Toward Aligning Academic and Industry Understanding of Innovation in the Construction Industry

The research purpose is to conduct a preliminary investigation to determine whether the information gleaned from academic literature aligns with the impressions and attitudes of actual construction industry stakeholders to better understand the semantic and circumstantial disconnect between industry and academia. For this purpose, the researchers developed and administered a small-scale survey of key project stakeholders to determine the validity of the proposed definitions and construction literature findings. Additionally, the research team conducted interviews to develop a more in-depth case study perspective on barriers to innovative project delivery for key players in the construction industry supply chain. Thirty-five members of the BuildingSmart Alliance replied to the survey and six contractors took part in interviews, allowing the researchers to conduct a preliminary analysis of the strength of the proposed definitions and drivers of and barriers to innovation for project delivery in the construction industry. The researchers determined that there is some agreement on definitions for project delivery and innovation, but that academia and industry need to develop a better mutual understanding of innovative project delivery and barriers to and opportunities for innovation in the construction industry.