L&T Construction, a leading player in engineering and construction, is increasingly adopting AI and digital technologies in construction management to boost efficiency and cut project costs. According to R Ganesan, the Head of the Corporate Centre at L&T Construction, these advanced technologies have the potential to reduce construction costs by 2-3 percent, providing a noticeable financial impact.
In the past five years, L&T Construction has focused on connecting its digitization initiatives with digitalization efforts, creating a unified data lake and warehouse. Ganesan explained that the company first delved into conventional data science and has since evolved into incorporating artificial intelligence (AI). Today, the company is leveraging Generative AI (GenAI), a composite form of AI.
“We recognized the potential of this early on, so we allocated the necessary resources to implement it in an organized way. Now, we are beginning to see the tangible impact AI has on core areas of our business, particularly in construction,” Ganesan shared.
The use of AI and digital tools plays a crucial role in minimizing waste, particularly in key materials like steel, cement, and diesel, which are essential for large-scale construction projects. AI-driven predictive analytics allows for precise planning, optimizing the cutting of steel to reduce waste and limit the amount of unusable scrap.
Furthermore, the digital monitoring of diesel usage ensures that losses due to spillage or misuse are minimized. These efforts collectively lead to improved resource efficiency and lower costs. AI also enhances decision-making by processing and synthesizing vast amounts of data, including contract summaries and project risk assessments, enabling quicker and more informed decisions.
As Ganesan pointed out, this capability helps the company gain sharper insights in a shorter time frame, thereby accelerating project execution. Another significant innovation brought by AI is in the realm of safety. L&T Construction is leveraging deep learning models and computer vision technologies to improve on-site safety. Ganesan noted that AI is now capable of identifying unsafe practices, such as workers failing to wear the required safety equipment, by monitoring and raising red alerts when safety violations occur.
“Previously, supervisors had to manually check if workmen were following safety protocols, but now, deep learning models can detect when someone isn’t wearing safety gear like gloves, shoes, or helmets, and provide a real-time alert,” he said, emphasizing that this technology has a direct and tangible benefit in preventing accidents and ensuring smoother operations on construction sites.
L&T has seen incremental benefits from implementing these technologies, including savings on costs, enhanced environmental performance, improved safety standards, better resource management, and more efficient project timelines. However, Ganesan highlighted that it will take more time to fully quantify the larger impacts of these innovations, though their potential is already clear.
Additionally, L&T has completed over 50 projects utilizing drones and geospatial technology, and IoT technology has been integrated into 15,000 pieces of machinery and equipment across the company’s sites. Ganesan further noted that more than 300 construction sites have been enabled with mobility solutions, covering project management, safety, quality control, and the tracking of workers and materials.
Earlier this year, L&T’s Railway Strategic Business Group secured a major contract valued between ₹10,000 crore and ₹15,000 crore for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed rail project. The survey for this project was completed using geospatial drone technology, which gathered, processed, and analyzed data to aid in the design process.
Drone technology now plays a critical role in around 35-40 percent of L&T’s linear infrastructure projects, which include building roads, bridges, and railway tracks. Over 200 of L&T’s projects are now being designed and executed using advanced digital platforms such as the Building Information Management system, showcasing the company’s ongoing commitment to innovation in construction management.
L&T Construction, a division of Larsen & Toubro, is India’s leading engineering and construction company. It delivers world-class infrastructure across sectors like roads, bridges, buildings, power plants, and water treatment. Known for innovation and advanced technology, L&T Construction focuses on sustainable solutions and efficiency in project execution, playing a pivotal role in shaping modern India’s urban landscape.
