MANAGEMENT By Daniel Kamau
“Steel” Yourself: AI is Coming Education and investment is needed to take advantage of labor-saving solutions
AI works hand-in-hand with businesses and employees to increase efficiency and fill skilled labor gaps.
T
he construction industry has a labor problem. Contractors are constantly looking to fill gaps— not only in the field—but also in front office and back office roles. In 2023, the industry contributed 7% of global gross output by dollar value. Yet, it lacks the skilled workforce to capitalize on its estimated 70% growth potential over the next 15 years. In the United States alone, the labor shortage Daniel Kamau, P.Eng, MBA/M.Eng, is founder and CEO of SketchDeck.ai. Read how other steel erectors and fabricators have won bids and reduced estimating time at sketcdeck.ai/ customer-stories.
18 | THE STEEL ERECTORS ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA
tops half a million workers. General Contractors, Specialty Contractors, and Steel Manufacturers are beginning to look to technology to solve this problem. Unfortunately, the construction industry has also been slow to adopt one of technology’s most promising solutions: artificial intelligence (AI).
Slow Innovation Stunts an Industry In many industries, AI works hand-inhand with businesses and employees to increase efficiency and fill skilled labor gaps. For instance, some construction
firms have plugged their gaps with free “administrative” tools like ChatGPT to aid in research, document creation, and contract review. However, such generalized language processing programs lack the niche knowledge to truly elevate specialized businesses within the steel industry. Even with these tools readily available, the industry has been reluctant to adopt AI. As of 2024, less than 4% of U.S. construction companies had adopted or planned to adopt AI. Just 1.5% of companies reported using it recently. This data fits into a larger pattern: historically, construction firms have