ABC-SEMI Issue, 3 2020

Southeast Michigan Contractors  Issue 3 2020 13 HIGHER TECH Cloud Collaboration and Data Storage A pre-pandemic survey found that only 28% of construction and engineering companies have a successful digital strategy. As COVID-19 disrupted day-to-day office operations across the country, those that were already using cloud collaboration and data storage adapted quickly to the circumstances outside of their control. Even ABC SEMI implemented strategies for access to data remotely to allow our staff to continue to seamlessly serve our members. In a post-pandemic world, the importance of cloud data storage cannot be stressed enough. For the short term and maybe even in the long- term future, teams cannot rely on their physical location as a way of obtaining critical data. Information needed to keep business operations in motion cannot be tied to one place. The forced digital transformation of construction that coincided with the pandemic brought to light the need for a larger industry-wide innovation. As construction adjusts to a new standard model of business operations, teams will need the ability to access, edit, and collaborate on project documents and company data in real-time, regardless of their location. Social Distancing and Personal Protective Gear As site operations begin again, social distancing guidelines must be maintained. With so much on their plate already, technologists have realized that site managers might need a helping hand from technology. Since March, new solutions have been released to help keep construction crews safe. Some applications use image data or wearables to track workers, ensure they maintain social distancing, or at the very least, reduce social density on job sites. Other apps provide questionnaires for workers prior to allowing them onsite to ensure they were as low risk as possible for having and spreading COVID-19. These solutions and others like themwill help construction teams acclimate to the new way sites are run. “That’s what COVID and social distancing brought us, but that’s actually the right practice,” said Kim Gamet, Safety Director for ABC SEMI. While construction teams try their best, keeping within social distancing guidelines is not always feasible as some aspects of a job may require tradesmen to work closer together. A recent COVID-19 study by The University of Texas found that mandating the use of personal safety equipment could reduce the amount of infection by 67%. A separate study featured in the New England Journal of Medicine shows a simple cotton cloth can reduce the spray of infectious particles by 99%. Therefore, wearing PPE is especially important for construction teams. Face masks are an additional safety precaution that protects people from spreading COVID- 19. For the foreseeable future, construction teams will likely need to continue wearing personal protective equipment. While the world continues to deal with the repercussions of this pandemic, changes will need to be made across every industry. Construction should not expect things to go back to the way they were. Operations will need to be innovated to move forward.