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A Survey on the Impact of Information Technology in the Canadian Architecture, Engineering and Construction Industry

SUMMARY: A survey about the current and planned use of information technology (IT) and its impact on the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry in Canada has been conducted at the end of 1998 and beginning of 1999. It was found that many business processes are now almost completely computerised and the tendency is toward a greater computerisation of the remaining processes. Although the Internet has been adopted by most firms surveyed, design information is still exchanged in its traditional form. These firms have increased and will increase further their investment in IT, which has raised productivity in most business processes and has resulted in an increase in the quality of documents and in the speed of work, better financial controls and communications, and simpler access to common data. However, the benefits of IT come at a cost since the complexity of work, the administrative needs and the costs of doing business have all increased. The continual demand for upgrading and the greater know-how required are considered important obstacles. The two most important areas of future research is the implementation of computer-inte grated design and construction as well as the development of new tools to support concurrent design and to assist designers in the conceptual stages.