Construction Industry Rebirth Strategy
Publication Date 2025-03-18
Researchers CERIK
Beyond simple civil engineering, the construction industry is an important infrastructure industry that supports the national economy, forms the basic environment of society, and determines the quality of life of its people. However, in the face of unprecedented crises and changes, the construction industry is at a critical turning point in designing values and sustainable futures for the new era.
In response, the Korea Institute of Construction Industry has published Reinventing the Construction Industry: Rebirth Strategy. The report contains strategies and systems to shift away from the existing growth model to value-oriented industries, secure sustainability, and revive the construction industry in a new paradigm.
The challenges and crises facing the construction industry today are complex. Structural problems such as low growth, shrinking real estate market, stagnant technological innovation, labor shortage, and falling productivity, as well as huge trends such as digital transformation, eco-friendly paradigms, ESG management, and demographic changes are reshaping the entire industry. It is no longer an era in which traditional methods alone cannot guarantee sustainable growth.
Amid these changes, the direction of the construction industry is very clear. It is a transition from simple survival to a national future industry that focuses on social values and sustainability. Based on the vision of a "national industry that builds the people's future," the construction industry's re-leap strategy focuses on the four major goals (Responsible: Responsible, Revolutionary: Pursuing Innovation, Reliable: Trusted Enterprise, Resilient: Leap) and the three principles (Fair and Coexistence, Convergence and Expansion, Autonomy and Innovation).
First, re-establishing industrial value - The construction industry should shift from a simple construction industry to one that puts people first. Not only technology and capital, but also the value of people should be the center of the industry. For this, it is essential to cultivate skilled manpower, improve working environment, and establish a fair and safe industrial culture.
Second, a major transformation of the production system - improvement of existing disconnected construction processes and establishment of a production system that strengthens connectivity and cooperation. It is necessary to create an environment where various actors can collaborate smoothly while improving excessive regulation and unfair factors. Through this, it is necessary to form an industrial structure incorporating high-tech technologies to increase productivity and efficiency.
Third, innovation in the construction market and products - we need to shift the paradigm of construction products and services by shifting to a consumer-oriented mindset. We need to actively introduce sustainable construction technology and combine digital technology with smart construction systems to strengthen our global competitiveness. Through this, the construction industry should establish itself as an industry that realizes a smarter and more sustainable society.
The rebirth of the construction industry is not just an innovation, but a process of transformation that fundamentally redesigns the industry based on new principles and philosophy. To realize this, the government and the private sector must establish governance in cooperation and support research and policy implementation.
The Korea Construction Industry Research Institute will do its best to establish the construction industry as a value-oriented sustainable industry in this journey of change. We will actively work with various stakeholders such as the government, local governments, and industry-academic associations to make the construction industry leap forward as a core industry that creates the future.
We hope that Strategy for the Rebirth and Innovation of the Construction Industry will provide meaningful insights and practical solutions to all those who are overcoming the current crisis and contemplating the future of the construction industry.