Today the sale of construction equipment in India is estimated to grow at CAGR 6.18% in volume and reach up to 96,700 units by FY18. If we compare the sale of the number of units from January 2016 to May 2016 corresponding to the same time last year, construction equipment industry recorded a sale of 21,869 units of construction equipment presenting a growth of 47.6%. However, in terms of automation the construction industry today is way behind in knowhow and applicability. In developed countries construction automation has grown rapidly be in terms of implementation or knowhow. In developing countries like India it is still at a very nascent stage. Usages of automation technologies such as electronic devices and new machineries in road construction, tunnel drilling, bridge construction and earthwork, etc., still follow rudimentary practices.

1. Construction Industry and the Use of Automation
By: Infra Bazaar Private Limited
While the Indian economy has witnessed considerable progress, infrastructure and
construction sector growth rate has not moved beyond 8 to 10 per cent. The industry
is quite fragmented and is with a handful of large companies those who are involved
in construction business. An estimate suggests the construction equipment
manufacturing companies in all of India in 2011 were slightly over 500. Today around
16 per cent of India's working population is employed in construction sector and the
industry employs over 35 million people including direct and indirect jobs. It is one of
main reasons why the central government is planning to invest $1 trillion in
infrastructure development during 12th year plan (2012-2017). However, acute
shortage of skilled workforce is working as growth deterrent for the construction
sector. Apart from it shortage of construction sand, raw materials and political
disturbances are also negatively impacting the industry.

2. Today the sale of construction equipment in India is estimated to grow at CAGR
6.18% in volume and reach up to 96,700 units by FY18. If we compare the sale of the
number of units from January 2016 to May 2016 corresponding to the same time last
year, construction equipment industry recorded a sale of 21,869 units of
construction equipment presenting a growth of 47.6%. However, in terms of
automation the construction industry today is way behind in knowhow and
applicability. In developed countries construction automation has grown rapidly be
in terms of implementation or knowhow. In developing countries like India it is still
at a very nascent stage. Usages of automation technologies such as electronic
devices and new machineries in road construction, tunnel drilling, bridge
construction and earthwork, etc., still follow rudimentary practices.
Why automation is needed?
To improve quality of work, decrease labor dependency, enhance safety of workers
and increase productivity automation is mandatory. While it is evident that the level
of automation in construction is extremely low in India, it is imperative that we must
make new efforts to increase the level automation in this sector to match global
standards. Right from planning and design to operation and maintenance till the
eventual dismantling and recycling of things there is abundant scope to bring in
automation. The technology advancement in the fields of computer science or
robotics has gone to a new level and construction industry is yet to take the full
advantage of it in India. Implementation of robotics and fully automated technology
will reduce human efforts, project time and construction cost while increasing
productivity.
Automation and robotics not only helps in optimizing equipment operation but also
ensures safety and quality at work. Automation in construction process also leads to
continuous working time without any break. While working under dangerous
situations, human efforts and risks are minimized by usage machines, robots, etc.
Large construction projects often needs large pool of human capital but at times
even it is not enough to carry out the required tasks, in such situations technology
comes handy. Sometime unskilled labors also do not give the desired outputs in such
situations automation gives an edge. Productivity is immensely increased by usage of
automation as it reduces the duration and laborious work and increases safety while
compared to un-automated environment.

3. Conclusion
Construction automation can be implemented both in civil infrastructure and
housing projects. Robotics comes handy in civil infrastructures like in building roads,
tunnels, dams or bridges. In housing projects automation helps in skeleton erection,
assembling, interior finishing, concrete compaction etc. The Japanese and the
Americans are the pioneers in implementing robotics and automation. They also
have developed several new technologies and machinery that have helped at
multiple levels. Even the European Union is not far behind in terms of development
and implementation of robotics and automation. India though, still has a long way to
go in implementation of robotics and automation which is rapidly evolving. Research
and development is one critical area where our country needs to invest to
demonstrate some strong hold in these areas. It is still a dream to our civil engineers
to work in a completely automated site. Training the operators directly through
construction process, education and training would help immensely in introducing
and implementing robotics and automation.