The side of Coronavirus in the Construction Sector at United States

 

Hit by lockdown orders, shortages of labor, supply chain disruptions and financing strains, the global construction sector contracted by 3.1% in 2020, its worst decline since the 2008 global financial crisis. Even where construction businesses were allowed to continue activities, many projects were delayed or entirely frozen as public agencies across the world closed their doors and suspended granting construction permits or providing on-site supervision to ongoing building projects for months at a time. In other countries permit approvals were still issued and construction work was considered “essential business”. Many firms still opted to suspend operations as safely resuming construction was considered impractical or unsafe. A group of countries, however, saw construction activity continue without interruptions, even during periods of enforced stay at home orders where many other business activities grounded to a halt. A recent case study has shown the extent to which digital solutions enable the continuity of construction work in those locations in spite of unprecedented challenges such as those resulting from social distancing protocols.

Early in the pandemic, governments attempted to limit disruption by mandating social distancing and hygiene protocols to ensure the wellbeing and health of construction workers. In the United States, for example, the Los Angeles Department of Buildings adopted a series of safety construction guidelines based on recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, consisting of 16 rules including social distancing, frequent hand washing and wearing face masks while working on-site. It also mandated an inspection to ensure compliance to the guidelines onsite. Similarly, in China, the National Health Commission introduced detailed guidelines for the management of construction sites. Staggered working shifts, use of protective equipment, disinfection of areas without proper ventilation, occupational safety and health trainings, and regular health checkups were all included.

 

The most significant changes to construction, however, went beyond hygiene and safety and focused on remote work and digital tools to facilitate the continuity of construction projects. A fully digitalized process has proved crucial for business continuity of services and permit processing in extraordinary times. Since 2007, 29 economies have set up web-based portals for coordinating building permitting processes. Singapore’s Construction Real Estate Network (CORENET) e-submission platform, first introduced in 2001, already had all the elements in place for an entirely digital building plan submission, checking and approval process, and made it possible for the country to continue all permitting services remotely even during their “circuit-breaker” period of strict social distancing between April and May of 2020. The process is entirely paperless as electronic formats and signatures had already made the submission of physical documents and in-person meetings redundant. Other countries did not have all the information technology infrastructure in place but swiftly responded to the pandemic by deploying or enhancing e-government platforms and solutions to allow for continuity in the construction sector.  Morocco’s Rhokas Platform, for example, improved its capabilities to allow for videoconferencing and reviewing building plans digitally and remotely.