Blockchain Technology and the Future of Construction Industry in the Arab region :Applications, Challenges, and Future Opportunities

The construction industry sector is one of the oldest sectors in the world and plays a major role in the development and advancement of societies. However, the construction industry suffers from low production and efficiency compared to other sectors for several reasons, including the different interests of the parties involved in construction projects and the fear of some of keeping pace with modern technological developments, in addition to the lack of confidence among the participants in the project, which are among the most important factors that reduce efficiency and productivity. In 2008, a technology emerged with the ability to overcome many of the challenges facing the construction industry, namely, the blockchain technology, which is associated with the famous cryptocurrency bitcoin. Its main purpose is to prevent changes to digital documents and preserve the data stored in them to prevent it from being modified. This technology has applications in many fields. The construction sector, especially in the Arab region, suffers from a lack of knowledge of the potential of this technology to help the construction industry in the digital age. The main objectives of this study were to explore the role of blockchain technology in shaping the future of the construction industry and to determine what this technology could contribute to the construction sector, especially in combination with building information modelling (BIM) technology. The researchers assumed that the adoption of blockchain technology in the construction industry would be a solution to a large portion of the current problems of the industry, which have slowed the adoption of BIM technology. Literature on the concept of blockchain technology and its applications to the construction industry was reviewed. Semi-structured interviews with Arab experts and specialists were conducted to collect information and qualitative data about the use of blockchain technology in the construction industry, with the aim of conducting a strength– weaknesses–opportunities–threats (SWOT) analysis. The views and experiences of the experts interviewed with respect to the potential advantages of and opportunities offered by the integration of blockchain technology and BIM technology in the construction industry in the Arab region were sought, in order to propose a conceptual framework to facilitate the automation of the processes and the stages of design, tendering, construction, maintenance, and effective management of the entire life cycle of construction projects.