Project teams are turning to technology to support real-time collaboration in order to operate at higher performance levels. used to remove communication constraints. Cousins says that by utilizing cloud computing and programs such as BIM 360 Glue, Plan Grid and KanBanKit via tablets and smart phones, Turner can manage clash detection and coordination issues in real time, in a dialogue similar to social media.  

To eliminate waste, other firms define metrics to evaluate field performance. On one jobsite, DPR Construction used GoPro cameras to analyze the efficiency of movement among framers and by making simple changes, increase the time spent on value-added activities at the jobsite by 67%, says Christopher Rippingham, a construction technology leader with the firm.

Zigmund Rubel, co-founder of Aditazz, suggested that the best route to high performance construction is to adopt strategies typically used by computer chip manufacturers. By analyzing a customer’s needs using quantitative metrics to choose the most efficient building solution, project teams can ensure that the right building is matched to the client. Then, by prefabricating building elements from a kit-of-parts, building can be assembled faster and with far less waste, Rubel says.

 Just as a computer chip maker would continually verify the quality of its product, construction firms must continually improve processes by checking their work. “Only through verification processes can we meet the increasing demand of complexity in buildings,” Rubel says.