Findings from the Autodesk, Inc. State of Digital Adoption in the Construction Industry report suggest that there is potential for digital maturity in Singapore’s construction industry to grow further.
Construction and engineering businesses are signaling their intent to develop their digital maturities in the future with 26% of budgets being allocated to new technologies and R&D. This is an increase of more than 40% from the previous year (18%).
With the potential of construction technologies to improve project outcomes and financial performance, Singapore industry players could also be looking to digital tools as a means to navigate a volatile economic environment.
The top five challenges faced by Singapore construction firms include economic uncertainty (32%), labour costs (29%), cost of raw materials (32%), regulation and compliance requirements (24%), and growing competition (28%).
Mobile apps (59%) is the most used technology among Singapore construction businesses, followed by construction management software (58%), building information modelling (57%), and Internet of Things (IoT) and smart sensors (57%).
Moving ahead, many businesses are also planning to increase deployments of IoT and smart sensors (39%), adopt more construction management software (39%), and more mobile apps (38%).
Safety first: Transforming risk management in construction with technology
The construction industry has one the highest rates of safety incidents of all industries globally. The situation is no different in Singapore, with construction consistently ranked among the highest risk sectors in the city-state.
Providing a real-world example, the Singapore Ministry of Manpower (MOM) conducted a safety inspection earlier this year at more than 300 construction sites across the country, where more than 800 safety violations were identified.
MOM data also revealed that the construction sector was responsible for 20 fatalities out of a total of 36 workplace deaths in Singapore.
Setting the right foundation for greater digital adoption is crucial for the industry to improve safety and quality. Businesses with greater digital maturity were more likely to experience a decrease in safety incidents.
In APAC, 41% of businesses using six or more technologies observed a decrease in safety incidents, compared to only 27% of businesses using less than six technologies.
79% of Singapore construction firms reported either a decrease or no change in safety incidents, below the regional average of 82%. While this suggests room for improvement, this number has the potential to increase as technology adoption continues to accelerate.
Unlocking the tech promise: Addressing hurdles to widespread adoption
Despite the proven benefits that digital tools can deliver, barriers remain for further technology adoption.
Uncertainty around the required technical skills and capabilities (35%) was the most common barrier to integrating technologies for Singaporean businesses, followed by the lack of budget (32%) and cost of technologies (29%).
Despite this uncertainty, Singapore has made significant progress in increasing digital skills among employees, with just 25% of Singaporean businesses surveyed identifying skills gaps as a barrier in 2025, relative to 55% in 2023. They are also proactively looking to develop skills in the workforce with 84% of businesses seeking to upskill their workers. Additionally, more than three quarters of businesses also collaborate with educational providers to improve skill development.
The Singapore government also has a number of initiatives in place that local firms can leverage to alleviate costs of technology adoption. Examples include the Productivity Solutions Grant, and the new S$150 million Enterprise Compute Initiative that was announced in Budget 2025 specifically to accelerate the adoption of AI solutions within local enterprises.
“Firms also need to recognise that investment in technology alone is insufficient,” added Larrick. “Unlocking the full potential of digital transformation requires a strategic focus on effective change management.
“Key activities, such as clearly communicating the benefits of new technologies, piloting solutions prior to widespread deployment, allocating dedicated budget for transition support, and securing active endorsement and usage from business leaders, are crucial.
“These measures will be pivotal for fostering employee engagement, validating technology impact, and ensuring successful integration into core business operations.”
