Fleet tracking and GPS monitoring are among technologies on the rise in civil contracting, an industry survey says.
Civil Contractors New Zealand chief executive Peter Silcock and Teletrac Navman construction industry specialist Jim French hosted a recent webinar to explore newly-released findings from the 2018 Construction Industry Survey.
The survey received responses from 159 senior managers from across the construction industry.
One of the key findings is 77% of those in the industry are looking to technology for increased labour productivity.
But workforce issues continue to hinder the success of the sector with 63% of contractors saying their needs for staff will increase and 80% naming a lack of skilled workers among their top challenges.
“Ultimately, technology can reduce staff numbers required. But it also drives us towards requiring a higher-skilled workforce. We need to start recruiting people who are technology-ready into businesses, then training them from there,” Silcock says.
He says the current construction skills shortage was a real problem, and the industry was working to overcome this by raising the profile of careers in the industry, retaining skilled workers and working with government to build skills development into projects.
“We’re seeing some of the costs increasing as demand exceeds supply. That puts into question project outcomes, delivery dates and profitability. It creates risk for businesses. In this environment, people are adopting new technologies. That is seen as a solution, but also a challenge because of a lack of people with skills.”
Silcock says the civil construction industry was busy, well-resourced, increasingly technology-focussed, and in need of more motivated and skilled workers. If the skills couldn’t be found in New Zealand, more recruitment from overseas may be necessary, he says.
The 2018 Construction Industry Survey was conducted by Colmar Brunton, and composed in partnership between construction technology company Teletrac Navman and CCNZ, which represents more than 400 civil construction companies across New Zealand.
