Bau is an all-in-one construction-management solution combining IoT with blockchain and Metaverse​ to tackle some of the biggest challenges facing the construction industry right now. Construction is consistently the least digitised sector and subsequently one of the least efficient, says Dr Maximillian Sinan Korkmaz, founder of Bau App.

Presenting at the recent Blockchain Developers Conference in Istanbul, Korkmaz said Bau aims to provide a solution by acting as a platform on which participants of construction projects can agree on contracts. He added that Bau leads to more circular construction projects as payments among users are executed through smart contracts when they are due.

How Bau app works

Korkmaz said that the Bau app works according to three key principles:

1. Customers, general contractors, planners, subcontractors and their employees register on the Bau marketplace for free to find qualified stakeholders whose credentials are tokenised.

2. Stakeholders use Bau’s construction management tools to carry out the project formed in the first step. Payments among them are carried out through smart contracts once they are due.

3. Once the project is completed, the payer and the payee can rate each other.

Korkmaz noted that Bau receives 0.2% of each payment transaction among stakeholders of construction projects. He added that the Bau App provides five key offerings:

• A database for ‘structure as a material bank built on Metaverse’;
• A circular construction marketplace;
• An on-chain job board for the construction industry;
• Construction site management combining IoT and blockchain;
• A revolutionary payment system using smart contracts.

Using IoT and the Metaverse for the construction industry

A significant component of the Bau app is a database which acts as a ‘material bank’ for various stakeholders. This is built using a combination of IoT and metaverse technologies, with all of the data stored on-chain, Korkmaz said.

‘A map of all structures (buildings, bridges, dams etc.) from the on-chain 3D digital twin of cities is established.​ The materials and components used in every structure are then assigned.​ (The materials and components) are then made available in the construction marketplace for reuse through in-app peer-to-peer purchases, when a structure is to be demolished,’ he said.

A circular marketplace for the construction industry

This plays into the idea of a wider circular construction marketplace, Korkmaz said.

‘Users can buy/sell used construction materials and components for reuse and can rent out their idle construction equipment.,’ he said. ‘​The credentials (e.g. ISO-certificate) of the sellers and buyers are checked and tokenized once.’

Korkmaz added that Bau acts as the only free job board for the construction industry. Credentials, such as training certificates, are checked and tokenized once and can be used many times.​

​Construction site management using IoT

Korkmaz said that Bau’s IoT features allow for a multitude of features when used on construction sites, including recording, project control, and task management. He provided several examples of how the technology can be used directly by construction firms:

• All personnel read and sign site inductions, company inductions, and safety disclaimers which are then placed on-chain;

• Defect management with photos on drawings;

• On-chain construction diary​;

• Send tender documents to all subcontractors involved with a single click;

• Bundled real-time overview of all offers received and outstanding requests with read confirmations​;

• Participants of the created project can text, mention, send files, and video chat;

• Tracking of vehicles, equipment and material through IoT;

• Tracking of employees and contract personnel through IoT (wearables)​;

• Humidity, temperature, and pressure information through IoT (sensors) to prevent construction damage​.