The Information Chain: Building Smarter in the Age of AI

In AEC, information is our most powerful tool—and our biggest liability.

Every drawing, spec, schedule, and model is part of a living information chain that shapes decisions, costs, and outcomes. But while our tools have evolved—from paper to BIM to AI-enhanced platforms—our systems haven’t kept up.

The result? Critical information still gets lost, delayed, misread, or misaligned. And in a project worth $100M, even one missed assumption can cost millions.

We’ve Come a Long Way—But Not Far Enough

• CAD gave us precision.

• BIM gave us integration.

• CDEs gave us access.

• Digital Engineering connects the full asset lifecycle.

But we still manage information like we’re in the email era: scattered, slow, and siloed. Projects are run by smart people—but hampered by dumb systems.

Information Is the New Infrastructure

We’re now entering a phase where success isn’t just about access to data—it’s about the structure, flow, and timing of that data.

Projects succeed when the right people get the right information at the right time—without friction.

That’s where AI, Digital Twins, and federated ecosystems can deliver real value. But only if we design systems that are:

• Clear (not just connected)

• Intentional (not just integrated)

• Adaptive (not just automated)

Rethinking the Ecosystem

Harari says every civilisation was built on how it shared meaning. In construction, our “language” is digital:

Models. Drawings. Data streams. Dashboards.

We now have a choice in how we structure our information flows:

• Centralised systems offer control—but can bottleneck.

• Decentralised tools offer flexibility—but risk inconsistency.

• Federated models balance ownership and visibility.

• AI-enhanced digital twins enable real-time, context-aware decisions.

The structure we choose shapes how fast we learn, how well we collaborate, and how resilient we become.

Your Role in the Chain

You don’t need to be a data scientist to shape the future of construction.

If you’re a designer detailing a facade, or a contractor sequencing works, or a digital lead mapping workflows—you’re part of the information supply chain.

How you capture, structure, and share information will directly affect cost, safety, performance, and trust.

Final Thought

Let’s stop treating information as a by-product.

Let’s start treating it like infrastructure.

Because the future of AEC won’t be built on concrete and steel alone— It’ll be built on clarity, trust, and the intelligence of our systems.