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The global construction industry is among the many business and economic casualties of the COVID-19 pandemic. Restrictions on international travel, as well as rules around physical distancing in the workplace, have disrupted the availability of labor, materials and equipment.

And it seems this could be the case for some time, even as restrictions ease. Countries throughout the world are experiencing further waves of the virus, with differing severity, leading to unpredictability of lockdown measures.

Governments, already struggling with balancing health and economic outcomes, are facing uphill battles to reopen businesses in safe, “COVID-normal” manner. Supply chains and contractors are, naturally, feeling the pinch as they manage cash flow, and perhaps face insolvency.

This is compounded by day-to-day worksite challenges, such as increased hygiene and health and safety measures. There are also fewer people, including field engineers, on site to share information and keep the plant at optimal operation.

Even when the global construction industry fully reopens, resources are likely to be scarce, cash reserves minimal and economic recovery may be slow. There is some good news, however. As countries start to relax restrictions, experts across the globe are banking on a construction-led recovery.

In fact, the World Economic Forum has called on governments to invest in infrastructure projects that are “sustainable, technologically advanced and resilient.”

Digital solutions
To realise this, however, EPCs and project owners need to protect project continuity. A report from McKinsey and Company suggests that to do this successfully, project owners need to prioritize digital investments.

And to be able to competitively tender for work with these project owners, EPCs will also need to identify digital solutions for immediate and long-term needs. While it may appear counter-intuitive to invest scarce resources into technology, any upfront costs and time will be recovered as it will allow your business to remain profitable in an increasingly competitive environment.
Digital solutions will enable EPCs to protect their project performance, manage workflows, monitor sites, track progress and access data, despite restrictions on travel and social distancing measures.

And, with many solutions able to be rapidly implement and scaled, the time to is employ them is now.

Project performance
One such option is Hexagon PPM’s EcoSys Enterprise Project Performance platform, which provides more accurate measurement, greater predictability and faster insights to deliver better business decisions, improved project outcomes and greater profitability. It allows you to quickly identify and act on project trends, issues and successes.

EcoSys is trusted by some of the world’s top project-driven organizations because it gives them a project performance solution that can span a project from inception to close out. By integrating portfolio, project and contract management into a single enterprise solution, fast and accurate insights are delivered.

With EcoSys, you can successfully bridge the gap between expectation and reality by improving outputs, outcomes and value through efficiency. You will spend less time managing data so you can focus on improving project delivery. With just one platform, you can improve efficiency, increase predictability and have greater control over your projects – even if you can’t be onsite.

The result is overall better performance.

Post-COVID recovery
Even before the current pandemic, being a contractor was hard. Projects were becoming more and more complex, and EPCs were shouldering more risk. Margins were being squeezed, and the landscape was more competitive.

Over the next few months, project owners and EPCs will need to deal with the greater challenges that come with COVID-19. To be successful in a “COVID-normal” world, businesses will be finding new ways of working and designing new operating models.

By implementing an easy -to-use, scalable, digital solution such as EcoSys, you can readily identify what drives project and organizational success and take proactive measures to maximize returns and minimize risk. EcoSys is the ideal solution for EPCs wishing to remain productive and competitive in the expected construction-led recovery.

For more information or to book a demonstration, please contact us here