The US National Institute of Standards and Technology found that the U.S. construction and engineering industry is losing over $15 billion per year as a result of the industry's continued paper-based business processes, lack of standardization and overall lack of consistent approach to technology deployment among leading organizations.

Today, success is achieved by reducing costs, complying with government and industry regulations, meeting project deadlines and assuring quality results. There's also been a shift away from centralized construction operations to a more distributed model. Today, firms are fighting to stay competitive and reevaluating business practices in order to improve efficiencies and increase revenue.

The current state of the architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) industry has resulted in a need for greater collaboration among a highly mobile and distributed workforce. As documents and drawings are in a constant state of revision, traditional pen and paper processes of data reporting on the job site have proved to be time consuming and inefficient. According to the Construction Industry Institute, as much as 25 percent of the cost of construction is wasted due to inefficiencies in the field through coordination errors, wasted materials, labor inefficiencies and other problems in the traditional construction approach. 

Construction Technology Adoption
Although the AEC market has lagged behind other markets in the implementation of technology, companies are now embracing mobile technology solutions for real-time collaboration and communication in the field. There is an acknowledgement that mobile technology can address current challenges and drive decision making at the point of interaction.

Construction and engineering workforces are inherently mobile, yet firms have rarely leveraged wireless communication networks to connect these remote workers to their assets. Project managers can benefit greatly from real-time access to information, including inventory, raw materials delivery and general project management data. By implementing a mobile technology solution designed specifically for the construction market, companies can significantly raise productivity, reduce costs and improve their bottom line.