Construction
**Construction History and Evolution**:
– From first huts built by hand to the introduction of steam-powered machinery.
– Emergence of professional craftsmen during the Bronze Age and guilds in the Middle Ages.
– The rise of fast-track construction methods in the 21st century.
**Construction Industry Sectors**:
– Divided into buildings, infrastructure, and industrial sectors.
– Building sector further categorized into residential and non-residential.
– Infrastructure sector includes public works like dams, bridges, and highways.
– Industrial sector involves energy installations, mining, refineries, and processing plants.
**Construction Processes and Management**:
– From small renovations to complex, multi-disciplinary projects.
– Different procurement methods like design-bid-build and design-build.
– Legal aspects including contracts, obligations, and dispute resolution.
– Planning, finance, design, on-site construction, commissioning, and handover processes.
**Construction Statistics and Global Trends**:
– Construction GVA figures from countries like China, the US, Japan, India, and Germany.
– Employment statistics highlighting the number of workers in the US construction sector.
– Growth and contribution of the construction industry in countries like Vietnam and the UK.
– Productivity challenges and the need for addressing them for industry growth.
**Construction Safety, Sustainability, and Career Paths**:
– Safety concerns in construction with a focus on reducing fatalities and injuries.
– Sustainability initiatives promoting environmentally responsible practices.
– The importance of decarbonizing construction for global climate goals.
– Various career paths in construction ranging from unskilled labor to professional roles like architects and civil engineers.
Construction is a general term meaning the art and science of forming objects, systems, or organizations. It comes from the Latin word constructio (from com- "together" and struere "to pile up") and Old French construction. To 'construct' is a verb: the act of building, and the noun is construction: how something is built or the nature of its structure.
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In its most widely used context, construction covers the processes involved in delivering buildings, infrastructure, industrial facilities, and associated activities through to the end of their life. It typically starts with planning, financing, and design that continues until the asset is built and ready for use. Construction also covers repairs and maintenance work, any works to expand, extend and improve the asset, and its eventual demolition, dismantling or decommissioning.
The construction industry contributes significantly to many countries' gross domestic products (GDP). Global expenditure on construction activities was about $4 trillion in 2012. In 2022, expenditure on the construction industry exceeded $11 trillion a year, equivalent to about 13 percent of global GDP. This spending was forecasted to rise to around $14.8 trillion in 2030.
The construction industry promotes economic development and brings many non-monetary benefits to many countries, but it is one of the most hazardous industries. For example, about 20% (1,061) of US industry fatalities in 2019 happened in construction.