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Information Classification: General1. Kindly brief us about World of Concrete India 2022. What is the new idea and what are the plans behind it?

WoC India 2022 Expo ( Formerly Concrete Show India ) is the extended arm of World of Concrete Expo, Las Vegas ( USA ) – World's largest and most respectable event in Concrete sector.

This is the flagship event in the Construction and Infrastructure portfolio of Informa Markets India running into its' 8th edition this year during 13 – 15 October, Mumbai. The event has proved to be a catalyst in accelerating the development of the value chain across the Construction & Infrastructure segments of India by providing a unique platform to Manufacturers, OEMs, Suppliers and Distributors. It helps them leverage the vast business opportunities arising from their networking amongst participating global stakeholders by showcasing their products, services and innovations besides deliberations with the bell weather captains of the industry– all under one roof.

The WoC 2022 expo will host a large format Exhibition alongside Innovation & Demonstration Zones, High profiled Conference tracks besides formalizing Water Proofing and Precast Concrete Pavilions making their debuts on the exhibit floor by the respective associations. 

WoC India will be home to buyers from EPCs, Real Estate, Contractors and PSU domains and represent cross-functional areas of expertise i.e. Procurement, Planning & Design, Quality Control, Project Management, Building Maintenance, Site Maintenance, Material Management, and Engineering teams.

The Builder Association of India Members' meet on the sidelines of the expo will be an added attraction for the exhibiting & visiting community.

How is WoC India 2022 supporting Atmanirbhar Bharat?

We always encourage the MSMEs and local manufacturers to come forward and showcase their products and offerings to the key buyers at our expo. It is of great importance to provide a world class platform to these players and WoC India is playing a critical role here. We have developed special packages for companies registered under MSME & SME whilst having support of NSIC.

The interactions with global players will open doors of Technology Transfers, Know-How transfers, forging JVs for Indian companies wherein the expo will unlock the burgeoning potential of India's growing economy for international players who wish to set up their operations in India. This will certainly provide requisite impetus to India's Atmanirbhar Bharat mission.  

As I always believe…….With India we all will grow and With India we all will glow !!

What and how many industries will be covered by this exhibition?

WoC India 2022 Exhibitor canvass is wide enough to accommodate players from following segments :

a) Concrete, Building Materials & Precast

b) Construction Equipment, Tools, Instruments, Formwork & Scaffolding

c) Construction Chemicals, Adhesives, Waterproofing Chemical & Reinforcement Products

d) Construction Safety Equipment and Commercial & Industrial Flooring

e)  Construction Design & Management Software

How many exhibitors and visitors are you expecting?

The response from the industry post-pandemic is very encouraging not only from Indian perspective, but, from the international fraternity as well.  The current 8th edition is estimated to attract more than 200 Exhibitors and 7000 + trade visitors from across the globe besides a rich league of Speakers during the 2 x days Conference / Workshops and Seminars. 

What has been your journey during the COVID period and after the lockdown?

As we all know, the pandemic hit badly to all the economies and industries across the world and the construction and infra segment is no different. It changed the way we do business and connect with stakeholders. We organized multiple virtual conferences / webinars to engage with community at large.

This helped us stay in the minds of the stakeholders right through the period and helped us forge a stronger bond when we have revived the physical events and aim to rebound with more passion and purpose.

What will be the industry's outlook for the coming years?

The outlook seems to be positive so far. The construction industry here in India is expected to grow steadily over the next four quarters recording a CAGR of 9.5% during 2022-2026.

Proud to learn many ambitious steps being undertaken by the Government of India as most of the investments are expected to be in 'PM Gati Shakti' projects across seven sectors - Roads, Railways, Airports, Ports, Mass transport, Waterways & Logistics.

Schemes such as the revolutionary Smart City Mission (target 100 cities) are expected to improve the quality of life through modernized/technology-driven urban planning. Under NIP ( National Industrial Policy), India has an investment budget of $1.4 Tn on infrastructure ( 24% on renewable energy, 19% on roads & highways, 16% on urban infrastructure, and 13% on railways ). This is destined to help the industry to regain the momentum in coming days.

Due to COVID-19, several industries are now using new technologies like artificial intelligence, machine learning, data analytics, etc. How is the construction and infrastructure industry using these technologies? Does it affect the industry or employment?

