CICA participated in Construction 4.0 by Contech held in Tel Aviv on February 26th, 2020. Fanny Dastugue (Director General, CICA) and Cecilia Cavedo (Manager Development & Integration, Argentine Chamber of Construction) represented CICA in the event.
Over 350 corporate and technology representatives from the construction and technology market, together with hundreds of Israeli investors and developers, participated in the first international conference on construction technology led by the Ministry of Construction and Housing, the Ministry of Economy, the Israeli Builders’ Association (member of CICA) and Startup Nation Central.
Construction Tech was presented as a sector in itself. Representatives of the Israeli Ministry of Construction and Housing highlighted the very substantive impact of construction on any economy and its role in the sustainability and quality of life of citizens. Taking construction from a highly conservative to a data and technology driven industry, Contech is seen as the next growth engine of the Israeli economy.
Digitization for decarbonization but also for optimization of time, reduced costs and increased safety in construction: these are the different goals of technological unicorns which took part in the Demo Session.
Among others, based on advanced imagery processing and augmented reality, solutions are developed to use cranes more safely allowing also more inclusiveness in the cranes operators employment (women, handicaped people…) (Eg: UltraWis). Internet of Things (IoT) can also help calculate the maximum weight capacity to optimize the space for the transportation of construction materials, avoiding accidents and reducing costs (Eg: Samson Logic). Some initiatives for zero waste opearations with prefabricated pieces are also supported by start ups (Eg: Vinci Group programmes). Disruptive ways of planning the construction projects also emerged (Eg: Swapp).
However the Contech sector is still very fragmented. Many of the Contech start ups are looking for data consolidation. But as the representative of the Israeli ministry of Construction and Housing stated: innovation should be a tool, not a goal.
CICA is supporting the concept of Construction 4.0 and the introduction by Contractors of disruptive technologies in the design of the projects and on the work sites aiming at aligning the digital innovations for the construction sector with the societal vision, including the sustainable dimension. Construction 4.0 by Contech in Tel Aviv is an opportunity for contractors to meet with other actors of the ecosystem including start ups and policymakers.
For more information
Read the Press Release (in Hebrew)
Learn more about the construction start ups present in Contech Tel Aviv
Learn more about the CATALYST program, launched last December by Leonard, designed to foster and accelerate partnerships between VINCI and startups and scale–ups in their commercial development phase.