Many firms across numerous industries have had to suspend operations as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has harmed not only workers and business owners, but also clients and investors who are unable to see their products or services delivered.
Virtual tours, artificial intelligence, and virtual/augmented reality, on the other hand, are allowing some businesses to advance while adhering to government-imposed social distancing regulations, as consumers may now watch ongoing projects from the comfort of their own homes. However, this raises the question of which industries are making use of this technology. What impact might this have on the future of those industries?
Construction
With such a big number of individuals working on construction sites at any given time, social distancing is nearly impossible. Construction sites have become barren and projects have slowed to a halt as a result of the outbreak of COVID-19 and the subsequent social distancing rules, forcing construction businesses to engage in more imaginative means to ensure that some operations continue.
As a result, attention has been drawn to the various sorts of technology that could be used to help construction firms survive the COVID-19 pandemic. Virtual tours of construction sites employing a range of techniques such as drone recordings and virtual reality are among the key applications that could be implemented. A drone can collect and monitor data more quickly and efficiently, which can help with virtual tours as well as potentially save the UK construction industry, according to a report by PwC.
While drones are a potential option, virtual reality can also be used, particularly in the construction business, where visuals are a key part of the process. Rather than viewing 3D models on a screen or printed plans, virtual reality will allow investors and clients to examine full, 3D models of their structures in a more immersive way than ever before, helping them to gain a greater knowledge of the project. More crucially, virtual reality enables for a more in-depth review of the design, allowing possible issues and concerns to be detected promptly and remedied ahead of schedule for those working on the project.
Real Estate
Due to the existing social distancing and isolation rules, real estate relies on people meeting to examine and sell properties, which has become impossible. Traditional open houses and daily viewings simply do not fit the new requirements, and the 1 may suffer as a result. However, with the deployment of virtual tours and other technology, this might all change. Because of the importance of graphics in the real estate sector and the property selling process, virtual tours are already routine for many estate agents, even before the COVID-19 outbreak.
Other areas of technology, such as 360-degree video, allow purchasers to view a home in virtual reality through a device such as a smartphone or a laptop, and many property websites, such as Zoopla, offer this option as long as the property has 360-degree recordings.
As a result, these innovations are likely to remain in place after the COVID-19 pandemic has passed, and an increase in remote purchasing could continue as individuals remain wary after the outbreak has passed. However, while virtual tours are good practice in light of the current circumstances, they are better suited to investors in the long run because they do not intend to live in the home and are thus less likely to visit it before purchasing.
Most people who expect to live in a property will use all five senses to evaluate their possible new home, therefore these buying habits would alter for a family looking for a home, for example. Finally, technology will play an increasingly important role in the future months across a wide range of industries, not just construction and retail, and virtual tours might be employed in the travel and tourism industry, among others. Due to the devastating impact of the COVID-19 epidemic, tourism businesses in Venice are already considering employing virtual tours, and this could continue for a long time as travelers become apprehensive of traveling abroad.
This has the potential to revolutionize the way these businesses work because technology on this scale often comes at a high cost, therefore it will be employed more frequently rather than as a backup plan if something goes wrong.