Low-cost (Shoestring) digital solution areas for enabling digitalisation in construction SMEs

Abstract

The adoption of digital solutions accelerated in the construction industry to increase the efficiency of manufacturing and construction processes. However, most construction SMEs face barriers to digital construction due to budget constraints and the complexity of existing commercial digital solutions. In this study, we developed 58 digital solution areas for construction SMEs by adapting the Digital Shoestring Approach. It was developed through eight interactive digital requirement assessment workshops with 70 representative construction SMEs in the United Kingdom. The catalogue was used for identifying the top fifteen priority digital solutions of construction SMEs by grouping them into two 1) suppliers and off-site construction SMEs (Tier 2) and 2) on-site construction SMEs (Tier 1) due to the differences between manufacturing and construction processes. The findings showed that the catalogue helps construction SMEs to identify relevant digital solutions when initiating their digital transformation. This provides the basis for the cost-effective and evidence-driven digitalisation for construction SMEs.