The construction industry has embraced digitalization to an extent, having seen great progress in the development of Building Information Modeling and design. But at the end of the day, construction is still an industry that runs on massive amounts of human time and labor. The complexity of building designs today means that operational complexity for construction teams have also increased in kind.

Workers are introduced to new materials and methods all the time and must work with constantly changing building codes and regulations. A great degree of careful planning needs to go into coordinating collaboration with suppliers and contractors to ensure projects progress smoothly and without delay. And because teams and operations are often exposed to the elements and often hazardous work environments while racing to meet deadlines, safety is also a crucial factor.

Construction companies need the ability to stay on top of all these things while also finding ways to keep project costs low and drive efficient operations to meet project deadlines and customer expectations. All this can be made possible by leveraging a solution capable of bridging the gap between virtual designs and real-world operations to keep construction teams focused on their goals.

Key Capabilities Every Construction Company Needs

Safety is of utmost importance in any construction project, and traditionally, this requires site teams to be briefed by third-party experts and operational leaders who may share information via email or handouts. A modern approach to this would be to create a collaborative virtual environment where workers can be briefed with information that can be visualized and easily understood, with a space for additional feedback or comments to ensure everyone is on the same page.

Construction sites are dynamic, and teams often have to adhere to changes in design details and operational schedules over the course of a project. The use of paper documents and charts do not lend themselves particularly well to conveying new information on project updates as they can quickly become outdated. Construction teams can streamline project changes with on-site operations better by relying on 3D virtual models to plan operational tasks and schedules and convey the instructions to the rest of the team digitally.

Lastly, construction companies need the ability to meet deadlines and deliver a high standard of quality as project overruns are very costly, often resulting in penalties and a negative impact to the company brand. To keep teams focused and working like a well-oiled machine, leveraging a collaborative virtual environment will enable the sharing of complex information that can be visualized and easily understood. With all team members on the same page, all meetings can run efficiently, and teams can work with more autonomy with minimal operational waste.

A Lean Solution for Team Engagement and Efficiency

These capabilities are made possible through DELMIA 3DLean, a collaborative digital solution that helps construction companies connect the dots between people, ideas and data. Powered by the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, 3DLean leverages virtual universes to model and optimize resources and work processes before executing them flawlessly in the real world.

3DLean has already helped many construction companies raise the efficiency of their operations and teams, delivering significant results and benefits:

• Workers feel more involved in meetings
• Issues can be identified and resolved much faster
• Employees can find necessary information much easier
• Significant time savings from more efficient processes
• Significant improvement in overall productivity

Learn more about 3DLean, how it works and how it benefits your construction company by downloading our ebook.