On this episode of the Future Construct Podcast (30 min interview), we spotlight Aarni Heiskanen, Managing Partner at AE Partners, and address Aarni's perspective on pain points and the trajectory of technology in construction, digital buildings and infrastructure, and real estate and construction.
Aarni joins host Amy Peck (@VirtualGirlNY) to discuss:
- How the construction industry is ripe for technological advancements and digitalization and closing the gap of reluctance to bring in technology
- Tendencies of companies to want to move toward the next "shiny object" of technology simply for technology's sake
- How companies can circumvent the cycle of accomplishing goals through innovation and think more progressively about what kinds of companies they want to be in the future
- Furthering a culture of collaboration among companies to aid in the progression of industries as a whole
Click to listen to our interview with Aarni on Apple, Spotify, or Google, or watch on YouTube.
Aarni has worked for architectural design companies for 15 years and started as an internet entrepreneur in 1998. He is a seasoned management consultant and business software developer who helps technology trailblazers succeed. Specifically known for strategic consulting and bringing structure to the client's innovation and development processes, many of his clients have become leaders in their fields of business. He is now a construction innovation agent, helping AEC companies modernize the industry and do better business. During his tenure as Managing Partner for AE Partners, and prior to joining AEC Business as a Construction Innovation Agent, Aarni co-founded Thinking Portfolio, a company that develops online tools for project, IT, and service portfolio management.
Click to listen to our interview with Aarni on Apple, Spotify, or Google, or watch on YouTube.
Additionally, Aarni is an accomplished author, blogger, and podcaster. His award-winning blog, AEC Business, is also a podcast streaming on iTunesand other platforms. He has written several articles for leading construction industry and project management publications, while also having done presentations for IT, project management, and AEC professionals.
We sincerely hope you enjoy this special episode of the Future Construct podcast and we would love to hear your suggestions for future guests!
- All good things, Luke Lightning, PhD
* The Future Construct podcast is produced by the team at BIM Designs, Inc. BIM Designs, Inc. is a minority-owned US-based, union-signatory preconstruction technology firm, offering turnkey BIM modeling, laser scanning, coordination management, and other VDC solutions to the AEC industry. We'd love to talk with you!
** A special thank you to our awesome partners at Applied Software for supporting Episode 16 of this podcast! Applied Software has grown to become one of the largest AEC, MEP Fabrication, Construction, and Manufacturing system integrators in North America. They're here to help you find the best tech solution to meet your needs. Fill out a quick form to request more information.
*** Click on these links to listen to the podcast on Apple, Spotify, or Google, or watch on YouTube.
0:37 Amy Peck introduces the Managing Partner at AE Partners,
Aarni Heiskanen.
5:36 I've heard you say this different ways. On one hand, the construction industry is ripe for digitization and innovation, but in certain scenarios, there has been real reluctance or challenges to bring technology in. How do you see that gap closing?
7:53 You mentioned as well, that there's this tendency to move toward the next "shiny object", and that there are some dangers in using technology just for technology's sake. Can you expand on that and give some advice to companies who are looking at this digital transformation?
12:04 How do companies step outside of the cycle of having goals and targets to hit, and really project themselves into the future to think about what kinds of companies they want to be in the future, and how can they carve out that type of innovation in their company construct?
20:02 I think we'll hit a critical mass of data and start to optimize how we're building. So, how do you see being able to implement much more of a predictive design methodology, so that you're designing toward a more efficient design cycle?
26:23 Projecting yourself 20 to 30 years in the future, and you could bring with you any kind of gadget that would make your life better or make you happy, what would it be and what would it do?
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