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Back to SearchHow do we improve the productivity of the construction industry? At last month’s Construction News Tech Sprint, teams of young professionals from across the built environment had just 12 hours to formulate a technology-based solution to this challenge!
Part of the Future Leader’s Forum at the Construction News Summit, an annual conference connecting contractors and industry leaders with clients and government, the Tech Sprint concluded with teams pitching their ideas to a panel of senior industry judges.
Chris Oates, a Principal Engineer at GHD’s Manchester office, was a member of the winning team who developed a pioneering solution named ‘ACT’: the Automated Collaborative Tool.
ACT is a unified platform that enables automated ordering of materials and other supplies direct from the project programme. The project construction programme is entered into the ACT app which automatically orders materials and notifies subcontractors for each element of the job, just in time for when they are needed.
Project dashboards update everyone in the project, as well as senior leaders and project stakeholders, freeing up valuable time for the project manager to focus on ensuring successful delivery of the project.
The judging panel, consisting of senior representatives from Crossrail 2, National Grid and Great Portland Estates, felt that the ACT had the potential to be a “game-changer” for the control of projects.
Chris Oates comments, “The highlight for me was pitching our idea to an esteemed panel of judges. With only twelve hours to come up with an idea I’m proud of what our team managed to achieved under pressure.”
Craig Stockton, GHD’s Managing Director, UK, says, “The Tech Sprint presented a great collaborative opportunity for likeminded young professionals. The solution developed by the winning team has the potential to dramatically improve project control in the construction sector.”