Disruptive Technology Brings Risk and Opportunity to Infrastructure Projects
The infrastructure industry has not typically been known for its embrace of new technology. In a recent paper, the World Economic Forum (WEF) attributed the industry’s relatively slow adoption of technological innovation to a number of internal and external challenges in the engineering and construction sector.
Once these innovative infrastructure assets become operational, they will likely include embedded technologies, such as the intelligent transportation systems (ITS) used on many highways and freeways. These incorporate a variety of technologies including Bluetooth, video, and other wireless systems to promote efficient traffic management, allow for toll tracking and billing, enhance emergency response times, and assist law enforcement. With the coming of autonomous vehicles, it’s likely that additional sensing technology will be needed to improve safety.
With innovation comes risk, however, as technological disruption also increases volatility and exacerbates emerging issues, including those related to social stability as well financial viability and cybersecurity:
- Social disruption
- Financial viability
- Cybersecurity
