Ep 37: AI in Construction: Practical Use Cases for Every Contractor

 

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Episode Transcript:

Welcome everyone. Welcome to the Construction Hot Takes podcast. I’m Jeff Robertson, one of the partners here at Ascent Consulting. I’ve been on a couple of the other podcasts, and doing a little bit differently today—doing a solo podcast. This is new for me, so bear with me.

I want to cover a topic today: artificial intelligence, AI in construction. It’s a hot topic. We’ve got a lot of clients calling us asking how we can incorporate AI into their business, so I thought I would spend a little bit of time today talking about that.

Most specifically, a couple things. One, I want to just talk about it in general—what is there? There are a couple different ways to think about how AI is being incorporated into our software tools. Some of which we may be familiar with, some of which we may not. So I want to talk about the basic market a little bit. I want to talk about how those tools are being grouped—they’re kind of in a couple tiers. And then we’ll also talk about some practical ways, some ideas, some use cases actually.

So how you could think about where’s the best place to target in your business to incorporate AI, and then some use cases—just a couple of ways you can use it, relatively simple. So let’s get started.

AI as a concept is getting a lot of attention in the media outside of the construction industry. There are a lot of people trying to figure out, is this Skynet? Or maybe HAL, for those of us who remember. What’s it going to do to us as a society?

What maybe some people don’t realize is you’ve already been using AI, or it’s being used for you or on you, and you may not have realized it. If you use Waze, Google Maps, or if you’ve ever received an email from your bank or credit card about a suspicious charge, those are AI algorithms working in the background. It’s happening whether you realize it or not.

There’s been a lot of really cool technology over the last 10–15 years coming into construction. Historically, construction has been a pretty conservative industry—“if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” There are benefits to that, but we’ve reached a tipping point where technology is becoming inevitable.

AI can make us more efficient, but I’ve never been one to advise using technology just because it’s cool. It should always be viewed through the lens of: how does this make my business more efficient? What’s the return on investment?

If you don’t think about how it fits into your business and how adoption will work, it can be a lost investment. We spend a lot of time with clients helping them figure out how to implement it effectively.

I think we’re often asking the wrong question. Instead of asking “what is AI and how does it work,” we should be asking: where is the friction in my business, and how could AI help solve that?

Let’s talk about the marketplace. There are easily 300+ AI-related tools out there right now—maybe more. That’s what makes it overwhelming. Clients tell us all the time they don’t know where to start.

We’re at an inflection point, similar to the early internet days in the late ’90s. Back then, it was the wild west. Over time, things consolidated—Google emerged, others faded. We’re in a similar phase now with AI. There’s a lot of investment, a lot of ideas, and eventually the market will decide what sticks.

Now, how is AI showing up?

There are essentially three categories:

First, AI-enhanced tools—existing software like Procore or Sage adding AI features. These are helpful but somewhat limited to their ecosystems.

Second, AI-native tools—platforms built entirely around AI, like ChatGPT, Claude, or construction-specific tools like Document Crunch.

Third, integration or orchestration layers—tools that sit on top of multiple systems and connect data across them, like Brick, HH2, or even Power BI in some cases.

Construction has traditionally been slow to adopt new technology, whether it’s scheduling software, ERP systems, or BIM. But AI is pushing us forward faster.

If AI disappeared tomorrow, the industry would still function—we’ve been building for thousands of years. But the question is: where can AI give you a competitive edge?

Let’s talk about adoption by company size.

Large contractors are already ahead—they’ve formed AI committees, built governance policies, and are running pilots.

Mid-sized contractors are experimenting. Some teams or individuals are using AI for things like meeting summaries, RFIs, or contract reviews, but it’s not yet fully integrated.

Small contractors have a huge opportunity. AI can act as a force multiplier—essentially like having an extra employee working in the background. It can help small businesses scale in ways they couldn’t before.

One key observation: there’s very little adoption at the field level. Most AI use today is in back-office or operational workflows. It hasn’t fully reached superintendents and field teams yet.

Now, let’s talk about barriers to adoption.

The biggest challenges are not the technology—they’re:

• Data cleanliness
• ERP maturity
• Change management
• Trust in the output

AI is only as good as the data you give it. Garbage in, garbage out still applies.

AI is a force multiplier, but it won’t fix poor financial controls, inconsistent cost coding, or broken workflows. If your processes are messy, layering AI on top will only create more frustration.

So before adopting AI, ask yourself:

• Do I trust my data?
• Do I have consistent processes?

If yes, you have a strong foundation.

I like to think about this using a baseball analogy. Home runs are exciting, but they’re high-risk. I prefer consistent, incremental improvements—singles, doubles, moving runners. That’s how you build a sustainable business.

AI should be applied the same way—small, strategic improvements rather than trying to transform everything at once.

Let’s talk about some practical use cases focused on margin protection and risk mitigation:

• Subcontractor insurance expiration alerts
• Certified payroll anomaly detection
• OSHA trend analysis
• Underbilling/job WIP alerts
• Vendor price volatility tracking
• Daily report keyword scanning
• Voice-enabled daily reports for superintendents
• Bid leveling assistance
• Scope gap detection
• Go/no-go project scoring
• Cash flow forecasting and backlog risk analysis

These are not futuristic ideas—these are things you can implement today.

AI can either help generate reports where you lack resources, or analyze large volumes of data where humans would struggle.

So in closing, we’re in the early adoption phase. The market is evolving, and there’s a lot of diversity in both the tools and the construction industry itself.

My advice: don’t let it overwhelm you. You don’t need to fully understand how it works to start benefiting from it.

Start small. Don’t swing for the fences right away. Build momentum with small wins.

And remember:

• AI won’t fix bad data
• It won’t fix broken processes
• It’s not a magic solution

It’s a tool—powerful, but dependent on your foundation.

That’s ultimately why Ascent Consulting exists. We help construction companies build better processes, scale their business, and grow profitably. AI is just another tool in that journey.

If you need help, we’re here.

Thanks for tuning in. I hope you got something out of today. As always, like and subscribe, check us out on YouTube or wherever you listen to podcasts, and we’ll see you next time.