Perceived productivity impacts of digitalization in the Finnish construction industry: a mixed-methods study

This research examines the perceived effects of digitalization on construction productivity in the Finnish construction industry. The study is motivated by the sector’s ongoing productivity challenges and the widespread expectation that digital tools can offer solutions. The aim of the paper is to assess the perceived benefits and challenges of digitalization in the Finnish construction industry by combining insights from literature with an online survey (n = 40) and semi-structured interviews (n = 10) with Finnish construction professionals. As the study is based on self-reported perceptions and experiences, the findings do not represent direct measurements of productivity outcomes. The findings reveal that digitalization is already perceived to deliver tangible productivity benefits, particularly through improved collaboration, enhanced quality, fewer errors and more effective project management. However, these benefits are not considered to be equally distributed among the stakeholders, highlighting uneven value distribution across the AEC value chain. On the other side, digitalization is perceived to have increased the workload and costs of the design phase, while contractors and clients benefit from the efficiency gains enabled by digitalization and advanced models. Challenges such as interoperability issues, poor data quality, lack of standards, skills gaps, and resistance to change continue to hinder adoption and full utilisation. Overall, benefits are not perceived to spring only from the adoption of digital tools, but from the integration of tools into more unified processes that require skilled professionals, clear standards, and strong leadership. The results also show that the benefits of digitalization are often considered to be indirect, stemming from process improvements rather than direct cost savings. The findings suggest that realizing the full potential of digitalization requires organizational leadership, a fairer distribution of benefits, systematic training, and industry-wide progress in standards and productivity measurement.