On average 48 per cent of Australian construction sector employees use construction specific technology weekly, second highest among surveyed nations

A new report from Autodesk, Inc. (NASDAQ: ADSK) reveals Australian Design and Make industries – including construction, architecture and engineering – are steadily increasing the use of technologies amid ongoing operational challenges, stagnating productivity and geopolitical uncertainty.

The State of Digital Adoption in the Construction Industry 2026 is a study of 954 businesses across Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, India and Vietnam to assess the gap between digital ambition and digital capabilities. Businesses surveyed – of which 287 are from Australia – included those in architecture, engineering, construction, real estate development and specialty trade contractors.

According to the report, on average 48 per cent of Australian construction sector employees use construction specific technology weekly. This is the second highest out of all countries included in the report, behind only Vietnam at 52 per cent. Australian businesses use an average of 7.6 technologies, an increase from 6.9 technologies in 2025.

The top three technologies used are construction management cloud software (60 per cent), construction wearables (53 per cent) and AI and Machine Learning (52 per cent). Despite an increase in the use of technology, there are still major barriers to digital adoption. The top three challenges for Australian businesses include a lack of digital skills among employees, a lack of allocated budget and uncertainty about the required technical skills and capabilities.

“In a more volatile world, digital capability becomes construction’s competitive edge – turning project data into decisions, and decisions into predictable delivery. The winners won’t be the firms with the most tools, but the ones that connect workflows, trust their data, and scale what works across every project,” said Sumit Oberoi, Senior Manager, Construction Strategy and Partnerships at Autodesk.

“For industry leaders, these challenges have made it more difficult to predict delivery timelines. It’s not surprising, therefore, that construction management cloud software is the most widely adopted technology in the sector, as the software can help ease project pressures by providing a single platform for data sharing, real-time cost updates and model coordination.”

The productivity potential 

Productivity in the Australian construction sector has been stagnating for decades, with data showing construction multifactor productivity in FY24 remained broadly in line with the 1990s.

“Australia doesn’t have a technology adoption problem; we have a value realisation problem. The opportunity now is to move from digitising tasks to digitising the delivery system: by having one connected data backbone, sharper collaboration, and a workforce that can use these tools confidently to lift productivity at scale,” said Oberoi.

Thankfully, according to the State of Digital Adoption in the Construction Industry report, since 2024 Australian businesses have steadily increased the number of technologies used in the construction sector. From major infrastructure projects to residential builds, companies are increasingly using data-driven design and lifecycle modelling to improve coordination, reduce risk and optimise long-term asset performance.

This approach has helped commercial building and constructions services provider Icon, who have used digital tools to complete large-scale construction projects.

“Our approach has been to push all project data into a single data environment, so teams always know they have the latest information,” said Dominic Martens, Group Construction and Technology Manager at Icon.

“When site staff can access up-to-date drawings immediately, they can get up and running faster and reduce delays caused by outdated or fragmented data.”

Geopolitical disruption adding to inflation pressures 

In Australia, geopolitical uncertainty and elevated oil prices are adding to persistent domestic inflationary pressures. The Economist Intelligence Unit forecasts inflation to increase in five of the six Asia Pacific markets, with the largest increase in India and Australia.

Increasing fuel prices are amplifying a set of existing challenges across the industry. Across all APAC countries included in the State of Digital Adoption in the Construction Industry report, cost of raw materials (29 per cent) and high labour costs (26 per cent) remain the most commonly reported barriers to growth.

“Rising input and material costs are placing Australia’s construction industry under intense pressure, squeezing margins and contributing to a growing wave of insolvencies,” said David Rumbens, Partner at Deloitte Access Economics.

“Lifting productivity through technology is critical – not just for individual businesses, but for the industry’s capacity to deliver Australia’s housing and infrastructure needs. Without a step change in productivity, we are likely to fall further behind the Australian Government’s national housing target and see further delays to major infrastructure projects.”

The digital skills shortage 

Australia’s construction industry is a major employer, supporting around 1.4 million jobs – approximately nine per cent of the overall workforce. Yet the industry continues to struggle with talent shortages, and recent forecasts expect the industry to experience a shortfall of 300,000 workers by mid-2027.

This skills shortage is also a barrier for digital adoption: according to the report, Australian businesses cite insufficient digital skills (37 per cent) as a key constraint on technology adoption.

“This reflects a shift from access to capability; with relatively high uptake of digital tools, the challenge is now ensuring workers can use technology effectively to realise value,” said Oberoi. “In response, businesses are investing in role-specific training, on-the-job learning, and partnerships with technology providers, supported by industry-led training pathways that embed digital capability into the workforce.”

Download the State of Digital Adoption in the Construction Industry 2026

About Autodesk

The world’s designers, engineers, builders, and creators trust Autodesk to help them design and make anything. From the buildings we live and work in, to the cars we drive and the bridges we drive over. From the products we use and rely on, to the movies and games that inspire us. Autodesk’s Design and Make Platform unlocks the power of data to accelerate insights and automate processes, empowering our customers with the technology to create the world around us and deliver better outcomes for their business and the planet. For more information, visit autodesk.com.au or follow @autodesk. #MakeAnything

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