Says Johan van Wyk, commercial director of the African Construction and Totally Concrete Expo: “With the recent introduction of 4IR technologies, built assets are changing and impacting the entire construction value chain. In fact, a study published in the International Journal of Architectural, Civil and Construction Sciences, titled "Construction 4.0: The future of the construction industry in South Africa", found that adopting 4IR technology in the construction industry will not only improve the performance of the industry regarding cost and time savings, but will also create sustainable buildings.
"With 4IR, the built industry has the opportunity to leapfrog to more efficient production, successful business models and competitive value chains. What all this tells me is that digitising Africa’s construction industry, from inception all the way through to facilities management, will make it more attractive to potential investors and, in turn, boost its contribution to GDP.”
The event's Stakeholder Engagement Forum, taking place on 10 June under this year’s theme of 'Building Africa’s 4IR Readiness', will examine how the built environment will thrive in the 4IR, based on the progress thus far, and discussions will highlight how today’s projects should be planned, designed, operated and decommissioned. Also on the agenda is the fourth African Smart Cities Summit, taking place 9 to 12 June, which will unpack how smarter cities can mitigate urban African challenges, provide a roadmap for the public and private sector to work together on supporting smart city transition and look to various smart city projects for lessons learnt, challenges faced and solutions developed.
