Research on the Benefits of Intelligent Construction Site Applications—A Case Study in Nanjing City

In the field of construction engineering, utilizing information technology to empower and upgrade traditional construction methods has become an inevitable trend. Intelligent construction sites aim to enhance project management, quality, and safety levels through three layers—digitalization, networking, and intelligentization—by leveraging advanced information technologies such as Building Information Modeling (BIM), the Internet of Things (IoT), intelligent equipment, and big data. To promote the application of intelligent construction site technology, this paper takes intelligent construction sites as the research object, with the analysis of application benefits as the primary research focus. It systematically examines the definition and connotation of intelligent construction sites, reviews the current research status of intelligent construction sites and benefit evaluation theory, and proposes an intelligent construction site application benefit system across five dimensions: economy, product, organization, management, and strategy. Existing benefit assessment studies predominantly adopt single-dimension evaluation approaches, lacking integrated frameworks that combine quantitative and qualitative analysis. Return on Investment (ROI) and Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) analysis models are employed to calculate and evaluate the direct and indirect benefits, respectively. Validation was conducted through an actual project, and the results demonstrate that the application of intelligent construction sites yields an ROI of 102.7% based on discounted cash flow analysis (8% social discount rate), with an expert scoring of 9.42 for indirect benefits. The analysis models indicate positive benefits associated with intelligent construction site implementation. While direct causal attribution requires controlled comparison, the observed improvements are consistent with theoretical expectations and industry benchmarks for intelligent construction site adoption. This study verifies the availability of the evaluation system through its application to an actual project. It is hoped that this research will provide a reference for decision-making regarding the application and promotion of intelligent construction sites.