Annual Building Tech Report Reveals Key Trends in Materials, Decarbonization Strategies

Catalyzed by increasing pressures to conform to rapidly changing sustainable standards, the adoption of various building technologies across projects and assets is on the rise. The 2024 Annual Building Tech Benchmarking Report is designed to illuminate this transition, specifically addressing the adoption, implementation, and satisfaction of High-Performance Materials, Planning & Design Solutions, Energy Systems/HVAC Technology, and Tenant Services/User Experience Solutions. Fueled by primary survey data, our report highlights some of the latest and most pressing trends relating to innovation and sustainability in the construction, design, and operations of our buildings.

Key Themes From the 2024 Annual Building Tech Benchmarking Report

Per survey data, interest in alternative and high-performance building materials was notably high, with 74% of participants either specifying or using them for their projects.
Concrete was the most frequently utilized high-performance material, closely followed by wood.
Over 70% of respondents use a dedicated planning and design solution across projects - over 16 unique solutions were identified.
Investment in Energy Systems/HVAC Technology is on the rise per BuiltWorlds’ Venture Dashboard 2.0, which tracks all AEC venture investments made in real-time. Technology categories include ConTech, Building Tech, and Infrastructure Tech.
Tenant Services/User Experience solutions were the least-implemented technology type in the 2024 Building Tech Survey, with just over 30% of respondents regularly using a solution.

The What and Why

Every year, the BuiltWorlds Benchmarking Program surveys hundreds of contractors, architects, engineers, developers, and owners to understand and identify the latest trends relating to six distinct technology areas: Building Tech, Preconstruction, Project Management & Oversight, Field Solutions, Tools/Equipment/Robotics, and Offsite Construction. The data collected, aggregated, and then presented in various mediums equips members with the ability to objectively compare their organization's adoption and implementation of these technologies, understand the specific solutions the industry is using, how often they use them, and how satisfied they are with those solutions. The source data is empirically gathered and provided through an entirely neutral, third-party lens.

In leveraging Building Tech Research from Builtworlds, member companies can effectively benchmark their tech stack, identify opportunities to pilot new solutions, mitigate risk by anticipating potential obstacles or challenges, identify potential partners, and make more informed strategic decisions. As this is an annual program, our team can identify year-over-year trends, specifically identifying which solutions/products are gaining traction and which are lagging.

For example, a company like Johnson Controls, which is extremely well known for building efficiency and HVAC systems, was identified in 2023 and 2024, further corroborating its legacy status as a leader in the space. However, a smaller company like Specifx, which was not identified in 2023 but was in 2024, represents a solution that has the potential to gain additional traction in the coming years.

To hear from both the leading building technologies serving the AEC and emerging solutions with the potential to disrupt the industry, register for the Buildings Conference below!