What’s the biggest blocker to technology adoption?

Time – or the lack thereof –­ is the biggest barrier to adopting new technology, according to a new survey conducted by Revizto.

The inaugural global Bridging the Gap: 2025 Digital Design & Construction Report analyses the results of Revizto’s survey of more than 2,000 professionals worldwide in the architecture, engineering and construction industries. The vast majority of respondents are in leadership roles.

The most popular answer to the question “what has been the biggest barrier to adopting new technology?” was “time”, cited by nearly a third (30%). A lack of policy or mandate (internally or externally) was cited by a quarter, followed closely by people (22%) and cost (21%).

In particular, time was the biggest barrier cited by 31% of the respondents at companies with a turnover of $50m-$100m. However, 32% of respondents at the largest companies with a turnover of $1bn or more identified the lack of policy or mandate as the biggest barrier.

The survey respondents also revealed their top reasons for rework on projects:

Given technology’s potential to significantly reduce these issues, the lack of time to adopt it is a clear and present danger.

When asked about which tools they rely on most, more than a third (36%) cited collaboration tools, followed swiftly by authoring tools (34%) and CDE tools (33%). Verification and coordination tools were cited by 31%, email, Excel and PDFs by 27% and site-based tools by 22%.

Arman Gukasyan, founder and CEO of Revizto, said: “The construction sector is at a pivotal moment. With governments investing billions in infrastructure and the global market projected to reach $22,000bn by 2040, the opportunity is immense – but so is the risk. Our research shows that outdated practices and fragmented project delivery are costing the industry and public billions, underscoring the urgent need for smarter, more collaborative ways of working to help reduce waste and reworks on essential and complex projects.”

Roman Baran, senior manager for digital construction at Canary Wharf Group (a leading Revizto customer), added: “This report highlights what many of us have long understood: improving collaboration is the clearest path to boosting productivity in construction. With the right tools, like Revizto, we can bridge the gaps between design and delivery to reduce rework, minimise budget overruns, and improve outcomes.”