Emerging industry 4.0 and Internet of Things (IoT) technologies in the Ghanaian construction industry: sustainability, implementation challenges, and benefits

Abstract

Future construction projects will need the implementation of industry 4.0 and Internet-of-Things (IoT) technologies. The construction sector has, however, falling behind other industries in the application of these technologies and is currently facing considerable challenges. One of the industries that lag behind in the use of new innovative technological tools is the construction industry. This study reviews the research work in industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things as they relate to construction and examines key Ghana-based construction professionals and firms to ascertain their level of understanding of these emerging innovative technologies, including the challenges and benefits associated with their implementation. An extensive review of pertinent literature was done to help identify the important paradigms and variables which were cautiously tested. Adopting a quantitative research approach, the attained variables were used to design into a close-ended questionnaire. The sample frame was a survey of people from 154 construction experts and researchers with good standing by using the purposive sampling. Relative importance index (RII) analysis was used to analyzed the data. It was discovered from the findings that smart construction was the most popular industry 4.0 technology in the Ghanaian construction industry. The most important benefit of these technologies is that they will add sustainable policy requirements to tendering, with the most pressing technology being the lack of talent and skills in using industry 4.0 and IoT technologies. The scope of this research is based on the questionnaire survey, proving a sustainable pathway to the construction industry community, which creates its own significance by including key stakeholders and those affected by these technologies.