Aussie plan to get AI to fill labour shortages, speed up home building

An AI rollout in the construction sector is set to bring about huge changes by slashing build times and reducing labour costs.

Cuby AI home design which Chandolin Construction will be bringing to Australia

The Aussie dream is set be given a science fiction makeover, with aspiring property buyers told they could soon be served up houses created, designed and delivered by artificial intelligence.

AI is set to muscle its way onto NSW construction sites as new technology is rolled out that promises to slash building times, cut costs and drag the state out of its deepening housing crisis.

The AI-driven building systems are expected to help streamline the manufacturing of key housing components like framing and modular fittings, while guiding the assembly process on site.

This would potentially smooth choke points in the construction process and help overcome critical labour shortages that have plagued the building industry since the pandemic.

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Cuby AI home building process in action

Chandolin Construction, partnering with Cuby Technologies, is one of the groups championing the AI rollout, with three pilot projects underway across the state and plans to roll out about 200-300 homes using the technology next year.

The plan from there is to scale up the technology for bulk housing production in larger estates.

Chandolin Construction director Sarah Dimitrievski said the process “transforms housing from a labour-intensive construction process into a digitally controlled manufacturing system”.

The technology allows much of the construction process to be integrated into one production workflow, minimising the effect of weather delays, subcontractor bottlenecks and tradie wait times.

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Chandolin Construction Sarah Dimitrievski and Founder of Cuby Technologies Aleh Kandrashou

It deploys Mobile Micro-Factories (MMFs) – portable, containerised production facilities that fabricate home components.

Once kit is out the manufacturing site, the AI tech guides on how shipping containers should be packed for optimal construction. The containers are then sent to the building site. The process is QR coded.

“It drastically reduces the time, cost and labour required to build high-quality homes, delivering units in 30 to 60 days at a cost that is often one third below traditional methods,” Ms Dimitrievski said.

“This unlocks the ability to scale housing supply rapidly, even in regions with tight labour markets or high material costs, making it an ideal solution for Australia’s housing shortage.”

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Sarah Dimitrievski on the stairs of a completed Cuby design

Housing Industry Association chief economist Tim Reardon said AI could be a “real opportunity” for the industry.

It was unlikely to put skilled trades out of work but could lower the burden of white collar labour costs involved in regulatory compliance, including in the planning approval process, Mr Reardon said.

“There’s more white collar people involved in building a house these days trying to cope with red tape and regulatory requirements of building – which has made homes increasingly expensive – it is in that area that AI presents enormous opportunity,” he said.

“I think that what we’re going to see is two particular components of homebuilding that will be really amenable to that and that is the engineering component and the planning component.”

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Chandolin Construction Directors Sarah and Peco Dimitrievski at an undeveloped building development in Bathurst. Image: Brendan Cooper

Ms Dimitrievski said the kit of parts made with AI-co-ordinated methods includes structural steel frames, PIR-insulated wall panels, helical pier foundations and prefabricated service cores.

The materials are industrial-grade, fire, mould, pest and rot-resistant and are engineered for energy efficiency and long lifespan, she added.

Ms Dimitrievski said home layouts, facades and finishes can all be tailored to the local market or client preferences. Home buyers have the option to personalise their builds with pre-approved modules.

“If you want each of those homes can be different, however, we’re probably going to be doing bulk estates for housing – because we want to get a lot of homes out,” she said.

Mr Reardon said AI could inevitably reshape employment in the sector.

“It does mean more homes and therefore more homebuilding which will employ more people. It is simply shifting the cost from nonproductive engagement to productive engagement of the labour force,” he said.

“That argument that AI will take peoples jobs is no different to what we saw in the industrial revolution – it’s not that technology takes people’s jobs, it does change roles.

“AI won’t take your job. Somebody that knows how to use AI will.”

Originally published as Aussie plan to get AI to fill labour shortages, speed up home building