The Indian construction industry contributes 9% to the nation's GDP and any development in this industry would majorly impact country's GDP growth upwardly.

The construction technology ecosystem has shifted towards integrated software platforms that better serve customer needs. Significant opportunities exist for strategic and financial investors.

Top construction companies were already investing heavily in technology pre-pandemic. By necessity, contractors, architects, engineers, and suppliers have quickly shifted to working and collaborating digitally—from video-call site meetings to filling digital orders.

AI based solutions can help during the construction process in many ways. AI can improve construction execution planning, the updating of construction sequences and task management while keeping all stakeholders updated. Furthermore, AI can also increase the productivity within construction execution itself.

AI based tools could detect possible clashes, delays and changes within the construction process by comparing the digital twin of the building that is present in the Building Information Modeling (BIM) cloud against the actual physical representation. Robots and drones can be used for frequent image recording and 360 degree laser scans. These images and measurements provide the necessary input so that the AI can track the timely progress of the physical building against the plan stored in the BIM cloud. Furthermore, comparing the physical building progress against the digital twin enables automatic identification of errors/deviations from the original building plan during the construction phase. That provides the opportunity to react immediately, and thus perform troubleshooting at an early stage. This avoids the need for more costly correction at a later stage (e.g. if pipes or cables have been installed in the wrong location, they can be moved before all walls are closed). Possible delays and changes could potentially trigger the AI to perform an automatic change in the construction schedule that is stored in the BIM cloud. Building on this basis, all stakeholders, such as distributors and manufacturers, could be informed automatically. As a result, the construction site logistics would also be optimized as sub-contractors and suppliers could adjust their planning to the updated timelines. An AI driven construction process could therefore be the key enabler for just-in-time delivery of construction supplies.

A major driver of construction delays and cost overruns are accidents. The use of AI in the form of computer vision in combination with cameras at the construction site might mitigate risks and reduce the number of accidents greatly.

The use of AI also increases safety in operating construction machinery. Cameras continuously observe the environment and check for potential collisions with people or objects and can warn the operator before accidents happen or stop the machine itself. AI therefore enables operators to work faster and more precisely for longer periods.

In procurement, AI can help companies forecast prices for raw materials (sand, gravel, iron, etc.) and other input factors. In order to do so, AI will analyze data on both past price development and the development of other factors that influence the price of a raw material, or even identify such relationships autonomously. AI can then forecast the price and determine the optimal point in time to buy.

The use of AI and the underlying digitization can help the industry fundamentally transform itself. The completion of this journey will not only unlock unimaginable productivity gains for the industry players, but also reap long term economic rewards for our nation.

We have already had so many debates on women empowerment. So, how are you encouraging women to empower themselves?

The construction industry is one of the fastest growing industries in India and employs about 50 million people of whom 51% are women. It is exceedingly rare for women in this industry to gain access to opportunities to acquire skills in more lucrative but predominantly male-dominated trades such as carpentry, masonry, plumbing, and electrician training. They instead perform various unskilled jobs in the industry such as cleaning building sites, carrying bricks, gravel, mortar and water up to the skilled carpenters and masons. Regardless of their level of experience, they are not upgraded to the position of skilled workers from unskilled workers. They are simply unable to ascend in the industry.

The contractual nature of the construction industry often nullifies the minimum wage standards that exist in legislation. Women are paid less than men for performing the same work. Moreover, women are the first ones to be laid off or underemployed. 

Certain areas require urgent attention in order for women to cement their position in this industry. These include the Gender Sensitisation of all stakeholders, Capacity Building of women power that enhances the value of their efforts, implementation of comprehensive legislation, recruiting women to higher echelons of the industry and leveraging market mechanisms favouring women.

Having said this, the industry is seeing winds of change, with an increasing number of women architects, project managers, bankers in the home loan segment , women entrepreneurs in  construction companies etc.

WoC 2022 Expo will offer the perfect platform for all stakeholders, including women in construction, to bring to fore the issues pertinent to them and discuss & debate solutions that are immediate need of the hour.  This includes their roles in design and planning of urban spaces, housing and transport development, better safety practices at construction sites and better industry practices. The role of women in New India will be as important for this industry as the industry itself.