Singapore boosts digital spend in construction

Construction firms in Singapore use an average of 7.3 technologies, the report said.

Singapore’s construction industry is now dedicating 28% of its total expenditure to new technologies, a significant increase from 21% the previous year.

The finding comes from the 2025 State of Digital Adoption in the Construction Industry report by Autodesk and Deloitte, which identifies Singapore as one of the most digitally advanced construction markets in Asia Pacific, second only to India.

Construction firms in Singapore use an average of 7.3 technologies—well above the regional average of 6.2. It is also a sharp 46% jump from just 5.0 technologies a year ago.

This rapid uptake is largely driven by government initiatives, such as the Building and Construction Authority’s Built Environment Industry Transformation Map, which prioritises digital tools like Building Information Modelling (BIM) and Integrated Digital Delivery (IDD) in public contracts.

Digitalisation is already producing tangible results. Companies with higher digital maturity report delivering 1.5% more projects under budget and 1.1% more projects on time.

For a firm earning $100m in revenue, this translates to an additional $1.14m and a 50% lower likelihood of safety incidents—solid evidence that digital investment is yielding returns.

Despite the momentum, challenges persist. The top five issues reported by Singapore construction businesses include economic uncertainty (32%), rising labour costs (29%), raw material prices (32%), regulatory complexity (24%), and growing competition (28%). At the same time, barriers to digital adoption include a lack of technical skills (35%), budget constraints (32%), and technology costs (29%).

There is, however, clear progress. Only 25% of firms now see skills gaps as a barrier, down from 55% in 2023.

Additionally, 84% of construction businesses in Singapore say they plan to upskill their workers, with many collaborating with educational institutions to develop talent pipelines.

Commonly used technologies in the industry include mobile apps (59%), construction management software (58%), BIM (57%), and IoT or smart sensors (57%). Firms are also planning further investments in these areas, particularly in smart sensors and mobile platforms to support field operations and safety.