Technology is not leading us to a brave new world but to a better environment and a higher quality of life, delegates heard at PropertyEU's PropTech, Data & Innovation briefing in London.
‘Technology is creating a future of high-quality infrastructure, better urban planning, resilient cities, air quality monitoring and improved working environments,’ said Dan Hughes, director, data and information product management at RICS. ‘There is not one single make-or-break technology, but an ecosystem of technologies working together to improve our world.’
Hughes was speaking at the investment briefing which was held on Wednesday at the City of London offices of TH Real Estate.
The real estate sector – generally conservative and slow-moving - has come to the party late, but even that can be turned into an advantage. ‘In real estate we are just getting started, but we are fortunate to be able to learn from other industries and improve our sector,’ said Allan Kehlet Rieck, co-founder and CEO of True-Market-Value.com. ‘It is a wonderful opportunity to change things for the better.’
Technology has been around for a long time, pointed out Hughes, but what is new is the pace of change which is much faster now, as well as the range: it affects every aspect of real estate, starting with construction.
In China a 57-storey building has been built in 19 days using new offsite construction techniques. 3D printing of high rise concrete buildings is already changing the construction industry, with China leading the way.
Drones are already being used for the mapping and monitoring of construction sites, as they are able to access difficult locations and have the advantage of being environmentally friendly.
Virtual reality and augmented reality allow a building to be ‘visible’ before construction even begins. The consumer experience is constantly being enhanced: instead of looking at a picture of an office or an apartment, a tenant will be able to visualise it in 3D using a virtual reality model.
Another advantage of technology will be having more reliable and up-to-date information available, which will take ‘risk off the table’ in all sectors of the property industry, said Phil Tily, senior vice president, head of performance analytics at Altus Group.
‘Valuations used to be annual, then quarterly, but now with more quantifiable data fed into them they can become daily,’ he said. ‘Assumptions will be more accurate. All concerns will be addressed through technology.’
According to a RICS study, 44% of construction and real estate jobs will be automated, and robots will perform the most repetitive tasks. Data collection and analysis will increasingly be automated, but evaluation and advisory roles will continue to be a human prerogative.
‘Decision-making will still be based on human judgment,’ said Hughes. ‘Instead of collecting data, people will be able to focus on understanding the implications of those data.’
The emphasis will shift from data collection to the assessment and evaluation of what the client needs and then to customised delivery of relevant data, said Matt Partridge, founder and CEO of Infabode: ‘Investment companies are already making decisions based on data, and estate agents are becoming more like data companies. This trend will continue.’
