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A central platform to exchange best practices and ideas guiding the infrastructure and urban development industry in its transformation, and helping it to address its key challenges.

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All Challenges

U.S. Construction Productivity: Not as Bad as you Think

We are all familiar with presentations bemoaning the archaic nature of the construction industry.  Something radical must be done!  The story is that the construction industry has experienced decades of stagnant productivity growth, at least in the US. There has been some push back. Output measures have been questioned. Metrics that allocate benefits associated with […]

New Report available | Shaping the Future of Construction: An Action Plan to solve the Industry’s Talent Gap

The construction industry needs to take actions to close its talent gap as one major hurdle for its digital transformation Recently, transformative technological developments, like 3D-printed houses, automated construction equipment and pre-fabricated skyscrapers, emerged. The digital transformation of the construction industry has the potential to uplift the decade-long stagnating productivity of the industry which is […]

Where people live the longest

How NEOM could set a new lifespan record for its future Citizens by designing a $500-billion-megacity community of rejuvenation and happiness. Following the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 to transition into a post-oil economy, his country has just announced a plan to build a megacity on the coast of the Red Sea, NEOM, […]

It costs trillions of dollars to settle commercial conflicts. It’s time for Alternative Dispute Resolution

More commercial disputes happen in energy, mining, infrastructure and urban development than in other industries. Projects in these sectors demand long timeframes and the co-ordination of large numbers of organisations, both of which cause friction. Consequently, conflict management and dispute resolution techniques have advanced fast. Why do disputes matter? Commercial disputes are like toxins. They cause […]

These homes of the future will bring nature indoors

Rethinking how we build shelter may be an important step in increasing sustainability. One such possibility involves creating permeable buildings that interact with the natural world. Traditional buildings are designed to provide protection against a savage world, with us safe on one side and our waste on the other. Architects have long relied on ‘hard’ […]

How automation and technology will change the buildings we live in

Our built environment and its entire value chain are in the wake of a severe transformation. Artificial intelligence (AI), the Internet of Things, robotics and other technologies are not only responsible for the emergence of smart cities, automated processes and new business opportunities, but a change to the rules underpinning the real estate industry. The impact […]