this sector are being canvassed.

The ERWIC Awards recognise excellence across a range of categories, including women-led projects, professional teams, manufacturing entities, mentoring initiatives, transformation efforts, and disability inclusion within the construction sector.

The awards also celebrate individuals such as Woman Mentor of the Year awardees, who are driving career development and creating opportunities for the next generation of women in the industry.

“We are calling on women pioneering the integration of digital technologies and sustainable construction materials into traditional building practices to enter our Innovate Entity of the Year category,” says cidb CEO Bongani Dladla.

The cidb highlights that South Africa’s construction industry continues to lag behind global leaders in the adoption of these emerging technologies with adoption generally remaining limited and uneven across the sector.

Despite this, the industry regulator notes that there is growing evidence of increased participation and the influence of women in this industry, including in technical and leadership roles, thereby contributing to efforts aimed at accelerating digital transformation and meaningfully addressing this gap.

“As the cidb, we know there are women who are adopting these technologies more and more in their businesses. Through recent engagements at events such as Big 5 Construct South Africa and our own roadshows, we’ve seen real enthusiasm across the industry to start implementing technologies that will improve how we build,” Dladla adds.

He says adopting new technology is not just about staying current but that it also leads to safer construction sites, reduces costly rework, improves coordination across trades and boosts profitability and sustainability across the built environment.

The industry regulator also referred to a University of Pretoria study, titled ‘BIM Adoption and Implementation Trends in the South Africa AEC Industry’, which found that while 73% of industry participants were aware of emerging technologies in the construction industry, practical implementation remained hampered by cost barriers, skills gaps and resistance to change.

To close the representation gap, the cidb urges women to enter given that they remain significantly underrepresented in the construction sector.

“The ERWIC Awards aim to encourage excellence among women and motivate women in construction by promoting visible role models, especially in lower-grade construction categories where representation is even more critical.

“Entry provides recognition of excellence, validates transformation efforts, creates industry visibility for groundbreaking work, and opens networking opportunities with industry leaders,” Dladla concludes.