Ahead of the Construction Technology Show (Con Tech Show) 2026, industry leaders, technology innovators and academia came together in Mumbai to deliberate on how digitalisation, automation and industrialised construction can reshape the sector. The discussion made one thing clear: construction can no longer afford to treat technology as optional.
Held on 12 March 2026 at Courtyard by Marriott, Mumbai, alongside the Infrastructure Today Airport Conclave, the CTS Roundtable served as a precursor to the Construction Technology Show 2026, scheduled for 19–20 August 2026 at NESCO, Mumbai.
A platform to move from discussion to deployment
Opening the session, Pratap Padode, Founder and Editor-in-Chief, ASAPP Info Global Group, said construction technology has long remained close to his heart, especially given the sector’s traditionally slow pace of technology adoption. He noted that over the years, the Construction Technology Summit had steadily built interest, and the next step was now to expand it into a larger, more meaningful platform that could bring together technology providers, users, startups and innovators under one roof.
Padode said the vision for CTS is not limited to software alone. The platform aims to embrace all forms of technology that can improve construction efficiency, quality and execution—from digital tools and project management systems to lean construction, off-site fabrication and startup-led innovation. He also highlighted plans to deepen startup participation and create space for young companies to showcase emerging construction solutions.
Industry at a turning point
Moderating the roundtable, Naushad Panjwani, Chairman, Mandarus Partners, set the context by pointing out that the global construction industry, despite being a multi-trillion-dollar sector, continues to lag in productivity. He noted that while manufacturing has consistently improved efficiency, construction has remained slow to modernise.
Referring to both global and Indian trends, Panjwani underlined that the industry is now at a decisive moment. India, he said, is entering a major build cycle, and delivering the next phase of infrastructure and real estate growth through traditional methods alone is no longer viable. The goal of the roundtable, therefore, was not to debate technology in isolation, but to identify the most critical conversations that would bridge the gap between innovation and implementation.
His central message was clear: CTS 2026 must be shaped around themes that make CEOs, CIOs and CTOs feel they cannot afford to miss the event.
From BIM to AI, data to governance
A major theme that emerged through the discussion was the need for better data, better visibility and better decision-making. Dr Venkata Santosh Kumar of IIT Bombay echoed this, saying that the underlying data infrastructure itself needs attention. Construction projects, particularly remote ones, often face issues around connectivity, data collection and data use. Without this foundation, more advanced technologies cannot deliver their full value.
Chandra Vasireddy, CEO & Co-founder, Inncircles, expanded the discussion to governance, arguing that technology must help connect the many moving parts of a construction business. For him, the real value of digital transformation lies in creating better governance, clearer visibility and stronger business outcomes.
Tejas Vara of Inncircles stressed the importance of timely site data for leadership teams, especially in large and remote projects where decisions on materials, machinery and manpower often get delayed because information does not reach headquarters in time.
The role of AI also featured prominently. Rushabh Mamania, Partner and CBO, Roadvision said that while AI and machine learning are now common terms, vision intelligence and language intelligence have still not deeply penetrated the construction sector. He emphasised that startups in India are building relevant AI-led solutions and are already attracting international interest, showing that innovation need not be imported—it can be built locally and scaled globally.
Industrialised construction gains ground
The roundtable also placed strong emphasis on industrialised construction methods. Kalyan Vaidyanathan, CTO – Construction & R&D, Tvasta, called for greater focus on off-site fabrication and the broader industrialisation of construction. Bhargav Jog, General Manager, Dextra, highlighted precast technology and alternative sustainable materials as areas with immediate relevance.
Several participants agreed that modular, precast and pre-engineered approaches are no longer niche ideas. They are increasingly becoming practical responses to the sector’s challenges around labour shortage, timelines, quality control and predictability.
Anup Mathew, Sr VP & Business Head, Godrej, argued that the industry needs a fully integrated approach—from design and procurement to execution and asset management. Unless these are connected, technology adoption will remain fragmented and sub-optimal. He pointed to pre-engineered and modular systems as examples of how industrial thinking can compress timelines, improve quality and reduce dependence on difficult on-site conditions.
Adoption remains the biggest hurdle
While there was broad agreement on the promise of technology, the discussion repeatedly returned to one fundamental challenge: adoption.
Abhishek Kumar, COO, LivSYT, observed that the market is crowded with solutions, but many buyers still struggle to evaluate which technology suits which use case. According to him, the industry needs clearer frameworks to help users select, compare and adopt solutions, rather than expecting a single platform to solve every problem.
Dr Tenepalli JaiSai, Associate Professor, School of Construction(SoC), NICMAR University, noted that isolated technologies will not solve the productivity problem by themselves. What is required is an integrated Construction 4.0 approach, where digital, physical and cyber-physical systems work together rather than in silos.
That concern around silos was reinforced by Subodh Dixit, former Director, Shapoorji Pallonji, who said the issue is not just that technologies are disconnected, but that stakeholders are as well. Clients, consultants, contractors and partners often operate with different priorities. Unless these silos are broken, technology will struggle to percolate across the full project value chain.
Harleen Oberoi, Project Management, Tata Realty shared a practical perspective from the client side, saying that successful BIM implementation requires investment across the ecosystem, not just within one organisation. Trade partners, vendors and other stakeholders must also be trained and aligned if the technology is to deliver its intended results.
Beyond buzzwords
A notable takeaway from the session was that the industry is moving past the phase of treating technology as a buzzword. Participants repeatedly stressed that the real question is not whether technology should be used, but where it creates measurable value and how that value can be scaled.
The conversation also expanded beyond mainstream themes to include repairs and rehabilitation, construction and demolition waste, sustainability, circular economy, green sourcing, carbon measurement, design interoperability, generative design, robotics, and the role of horticulture and greener built environments.
Setting the agenda for CTS 2026
By the close of the session, the roundtable had surfaced a strong set of themes for the upcoming show: BIM and digital twins, AI and data platforms, industrialised construction, startup innovation, governance-led technology adoption, robotics, sustainable materials, and integrated project delivery.
More importantly, the session established CTS 2026 as more than an exhibition. It is shaping up to be a serious industry platform where users, technology providers, researchers and policymakers can collectively define the future of construction.
As Padode noted in his closing remarks, the conversation will continue through further consultations and possibly webinars in the run-up to the show. If the roundtable is any indication, CTS 2026 will aim not merely to showcase technology, but to push the industry towards meaningful adoption at scale.