AI-based Tool Tracks US Construction Activity, Slowdowns

A new, artificial intelligence-driven tool uses live field data to measure the ups and downs of U.S. commercial construction activity since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

Unlike many macroeconomic indicators that tend to lag, the OxBlue Activity Index from construction technology provider OxBlue is based on near real-time data created by measuring activity on sites where OxBlue cameras are in effect​. The company leverages its national network of cellular connected cameras and runs the images through algorithms to extract activity information at the national level, said OxBlue CEO Chandler McCormack.

The index, which covers every state and more than 100 metropolitan areas, uses jobsite photos from thousands of projects across the country.“It can tell us what things we detect, such as changes in people or equipment, and how those changes occur over time,” he said. “Based on that we can determine a relative change in activity.The index (pictured above) found the average national level of construction declined by 5% in March and a state-by-state analysis shows large variations in the amount of construction work that took place last month.