Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic was a large disruptor for construction projects, disrupting the global supply chain, limiting workforce availability, and creating contractual challenges. However, the pandemic can also be seen as an opportunity to improve for the construction industry. This study aims to review existing literature and identify negative and positive impacts in the construction sector due to the COVID- 19, and qualitatively analyze interviews with Chilean experts who worked through the pandemic to compare the negative and positive impacts identified from the literature with those discussed by experts. Our results show that more negative impacts are reported compared with positive impacts, which emphasizes the disruptive nature of the pandemic in the construction industry. However, when discussing positive impacts, experts were more optimistic and reported benefits, such as implementation of new technologies and digitalization of construction. This work may assist construction companies in defining new strategies for the post pandemic construction sector.