Global infrastructure is increasingly embracing digitalisation – but faster and more comprehensive progress is needed for projects to feel the full benefits and drive better programme performance.

Turner & Townsend has completed a survey of global infrastructure practitioners which assesses their digitalisation and cyber maturity, and the role digital plays in driving programmes and business strategies.

While it is clear that digital features heavily in industry thinking, there are weaknesses when it comes to understanding and implementing cybersecurity measures, and better integration of digital strategies could be helping programmes feel their benefits more fully.

The survey of over 100 experts working on major infrastructure programmes across the world benchmarks how companies are using digital to transform performance and outcomes. The results identify significant opportunities as well as areas for improvement – particularly across the areas of skills, data use and cybersecurity.

Sixty-two percent of survey respondents have a digital strategy in place, which is a clear sign of how central digital has become to the sector. Seventy-five percent of this group reported that these strategies are helping them to unlock long-term value in their programmes.

For those without a digital strategy, and those who feel the strategies have not been properly integrated, it is clear one of the main barriers is understanding and relevant specialised skills to support this process. Eight-three percent of contributors highlighted skills gaps as one of the biggest hurdles on the path to full digital integration.

A central part of the survey focused on data and whether its full value is being utilised by project teams. Nearly a third of all respondents recognised that data is underused and undervalued, with only 42% saying that they use data to manage performance.

Only 10% of programmes surveyed hold their data as a tangible asset on their balance sheet. This reflects an opportunity to improve the understanding of the commercial value of project data, and how this can be used to help attract investors and further showcase the true value of adopting digital strategies.

Cybersecurity is also identified as a key area for improvement. In what may be a wake up call for the sector, 80% of respondents felt that their cybersecurity was not fit for purpose, and less than 30% have cyber and disaster management plans in place.

The survey results highlight the need for the industry to put in place more rigorous protocols and embed a culture of cybersecurity in the face of growing threats and wider recognition of this critical issue.

Murray Rowden, global head of infrastructure at Turner & Townsend said: “As part of our ‘Transforming performance of major programmes’ series, we’ve been delving deep into global digitalised infrastructure programmes to understand what good looks like, and how the sector is performing.

“The current expectations being placed on infrastructure to transform our world are considerable – from powering economic growth to tackling the climate crisis and equalling out societal outcomes.  Achieving this means using every lever at our disposal, and it’s clear there is more the industry can be doing to harness the power of digital.

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“Our survey findings have reinforced this view and are confident in the capacity of digitalisation to unlock greater productivity, security and sustainability. To reach this full potential, clients need to think ‘digital first’ – embedding digital from the earliest stages, integrating it throughout programmes, and ensuring it is fundamental to business strategy.”