A 2014 survey on technology in the construction industry revealed that most professionals use multiple devices for internet access, with desktop computers and laptops being the most preferred. The findings showed a strong preference for business applications, which 69% of respondents reported having on their devices, while 96% indicated they use the internet more for work than personal reasons. The survey highlighted the growing significance of mobile technology and software integration in the construction sector, pointing to future trends such as augmented and virtual reality.

1. TECHNOLOGY MARKET RESEARCH
SURVEY RESULTS

2. INTRODUCTION & OVERVIEW
Technology is going to continue to impact the construction industry in a
multitude of ways in 2015. Building Information Modeling (BIM) is going to
have greater implementation not only from design firms but will also be utilized
by more contractors during construction and by owners using the BIM for
management of completed buildings. Mobile technology will have a greater
presence on the jobsite. Expect to see a lot more tablets, smartphones and
laptops being used on the construction site to better manage projects, increase
productivity and keep workers safe with mobile applications and software-as-a-
service (SaaS) using cloud technology.Thanks to the “internet of things” expect
to see more in the way of building system integration.
The goal of the 2014 Technology Market Research Survey was to gauge
the importance and prevalence of technology in the lives of construction
professionals.The survey questions focused on the type of hardware devices
and software applications that construction professionals are using on a daily
basis.The survey also looked at where construction professionals are accessing
the internet, internet usage for business vs. personal as well as location and
device preferences.

3. SURVEY RESULTS & ANALYSIS
Our first question asked respondents to indicate all the devices they use to
connect to the internet.A majority of respondents are using more than one type
of device to access the internet. Desktop computers and laptops were each
used by 68% of all respondents.This was followed by smartphones at 66% and
tablets at 40%.
When asked to indicate which device they most preferred to access the internet
our respondents were evenly split with 39% indicating they prefer a desktop
computer and 39% preferring a laptop.This was followed by smartphones at 12%
and tablets at 10%.
Desktop/Laptop
Smartphone
Tablet
Which of These Devices Do You Use to Connect to the Internet?
Which of These Devices Do You Most
Prefer to Use to Access the Internet?
68%
66%
40%
39%
39%
12%
10%Desktop
Laptop
Smartphone
Tablet

4. In comparison, when asked which devices they use most often to access the
internet we see a different breakdown from what our respondents’ preferences.
Desktop computers were the most used at 36%, laptops came in second at 32%
followed by smartphones at 25% and tablets at 7%. It’s interesting to note that a
quarter of respondents are using smartphones the most to access the internet
when it was only preferred by 12% of respondents.A larger percentage of
respondents prefer using a tablet over the number of those who use it the most.
When asked where they are when they use the internet, an overwhelming 91%
of respondents indicating they prefer to use the internet at work (47%) or home
(44%). Only 9% of respondents indicated they prefer to use the internet at some
other location.
Which of These Devices Do You Use
Most Often to Access the Internet?
Where Do You Most Prefer to Use the Internet?
Desktop
Laptop
Smartphone
Tablet
Work
Home
Other
36%
47%
32%
44%
25%
9%
7%

5. Where Do You Most Often Use the Internet?
Do You Use the Internet More Often for
Personal Reasons or for Work?
Work
Home
Other
Work
Personal
9%
57%34%
Similarly, 91% of respondents indicated that the place
they most often use the internet was either at work
(57%) or at home (34%) with 9% indicating they
most often use the internet at some other location. In
addition, 96% of respondents indicated that they use
the internet more for work than for personal use.
Our next set of questions focused on the types of
software applications construction professionals
have installed on their digital devices, which types
they use most often and which types are most useful
to them.When asked about the types of software
applications installed on devices, the most revealing
response was the 69% of respondents who have some
type of business app on their device that they use for
managing and operating their business.
96%
4%
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6. Not surprising, business apps were the type of apps most used by our
respondents (35%).This was followed by weather apps at 14%, search tool apps
at 13%, and social networking apps and productivity apps at 11% each.
When asked which apps were the most useful to our respondents, business
apps took the top spot at 38%. Search tool apps were next at 15% and
productivity apps at 14%.
The top six most used and most useful apps were business apps, weather apps,
search tool apps, productivity apps, utility apps and weather apps.The four
types of apps used the least and that our respondents found the least useful
were news, travel, entertainment and sports.
13%
11%
11%
16%
14%
What Types of Apps Do You Use Most Often?
Business Apps
Weather Apps
Search Tools Apps
Social Networking
Productivity Apps
All Other Apps
What Types of Apps are Most Useful to You?
Business Apps
Search Tool Apps
Productivity Apps
All Other Apps
38%
35%
15%
14%
33%

7. THE SURVEY PARTICIPANTS
A total of 1,074 construction professionals took our 2014 Technology
Market Research Survey.A majority of participants (90%) in our survey
are not current clients of Construction Data with only 11% of respondents
currently subscribed to Construction Data. Of the participants not currently
subscribed to Construction Data, only 30% indicated that they are currently
using a competing lead service.
We asked our current clients to indicate what method they currently use to
get project reports from our database.We had 61% of respondents indicate
they get the information online through a laptop or desktop computer, 58%
receive project information through email. Only 8% of respondents access
project reports on their smartphones and/or tablets and 7% still receive a print
newspaper.
An overwhelming 97% of respondents indicated that their preferred method for
receiving project reports was through our online database or email with only
3% indicating they prefer to receive our print newspaper.This is proof that our
clients prefer having access to the most up-to-date information as opposed to
receiving a biweekly print newspaper in the mail.When asked how important
it was to be able to access project lead information on their mobile devices
99% indicated it was important to some degree with 74% indicating it was very
important.
What Method(s) Do You Use To Acquire Project Reports?
Laptop/Computer
Email
Smartphone/Tablet
Newspaper
61%
58%
8%
7%

8. Technology continues to have an increasing role in the construction
industry. New apps are coming to the market every day it seems that
can help you streamline your business and handle a wide range of
function like estimating, project management and timecard/payroll solutions.
On the software side, look for augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR)
to be integrated with BIM to improve virtual design and construction. On the
hardware front, look for wearables such as Google Glass to start making their
way to the jobsite as more apps are developed to be used on the construction
site.
The companies that are going to be the most successful will be those that
realize how these technologies can make their business better and more
efficient and are willing to implement them into their business processes.
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