W.E. Skidmore, Curriculum vitae (March 2005)
A historian by training and a construction researcher by choice, I study the digital transformation of residential construction. It is important to mention at the outset that I am not evangelizing digital technologies in construction. Coupled with the half-century downturn in residential construction productivity, the vast repositories of “dark data” found throughout the industry make a compelling case for the need to adopt innovative technologies that produce data-driven solutions. Economists Chad Syverson and Austan Goolsbee recently noted, “To be clear, the raw BEA data suggest that the sector has become less productive over time. A lot less productive: value added per worker in the sector was about 40 percent lower in 2020 than in 1970.”1
My work brings the historian’s eye for patterns, resistance to change, and structural shifts to an industry struggling to move beyond outdated practices. Digital tools have flooded the sector, yet productivity gains remain elusive. The problem lies not in the tools themselves but in how knowledge circulates within the industry. My research focuses on turning vast, underutilized project data into actionable insights, bridging the gap between digital innovation and real-world efficiency.
In 2018, I received my Ph.D. in history from Rice University, where I examined how entrenched systems resist reform. That work, focused on slavery, abolition, and the production of knowledge, sharpened my understanding of how industries maintain continuity despite clear evidence that change is necessary. The historical record shows that new ideas often emerge long before they gain traction. The same holds true in construction, where advanced digital systems exist, yet long-standing habits and fragmented decision-making prevent their full adoption.
The construction industry’s digital revolution began with tools—Building Information Modeling (BIM), precision-cut framing, and integrated estimating platforms. The next step demands a shift in mindset. Project data, too often treated as disposable, holds the key to better forecasting, reduced waste, and more efficient supply chains. My research explores how construction can move beyond treating data as a byproduct of individual projects and toward a future where accumulated knowledge drives decision-making at every level.
To advance this work, I launched “Type IV: The Epistemology of Residential Construction in the Digital Age” a platform for research and commentary on residential construction technologies. Here, I publish case studies, analyses of emerging digital tools, and theoretical reflections on the industry’s knowledge structures. The goal remains clear: to foster informed decision-making, promote sustainable innovation, and challenge assumptions that keep construction locked in outdated methods.
History, at its core, uncovers hidden structures, forgotten knowledge, and overlooked resistance to progress. That mission has not changed. My research now focuses on a different archive—not letters and legislative records, but datasets and digital models. The past shows that real transformation occurs not when technology becomes available, but when industries learn to use it effectively. Residential construction stands at that threshold. My work pushes it forward.
Notes
- Austan Goolsbee and Chad Syverson, “The Strange and Awful Path of Productivity in the U.S. Construction Sector,” in Conference on Research in Income and Wealth (CRIW), National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)Working Paper No. 30845 (Conference on Technology, Productivity, and Economic Growth, Washington D.C.: NBER, 2022), 1 ↩︎