ICT and Automation (ICTA) Scoping Study Report

The ICT and Automation (ICTA) Scoping Study Report, was prepared by The National Platform for the Built Environment, and published in October 2008.

The National Platform for the Built Environment (The National Platform) is a UK-based strategic body established to promote the built environment and define research priorities to UK and EU research funders. It is an industry-owned organisation with members from business, research and academia.

ICTA stands for Information and Communications Technology (ICT) and Automation. In June 2006, the National Platform’s Strategic Research Agenda identiified the importance of research into ICTA and automation for the future competitiveness of the UK construction industry, and an ICTA Working Group was established.

The ICTA Scoping Study was commissioned in August 2007. It was intended to produce a long-term research programme / roadmap for ICTA and to identify and engage key stakeholders.

In the foreword to the report, Keith Clarke (National Platform High Level Group Chairman) and Bob White (National Platform Support Group Chairman) suggest that ‘The future success of the UK construction industry in an increasingly competitive global market will depend upon the efficiency with which we create and reuse information throughout the design, construction and whole life management of our built assets. Innovations here will also support dramatic improvements in how we collaborate in the timely and efficient creation of a more sustainable built environment.’

The report was intended as a ‘Call to Arms’ for the industry identifying the types of information, communication and automation technologies that needed to be developed and providing a vision for how they might be integrated.

The report identified five key research topics:

• Collaborative prototyping to define and deliver client requirements.
• Efficient, seamless sharing of information across built environment stakeholders.
• Ability to interact with real-time information regardless of physical location or timezone.
• Mass adoption and application of off-site manufacturing, automation and mechanisation processes and systems.
• Well trained, well qualified workforce able to use the latest best-practice technologies.

For each of these research topics, a detailed roadmap was created, setting out the products, services and technologies necessary to address key drivers.

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