The United States will see a huge boom in infrastructure projects in the coming years. President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Act will provide a $550 billion budget to build and improve America’s infrastructure.

Millions of dollars are already being distributed to various federal states. However, Americans still won’t see shovels in the ground. Repairing a damaged road may be easy, but building a new bridge will not. Complicated infrastructure involves complex planning and many moving parts.

The government is also being careful with the approved funds. In addition to protecting you from fraud and abuse, they’re also on the lookout for rising material and labor costs that could impact your budget stretch.

The budget may seem like a lot, but the government must make sure that every dollar spent counts. There is pressure for America to build back better.

The rise of AR and VR in the AEC sector

The architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry has introduced countless innovations over thousands of years. However, it is the second least digitized industry in the modern era. This may change with the adoption of immersive technology.

AR and VR are technologies often associated with the gaming industry. However, more companies are realizing the potential of this new technology for the AEC industry and are creating hardware and software that make it accessible.

Dustin Anderson, Global Head of Business, AEC Vertical, at SoftwareONE said AR and VR have transformed “everything from design to building maintenance to worker safety.”

We now have AR software that works with BIM to make 3D plans where you can walk around the plan. Augmented reality technology is available for employee training on how to use the equipment and how to spot safety risks before work even begins.

Anderson notes that “these technologies provide the real-time visibility needed to help businesses run as efficiently as possible. They enable them to provide better training, maximize parts and equipment utilization, improve the customer experience, make better decisions, and increase worker productivity and safety.”

Using AR and VR to maximize infrastructure budget

Every successful project starts with efficient planning. Large infrastructure projects involve many stakeholders who have different goals and traditionally work separately from each other. This can lead to costly and time-consuming conflicts that cause a delay in execution.

With VR, stakeholders can view a project in an immersive environment and spot potential pitfalls even before the structure is built. With AR, architects and engineers can overlay design plans on the actual site, make accurate measurements, and determine the correct materials for the project.

AR and VR make pre-construction planning efficient and collaborative, avoiding delays and waste.

How AR increases cost savings

By using smart automation, builders get it right the first time. Costly rework of the project due to errors is avoided. Workers can check their AR headsets on site and know exactly how the plans match up with the grounds.

Augmented reality also enables real-time remote collaboration between the many moving parts of a massive infrastructure project. Workers can share notes and videos of bugs and design issues, discuss with other remote stakeholders, and resolve them quickly without the need for frequent site visits. With easier collaboration, less time is wasted and projects stay on schedule.

Construction projects are also seeing regular casualties with 15 fatalities per day reported in 2019. This can be reduced and eliminated with the use of VR for safety training and AR for on-site reminders of safety protocols. Workers can know exactly how to operate equipment or how to fix common errors before they even get to the job site and touch the equipment.

The Challenge: Implementing AR and VR in a budget-conscious industry

The AEC industry operates on tight deadlines and budgets. Excessive delays and budget overspending, which have become common, have led to low profit margins for contractors. On a project as ambitious as Build Back Better, staying on budget and on time is more important than ever.

With all the lauded benefits of using AR and VR in the construction industry, the lack of feasibility studies and cost-benefit analyzes to back up these claims leads to slow adoption for most companies. However, a recent study shows that from 2019 to 2020, the adoption of AR and VR technologies is increasing as the older generation gains more confidence in the role of AR and VR in construction. The study also showed observed AR and VR scenarios that improve security practices and cost estimates. But for virtual and augmented reality to become widespread in the construction industry, further study is needed.

“It’s okay to start small. Companies should consider their main pain points and identify which technology would be more efficient to address them and start there,” Anderson says.

If the US government implements AR and VR technology in its infrastructure projects, that could be the catalyst the AEC sector needs to massively adopt the technology.