AI dons a hard hat as construction industry unveils safety tools for jobsites

The Construction Industry Institute has unveiled new AI-powered safety tools for jobsites, developed by a research team from Texas A&M University, Louisiana State University, and 20 industry professionals. The initiative identifies 19 best use cases for artificial intelligence in construction safety protocols and provides a matching tool to help companies implement the most effective solutions for their specific needs.

What you should know: The research team created a comprehensive framework that connects AI applications with current safety challenges on construction sites.

• Wearables and generative AI can predict dangerous jobsite locations and establish geofenced alerts that notify workers when entering high-risk areas, according to Sarah Wilson, senior project manager at Procter & Gamble and team vice-chair.
• The tool will be available on CII’s website at www.construction-institute.org starting this fall.
• AI implementation can help companies maintain consistent safety messaging, provide real-time situational awareness, and predict hazards before they occur.

Key challenges: Despite the potential benefits, several obstacles remain for widespread AI adoption in construction safety.

• High implementation costs pose a significant barrier for many construction companies.
• Workers remain skeptical about jobsite cameras and wearables, often viewing them as surveillance tools rather than safety support systems, said Yongcheol Lee, associate professor at LSU.

Additional safety resources: CII researchers also developed a second tool that consolidates over 30 years of safety implementation best practices.

• The resource incorporates recent safety strategies focused on human behavior, employee well-being, and positive reinforcement rather than purely punitive measures.
• “I’ve been around safety research for 30 years, but one of the things that surprised me in a good way is the talk about positive traits [in recent case studies],” said John Gambatese, professor at Oregon State University’s School of Civil and Construction Engineering.
• Top-performing companies that promote positive safety culture “get a workforce that listens, understands and accepts and is willing to go along the journey,” Gambatese added.

Beyond safety: Researchers presented a framework for reducing embodied carbon emissions on capital projects, integrating decarbonization goals with existing project metrics like safety, quality, and schedule while identifying cost-reduction strategies.

Leadership transition: Mike Pappas will become CII’s new executive director on November 1, replacing Jamie Gerbrecht after her three-year tenure.

• Pappas currently serves as project management program director at Los Alamos National Laboratory and previously held the associate CII director role from 2017 to 2021.