Author: Paul McCormack, ARISE Project Coordinator.

(Note: opinions in the articles are of the authors only and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of the EU).

The ARISE project organised Digitalisation into 3 stages:

1. Awareness – raising the awareness of the potential in delivery and content to both the SMEs and Individuals.
2. Transformation – mapping out and enabling the pathway to transformation.
3. Implementation – developing the digital interface and tools necessary to implement the digitalisation journey.

Previous EU-funded projects, such as BIMcert and BIM-EPA, have addressed the first 2 steps in the digitalisation process and ARISE is tackling the third. In today’s digital world encompassing big data, digital pathways, and micro delivery we have identified that it is critical to raise both the educators’ and trainees’ awareness regarding the complexity of using digital technologies and social media for learning. We have identified that developing critical digital competences is key to everyone, especially to educators, trainees, and the supporting systems. The ARISE integrated approach is critical so that students can be empowered to engage not only effectively but also ethically with the current socio-technical ecosystem.

ARISE is seeking to outline the challenges the construction sector faces and how in using digital transformation as a key tool it will address these reskilling and upskilling issues and ensure workers are stimulated to engage continually in the training process and go on to deliver the benefits of this in their work.

The ARISE team and partners are presenting six articles that will build upon the three stages of digitalisation and take the reader through the entire process.

Part #1 – Awareness

1.    Digitalisation in the built environment 
2.    The need for upskilling within the industry

Part #2 – Transformation

3.    BIM basics 
4.    Digital transformations 
 
Part # 3 – Implementation

5.    The benefits of a digitally informed and empowered workforce 
6.    Stimulating the demand for skills 

The essential tenet of the digital transformation process within the ARISE and other EU-funded projects is to ascertain how we can move skills and training from the current static unidirectional maintenance mode to one of a more dynamic, learner led engagement that is bi-directional.

If we are to engage with the huge swathes of workers currently in the industry then we must reach out further, communicate, engage, and stimulate. We cannot address the energy skills that industry needs if we do not address the existing workers and professionals.

For this shift to become mainstream, traditional ‘internal’ systems need to be invested in, approaching digital competences from a critical perspective. This starts with the training of trainers, delivery agents and their support staff, and with the frameworks regulating both pedagogies and associated curricula. This involves reconceptualising the notion of digital literacies and to look beyond just the mere functionality of the digital skills, and instead encompasses a richer set of critical digital literacies that are tailored specifically to educators’ personal and professional needs.  

As the six articles are developed, they will continually examine and populate the narrative with the 6 W’s of digital transformation:

1. What – What shape is digital transformation in the built environment?
2. Why –Why should the built environment engage in digital transformation?
3. Where – Where should the built environment focus their efforts on to achieve success in digital transformation?
4. When – When should the built environment start the digital transformation process?
5. Who – Who should be engaged in the digital transformation process?
6. How – How should the built environment engage to achieve success? 

These 6 articles combined will provide a full spectrum of assistance, support, direction, and evaluation for the sector to utilise to achieve success, almost an analogue road map for a digital journey.

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Figure: The ARISE 6 W’s of Digital Transformation

The series of 6 interlinked articles will address the skills shortages in the construction sector, the energy efficiency gaps not being addressed by lack of skills, and how digital transformation can be used to address these. The articles are intended to stimulate debate and knowledge exchange as they address the following challenges respectively:

1. Are labour shortages in the construction sector here to stay?
2. Key challenge for the construction sector – addressing the skills shortages.
3. What does the future interface of training and upskilling in the construction sector look like?
4. How can we deliver effective task and impact-based learning in the construction sector?
5. Digitalising within the construction sector, improving efficiency, productivity, as well as the quality of your work. 
6. Understanding and achieving the sustainable benefits deriving from digitalisation.