Smart construction pursuing low-emission and high-efficiency is on the rise due to the Net-Zero craze
UK aims to reduce total construction cost by 2025%, construction period by 33%, and greenhouse gas emissions by 50% by 50
Exchanges and project sharing between companies through related events such as Construction Week and Future Build
Smart Construction for Realizing Carbon Neutrality
It is clear that 'Net-Zero' will be the biggest policy issue in the UK going forward. The direction of all policies is flowing towards net-zero, and this trend is not expected to change in the future. Net-zero is spreading across all industries, and even in the construction industry, smart construction that pursues low-emission and high-efficiency is emerging. Smart construction refers to a new sector of the construction industry that adds advanced technology to existing manufacturing techniques to minimize overall construction costs, improve sustainability, and maximize user benefits.
Interest in smart construction is increasing not only in the UK but also in Korea. The SOC budget, which had been declining in recent years, also began to increase after 2020, and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport announced the 'Smart Construction Revitalization Plan' in July 2022, revealing its aspirations for digitization and automation of the entire construction process by 7. These plans include ① making it compulsory to introduce 2030D construction information modeling (BIM) for public construction projects worth KRW 1000 billion or more ② promoting production system advancement such as unmanned construction machinery ③ expanding the Smart Construction Enterprise Support Center and operating the Smart Construction Regulatory Innovation Center. The Korea-Saudi smart city cooperation, which became a hot topic after the visit of Crown Prince bin Salman, also received public attention.
<Domestic SOC budget>
(Unit: KRW trillion)
[Source: Ministry of Economy and Finance]
Reasons for the rise of smart construction in the UK (1) – Outdated infrastructure
England's antique buildings with history attract tourists, but the old-fashioned infrastructure is inconvenient. London's outdated infrastructure is a chronic problem. For example, in the case of the London Underground, which began construction in 1863, the size of the underpass is very small and the quality of infrastructure is poor. The subway is full of dust, and the noise problem is so serious that if you use the subway for a long time, you may have hearing problems. Due to the rapid modernization, underpasses built a long time ago require huge costs and time to increase their size and expand infrastructure. In addition, the larger the scale of construction, the more severe the environmental destruction, raising financial and environmental concerns. For these reasons, improvements to the London Underground infrastructure continue to be delayed.
Why Smart Construction Is Rising in the UK (2) – Lack of Housing
The capital is always a land of opportunity, and young people flock to it for their dreams. London is a place where young people from all over the world gather. As a result, there is a problem of lack of housing space in London. The lack of housing space has skyrocketed housing prices, and the problem has become so severe that more people live on ships than they can afford in London.
Ironically, London already has more houses built per city square foot. Even though they have already built more houses than can be built in an urban area, there is not enough living space. When the house is built by making the most of the space, even when it rains, there is not enough land to absorb the rainwater, so the rainwater flows over the ground and flows into the Thames River, flooding the river. As a result, residential facilities near the river are often flooded, and in the case of Camden, where flooding is particularly frequent due to flooding, three million homes are at risk of flooding every time it rains.
Why Smart Construction is Rising in the UK (3) – Balanced Regional Development
About 14% of the UK population lives in London. Considering that 18% of the Korean population lives in Seoul, it can be seen that the concentration in the metropolitan area is as serious in the UK as in Korea. In addition, as the number of international students and the number of people migrating to London in search of job opportunities after COVID-XNUMX increases, traffic congestion in downtown London is reaching its breaking point. In addition, with the increasing population, the cost of rent is also increasing, and the quality of life of citizens is also continuously retreating. In response, the British government is preparing measures to maintain an even population through balanced development outside of London and to attempt integrated infrastructure reorganization. In this process, reduction of construction time as well as minimization of pollution caused by construction are the main concerns of the City of London.
The policy of maintaining an even population through balanced regional development while expanding infrastructure and residential facilities in the city, where the population is concentrated, clearly has conflicting points. However, one thing is certain: no matter what policy is implemented, additional construction is needed. As a result, the British government has begun to emphasize smart construction incorporating next-generation technologies for efficient and sustainable construction. The British government has already recognized the promise of the construction industry for several years and announced a systematic promotion strategy by pointing out smart construction as an industry focus area.
