The top 5 ways 5G boosts the performance of construction businesses

From a shrinking workforce to economic uncertainty, construction businesses in the UK are facing a number of challenges.

While there is no one-size-fits-all solution to these problems, there are a number of ways construction businesses can boost their performance and reduce their costs. In fact, many are currently looking to 5G as the answer to their connectivity woes.

5G isn’t simply an upgrade of 4G, it’s completely different technology – with faster data speeds, enhanced reliability, ultra-low latency, increased network capacity and the ability to connect a high number of devices at the same time. 

And in the UK, one in five handsets now boasts 5G connectivity(1), with availability growing every month. But while consumers are using 5G in their day-to-day lives, many businesses are lagging behind – often because they don’t know how much 5G connectivity can help them meet their commercial and strategic goals.

In construction, 5G represents a world of untapped potential. Read on to learn how 5G can help boost the performance of construction businesses. We’ll start with some of the more straightforward improvements, before counting down to some of the more innovative and future-facing use cases.

73% of construction businesses planning to deploy the latest generation of wireless technology in the next year.

Let’s start things off with a key driver of business performance: effective collaboration. 5G boasts ultra-low latency, a term that refers to the lack  of delay between a user’s actions and a system’s response. 

Ultra-low latency can really help with video calls, as it means participants perceive speakers talking in real time. When it comes to real-time collaboration, accelerating project development, minimising delays and enhancing the efficiency of projects, stress-free, glitch-free video calls are essential.

5G video calls can help office-based employees liaise with on-site teams, and specialists can provide rapid consultations, wherever they are. For example, construction professionals can use cloud-based applications to provide estimates digitally. Quick exchanges of information can help resolve issues promptly, prevent bottlenecks and maintain project progress.

But 5G doesn’t just help the employee experience. It can also help the customer-business relationship. Thanks to 5G-powered video calls, customer communication can be improved. Seamless video calling helps showcase the building process and update customers on the progress of projects – keeping everyone in the loop.

"An engineer can video call me from a site and say, ‘look at this, what do you think?’ And I’ll take them through it over the phone because I can see it. It’s really important.”

Construction Professional - Three Business Research 2023

Next up, something that’s crucial for any business operating from multiple locations. 5G-powered phones and devices help construction businesses drive the digitisation of the industry.

For example, thanks to 5G’s reliable connectivity and fast data speeds, construction workers have seamless access to the latest blueprints, plans and project documents – something that significantly enhances productivity and efficiency across the board.

Elsewhere, teams that are taking measurements on site can easily upload them for action as they work. Thanks to the super-fast 5G speeds, these uploaded measurements can be accessed in real time by an operational team, allowing them to order materials more quickly

One step closer to safer work. Every construction professional wants to keep their site secure and risk-free. According to the Chartered Institute of Building(2), 21% of construction businesses experience theft every week – and accidents are also a major concern, with an average of 59,000 non-fatal injuries every year.

When it comes to video surveillance, 5G-powered cameras can transmit high-resolution video in real time, without the lags 4G cameras suffer from. This speed immediately lets construction managers spot security breaches as they happen, take action and sound the alarm. 

On top of this, a 5G network is able to support safety sensors on-site to spot and flag issues before they cause an injury, which can be installed on items  such as hard hats, jackets and boots. In this way, managers are notified when a worker enters a restricted or dangerous area or detect when someone falls.

A number of construction projects are already seeing the benefit of such 5G-powered safety procedures. For example, the HS2 construction project is using a 5G sensor-based safety system to reduce risk to workers and machinery – where the tech is said to be a “game changer”.

Businesses that experience theft per week: 21%

In the construction world, training is crucial. Every site worker needs to know exactly what to do in the event of a risk and recognise which hazards increase the likelihood of accidents. 

With 5G-powered augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR), workers can experience hazardous scenarios and prepare for them in a risk-free environment. Helping workers learn actively rather than passively, AR and VR are immersive and effective ways of teaching teams how to act in the event of a risk.

While 5G’s predecessor, 4G, does enable some level of AR and VR, its capabilities are far more limited in comparison. 5G’s increased bandwidth facilitates the high-quality multimedia content necessary for AR and VR applications. Plus, 5G’s ultra-low latency and faster data speeds make for immersive, responsive and collaborative AR and VR. 

But AR and VR aren’t just good for training. They’re good for planning too. Specifically, AR can be combined with Building Information Modelling (BIM) software to overlay digital models onto the physical site. BIM can help with design visualisation and the accurate placement of structures and utilities – reducing errors, speeding up projects and ultimately cutting back on costs. 

While this 5G application might sound futuristic, it’s not. The tech is ready to leverage, and innovative construction companies are already harnessing the  combined power of AR and BIM.

Lastly, and importantly – whatever the size of your construction business, it’s faster and easier to manage and monitor assets with 5G. 

Vehicles, cranes, equipment and other machinery can all be installed with 5G-powered sensors, which can send out data about their performance. This can help you understand if assets are performing at their best, spot issues before they happen and reduce the risk of unplanned downtime.

To cap it off, it doesn’t matter if you want to monitor 10 assets or a hundred, as 5G has the capacity to support a million devices per square kilometre(3). While it’s unlikely you’ll need a million devices, both large and small construction businesses can benefit from the wide-scale connectivity of 5G.

From enhanced collaboration to asset monitoring and next-level AR and VR training programmes, 5G is a fantastic option for all construction businesses – especially for those where installing fibre wire for broadband isn’t possible. 

Three Business is the UK’s Fastest 5G Network(4), providing 5G power to over 500,000 business customers up and down the country. Learn more about how we can boost your connectivity, streamline your business’s comms and unlock your team’s potential.

1. Six of the Biggest Challenges Facing the UK Construction Sector: Ofcom, 15 December 2022.

2. Crime in the Construction Industry: The Chartered Institute of Building.

3. 5G Technology and Networks (speed, use cases, rollout): Thales, 10 November 2023.

4. Based on analysis by Ookla® of Speedtest Intelligence® data for Q3-Q4 2023. Ookla trademarks used under license and reprinted with permission. Visit speedtest.net/awards/fastest-5g to find out more.