Digital technologies are evolving quickly, but knowing how to apply them is still a challenge for many in the built environment sector. Brent Rees, partner for digital engineering at Ridge, attended this year’s Digital Construction Week and shares his reflections on the conversations shaping how we can get more value from it.
The event’s ambitious agenda was more than matched by the energy on the floor. It tackled six big themes: AI and machine learning, digital twins and BIM, Net Zero construction, robotics and automation, collaborative delivery and workforce and culture.
What I enjoy most about events like this is the conversations. The discussions at the stand, the chance encounters between sessions, the moments where someone puts their finger on something you’ve been thinking about but haven’t quite articulated yet.
This year, one question kept coming up: what does it actually mean to get more from digital?
For most organisations, the answer isn’t access to technology – they already have plenty of that. The challenge is knowing how to apply it. Almost every platform now includes AI in some form, and the pace of change is dizzying. But there’s no single AI-powered tool that solves everything. Projects are shaped by hundreds of interconnected decisions, handovers and workflows, and it’s often in those transitions – not the tools themselves – where value gets lost or created.
The conversations that resonated most with me were about embedding digital thinking earlier and more practically across the asset lifecycle. Clear strategies and reliable baseline information at the outset really do make a difference. As projects move forward, the focus shifts to how information is shared, coordinated and used. Done well, this helps teams track progress and manage complexity without drowning in data.
In some areas, off-the-shelf platforms don’t quite fit, and bespoke applications can fill the gap. We’ve seen this with challenges like RAAC and retrofit, where purpose-built tools have made projects easier to manage.
The broader theme running through everything at the event was that technology can improve delivery, but it still depends on people, processes and joined-up thinking to make it work. That’s not a criticism of the tools. It’s simply where the real work happens.
As a final note, we launched the new Ridge brand the day before the show opened, which meant our visitors at Digital Construction Week were among the first to see it. It was genuinely exciting to hear the reactions, and a good reminder of why it’s important to get out to events like this. If you want to keep the conversation going, we would love to hear from you.
Want to talk digital?
Whether you’re thinking through a BIM strategy, trying to get more from your project data, or not sure where to start, let’s talk. Find out more about our digital engineering services and get in touch.
