The most important building material for the future of construction? Collaboration
By inspiring collective brainstorming among industry and government leaders, Virginia Tech is laying the foundation for its Coalition for Smart Construction.
As the construction industry seeks new sources of innovation, from advanced materials ranging from cross-laminated timber to 3D-printed metal, the most important building material for the future of construction might be found across the table.
A diverse group of stakeholders representing academia, industry, and government recently gathered in Northern Virginia to share ideas, identify problem spaces, and reimagine how people live, work, and play in the built environment. These collaborative discussions are vital groundwork for the Coalition for Smart Construction at Virginia Tech.
Bringing new ideas to the table
This fall, Virginia Tech hosted three roundtable discussions in Alexandria designed to elevate the conversation around the built environment. Dozens of industry stakeholders – from material suppliers to digital technologists to general contractors – attended each event, eager to bring diverse perspectives to the table and help modernize the construction industry. They discussed challenges and opportunities in the broad areas of human and digital interfaces, advanced materials and manufacturing, and sustainability.
Brainstorming sessions like these will guide the mission of the Coalition for Smart Construction, a university, industry, and government collaboration designed to solve some of the world’s most pressing construction challenges. Establishing a strong ideological foundation will be critical as the coalition awaits its move into HITT Contracting’s new Falls Church headquarters, set to break ground in January. Upon completion, the Coalition for Smart Construction will lease and occupy a 40,000-square-foot lab and testing facility on the building’s first floor.
HITT and Virginia Tech envision the space as a nationally recognized innovation hub to accelerate positive change in the construction sector. Julie Ross, the Paul and Dorothea Torgersen Dean of Engineering at Virginia Tech, said industry will be increasingly vital in the years ahead – for both validating the coalition’s current research themes and providing insights on new dimensions.
“The conversations we’re having today are informing the path forward and ensuring that we are bringing the full potential of Virginia Tech and partners to disrupt an industry that is ripe for innovation,” said Ross. “At Virginia Tech, we’re actively breaking down silos across disciplines and industry to see how we can approach these problems together.”
Helping the construction industry get unstuck
Inspiring change in the construction industry will not be an easy feat. For the past two decades, the sector has struggled to increase productivity, in large part from labor shortages, lack of standardization, and fragmented innovation. With a prevailing risk-averse culture, some companies have settled for traditional methods that produce reliable, but otherwise average, results – even when there are promising alternatives.
But smart construction might offer the incentives needed to mobilize the industry toward change. Through digital technology and automation, companies can achieve better efficiency, safety, sustainability, and productivity. Smart construction also represents an opportunity for the industry to rebrand and attract new talent, with requisite skills shifting in response to digital complexity.
For the best results, innovation must flow freely between industry, academia, and government. And the roundtables were a critical first step in strengthening connections within the construction lifecycle and across Virginia Tech networks.
Arlene Parker '88, '93, a principal for the infrastructure consulting firm AECOM, was excited to learn more about Virginia Tech’s 3D concrete printing capabilities at the university’s final roundtable on sustainability. By attending, she seized the opportunity to integrate her company’s passion for sustainable practices with her own passion for Virginia Tech. In addition to earning two degrees at Virginia Tech herself, Parker has several Hokies in her family, including her husband and two sons.
“This was the ultimate partnering session of a cross-section of business leaders of the built environment,” she said. “Virginia Tech has the synergy of a highly technical building construction group collaborating with multi-discipline engineering teams and pure sciences. This inspires innovation.”
Strengths across the board
The coalition builds on the university’s transdisciplinary strengths in key areas related to construction, from digital twins to carbon storage. Well-known for its collaborative culture, Virginia Tech encourages researchers to make connections across campus to solve complex problems, which are often inspired directly by industry needs. This responsiveness has set the stage for the Coalition for Smart Construction and its soon-to-be home in Falls Church.
“Virginia Tech is rapidly expanding in Northern Virginia to meet industry demand,” said Ross. “With significant state investment, we’re positioned to provide sustainable talent at scale in computer science and computer engineering, and with smart construction, we’ll continue to lean into our cross-cutting strengths in Blacksburg.”
Virginia Tech’s strengths include not only nationally ranked programs in the College of Engineering and industry-inspired research in the Myers-Lawson School of Construction, but also solution-focused work in natural resources, architecture, and science. The university’s diverse research portfolio – bolstered by $420 million in external funding – includes projects with virtually every federal agency, robust partnerships with corporations and foundations, and strengths in fields critical to national competitiveness.
Partnering on smart construction enables companies to apply Virginia Tech’s broad expertise and resources to specific use cases that maximize R&D funding. At the same time, companies can develop their talent pipeline by meeting students where they are – in the classroom with project-based learning and in the workplace with valuable experiences like internships and co-ops.
Joining innovation on the ground floor
As momentum builds for the Coalition for Smart Construction, the ideas, needs, and opportunities will continue to come into focus. The systemic change needed to modernize the construction industry will require investment in tech and talent and the pursuit of shared goals across the construction value chain, aligning planners, designers, material suppliers, operators, owners, financiers, and more.
Virginia Tech’s Innovation and Partnerships Office helps Virginia Tech and partners co-design fit-for-purpose collaborations, and through curated strategic experiences and events, fosters partnerships with purpose.
