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The construction industry has encountered numerous unprecedented challenges in the past years, including projects coming to a standstill, significant increases in material costs, and even insolvency in some cases.
In the current year, we continue to experience the impact of the pandemic and other economic uncertainties. As a result, there are concerns about what challenges the construction industry may face in the future and the technology that will help.
To understand the same, we interviewed Demi Knight Clark to bring her perspective to light.
Who Did We Interview?
Motivational Speaker, WBE, Woman in Welding Science, Construction Activist & TedX Change Agent.
A woman who renounces fearlessness & rather calls it being “unf*ckwithable” in life (women setting boundaries from the field to the boardroom), Demi has done everything from swing a hammer to lead thousands of team members to goals in publicly-traded companies.
She helps individuals, employee resource groups, businesses & trade associations throw their own sparks in equity, inclusion, goals & “crucial conversations” to move the needles within groups on ROI.
Through curated speaking, Spark Sessions facilitations &/or in-person trade shows, she helps these populations dream bigger & accomplish goals beyond their wildest summit.
She was the youngest of seven top women leaders in the largest homebuilder in the world. Ironman finisher, 12x marathoner & Six Star Finisher (finishing all the World Major Marathons – London, Boston, Chicago, New York, Berlin, Tokyo).
A Guinness Book of World Records Holder. Survivor of the 2013 Boston Marathon tragedy as one of the last five timed & scored finishers (10 yards from the first detonation).
A founder of She Built This City, empowering women+ & girls in trades with onboard programs. Accomplished mountain climber with Kilimanjaro, W Trek, Iceland & Salkantay under her belt in some of the world’s toughest conditions.
Now, she’s one of only 2% certified Women Business Enterprises (WBEs) in Construction with her company Spark Building Group - with an emphasis on welding/metal fabrication & general contracting.
I see it as full of automation, innovation & workforce development. In that order, we’re going to solve a lot of the workforce development with AI, ChatGPT, and cobots (collaborative robots).
Before construction industry longtimers throw me out of the room, I’ll remind everyone of the conversations I know are going on weekly if not daily in most large c-suites – the war for recruitment & retainment of the next generation.
We’ve got to remarry manufacturing with technology to not only attract GenZ & beyond – but also to solve the desperate need for skills.
See #1! I’d say the first is honestly supply chain costs & constraints – which to me is always an opportunity because when we have a resource constraint (or even better, it’s taken away completely), we are forced to think with a lean mentality.
Innovate until it’s replicable, then scale. We’re walking into a recessive economy, so that also adds staffing challenges, budgetary questions & on-time deliveries.
When you add the need for talent, it creates a required turning point – changing the narratives on careers.
What used to be a foreman (not necessarily an inclusive term) is now a project engineer with automation and humans combined. And what is the path required for training those roles?
Cobots are my favorite right now, since I’m heavily into the welding space. They have the ability to scale so many positions on a parallel path to humans (ie, not replace them – let’s all embrace it with an abundance mindset vs. scarcity).
3D printing will aid the inventory & supply gluts in residential homebuilding; drone & AI technology to aid in inspections and project management. These all have the ability to elevate us, as well as elevate the wages for the professionals who specialize in this.
It’s a full circle because we can take those technologies into schools and tie them back to the STEM story they are already learning.
Let’s face it – kids aren’t throwing hammers anymore in shop class, so we’ve got to add the hammers as basics in STEM/engineering classes as a foundational element before the robotics.
I see a lot more prefabricating, which is where the industry was going pre-COVID. Post-COVID, it’s a requirement to add sustainability and a more eco-friendly story to the next generation with emissions and materials.
Technological innovation due to staffing constraints and overhead; and a renewed emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion – a topic denied in most companies for decades because of the boom times.
Marry manufacturing with technology.
“Put your big girl pants on & get in the arena. And ABC – always be curious.” They are reminders to keep pushing boundaries and also keep the floor open to questions, new insights, and perspectives.
I have a tendency to be bullish for change, so I need to soften repeatedly with “tell me more” questions and curiosity!
More Details
She is passionate about solving deltas for women & moving the needle of equity – proving that welding is a STEM career & GenZ will use welding science to put us on Mars with NASA & SpaceX.
As a government & private sector entrepreneur, consultant to business & TedX Speaker (What Would Happen if We Gave More Girls Blowtorches?), Demi throws sparks for audiences around the world.
Shawn Sauve
VP - Sales Dynamics Practice Lead
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