Smart Construction Expansion Policy in the UK
There is a 'Construction Sector Deal' announced in 2018 as a British government industrial policy to foster smart construction. This is a policy to pursue a transition to a low-cost, high-efficiency, low-emission, clean construction industry and to improve productivity in the construction industry through government-industry agreements. By using digital technology, the total construction cost will be reduced by 2025% and construction time will be reduced by 33% by 50. The goal is to reduce GHG emissions by 50% and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by XNUMX%. Details of the construction industry agreement are as follows.
<Construction industry agreement details>
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idea |
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ㆍ Expand R&D investment to 2027% of GDP by 2.4 ㆍ Increase the tax credit rate for corporate R&D investment expenditures from 11% to 12% ㆍ Investment of £7 million (approximately KRW 2500 trillion) in the Industrial Strategy Challenge Fund to create added value in innovative industries |
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human resources |
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ㆍ Establishment of world-class technology education system ㆍ £4m investment in math, digital and technology education to support science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) skills development ㆍ Establish a national retraining system for human resource development, starting with an investment of £6400 million (approximately KRW 1000 billion) in the digital and construction sectors. |
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infra |
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ㆍ Increase the National Productivity Investment Fund to £310 billion (approximately KRW 48 trillion) and support investment in transportation, housing and digital infrastructure State: transport £49 billion, housing £115 billion, digital £7 million, R&D £71 billion ㆍ Investment of £4 million (approximately KRW 6000 billion) in electric vehicle charging infrastructure and £1 million (approximately KRW 1500 billion) in subsidies for plug-in vehicles ㆍ £5 billion in digital infrastructure, including £1 million for 7600G and £2700 million for community full fiber network installation Public investment of over KRW 2 billion) |
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business environment |
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ㆍ Establish government-industry partnerships to improve industrial productivity ㆍ Investing over £25 billion (approximately KRW 3 trillion) in innovative and high-potential industries, including the establishment of a new £8000 billion (approximately KRW 200 trillion) investment fund at the Industrial Bank of England ㆍ Revision of policies to improve companies with low productivity and to improve productivity and growth of SMEs |
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Community |
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ㆍ Provide economic opportunities based on regional strengths ㆍ Create a Transforming Cities Fund worth £17 billion (approximately KRW 2 trillion) to invest in inter-regional transport infrastructure that can enhance inter-regional exchanges |
[Source: GOV.uk]
The construction industry agreement is the basis for the five visions of 'Human Resources', 'Smart', 'Sustainability', 'Growth' and 'Leadership' presented in the 'Construction 2013' announced by the British government in 2025. The foundation is maintained, but 'smart' is an 'idea' containing the meaning of new technology, and 'sustainability' is developed by encompassing a 'local community' containing the content of regional equal development. In addition to systematic policy establishment, the UK government has taken national interest in the construction field by establishing the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA), an agency dedicated to infrastructure, and the National Infrastructure Commission (NIC), a separate agency in charge of strategy establishment. is revealing
Related exhibition
Smart construction exhibitions held in the UK include Construction Week and Future Build.
(1) UK Construction Week (UKCW)
Construction Week is the largest construction environment event in the UK and is held once a year in London and Birmingham. Construction Week brings together thousands of construction companies to share projects, showcase new technologies and connect for future collaborations. Construction Week 2023 will be held at the ExCel showroom in London from May 5-2 and at the NEC showroom in Birmingham from October 4-3.
(2) Future Build Exhibition
If Construction Week is an event for the entire construction industry, Future Build is an event that focuses on smart construction in the construction field. Under the agenda of 'innovation', 'sustainability' and 'cooperation', the exhibition provides a forum for companies to share new technologies and discuss the sustainability of construction projects. In the past, it was operated as an exhibition called Eco Build, but the name was changed to Future Build. The 2018 Future Build exhibition is scheduled to be held at the ExCel exhibition hall in London on March 2023-3, and the KOTRA London Trade Center will also participate in the exhibition and hold an investment briefing.
· Field/Interview – KOTRA Overseas Market News News | Field/Interview
implication
Infrastructure is a national competitive advantage. As global interest in smart cities and smart infrastructure increases, the demand for infrastructure development will continue to increase. The UK is in the early stages of large-scale construction projects, such as the third runway at Heathrow Airport and the expansion of residential facilities, and plans to invest more than 3 billion pounds (approximately 10 trillion won) over the next 6000 years. A large investment is expected.