Month: June 2026
How Can Robotics, Artificial Intelligence and Intelligent Automation Transform Europe’s Construction Industry?
RADIANCE, RoboCons and ShieldBot answer this question. These three Horizon Europe projects are working towards a safer, smarter and more sustainable construction industry supported by advanced robotics, artificial intelligence (AI) and intelligent automation solutions.
RADIANCE: Robotic, Automated and Digital Solutions for Building Renovation
Building renovation is becoming increasingly important as Europe seeks to improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions. The Horizon Europe project RADIANCE addresses this challenge by proposing an integrated suite of robotic, digital and AI-based technologies that support the entire renovation lifecycle.
From building inspection and diagnosis to repair operations, safety monitoring, planning and sustainability assessment, RADIANCE brings together multiple technologies into a single ecosystem. Through three real-life demonstration scenarios across Europe, the project is validating solutions designed to accelerate renovation workflows, assist construction professionals with advanced digital tools, improve worker safety and reduce the environmental footprint of renovation activities.
RADIANCE brings together 12 leading organisations from seven European countries, combining expertise in robotics, automation, AI, construction, digitalisation, and sustainability, coordinated by Universidade de Vigo (Spain).
RoboCons: Advancing Cooperative Robotics for Sustainable Construction
RoboCons shares the vision of a more automated construction industry emphasising cooperation between humans and machines.
The project is developing innovative human-centred robotic and AI solutions that enable seamless collaboration between construction workers and robotic systems. Coordinated by CONSTRUCCIONES ACR (Spain) and bringing together 14 partners from across Europe, RoboCons is creating a Robot-Human Adaptive Construction Ecosystem alongside a Digital Construction Platform.
These technologies will improve productivity, reduce material waste, enhance worker safety and support the construction sector's digital transformation. By ensuring that robots adapt to human operators, RoboCons promotes safe, efficient and practical deployment of collaborative robotics on construction sites.
ShieldBot: Advanced Robotics for Optimal Building Efficiency
As the demand for energy-efficient buildings grows, traditional construction methods fall short in meeting modern sustainability standards. ShieldBot intends to address this gap through the deployment of three specialised robotic solutions that enhance the energy efficiency of buildings while reducing environmental impact:
- InnerShieldBot is designed for internal construction works, applying similar thermal shielding to walls and ceilings to enhance comfort and efficiency.
- InspectionShieldBot utilises advanced sensors to assess building exteriors, identifying areas needing repair or insulation, ensuring maintenance and sustainability.
- FaçadeShieldBot focuses on installing thermal shielding on building façades, improving insulation and reducing energy consumption.
These robotic systems are supported by DigiShield, a digital twin platform that aggregates and analyses data from on-site operations, enabling real-time decision-making and precise project planning, and EcoShield, innovative, eco-friendly materials for insulation solutions to further minimise the carbon footprint of construction activities.
ShieldBot emphasises the integration of human-robot collaboration to ensure that robotic solutions support rather than replace human workers, enhancing safety and efficiency on-site. The consortium if formed by 11 research and industrial partners from six European countries (including Ukraine and United Kingdom), coordinated by IDEKO, bringing together a balanced mix of expertise in research, technology development, industry, and dissemination.
RADIANCE, RoboCons and ShieldBot at the Innovation Industry Construction Congress 2026
Ibai Inziarte, Innovation Director at Aldakin and Dissemination and Communication Lead for RoboCons, explained these solutions in the presentation "Industrialisation of Construction through Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Automation: ShieldBot, RADIANCE, RoboCons", during the Innovation Industry Construction Congress (IC2) 2026, held in Santander, Spain, on 1-5 June 2026.
Access the full presentation on Zenodo.
ShieldBot Showcases Construction 5.0 Innovations at IC2 2026 with the EU-funded projects RADIANCE and RoboCons
ShieldBot participated in the Innovation Industry Construction Congress (IC2) 2026, held in Santander, Spain, on 1-5 June 2026, joining the European initiatives RADIANCE and RoboCons to discuss how robotics, automation and digital technologies are transforming the future of construction.
Our project took part in the session entitled “Construction 5.0: Optimising Value Chain Processes for Enhanced Productivity and New Business Models”, moderated by Ainhoa Amaro Garcia, Chief Operating Officer at EVOCONS (Evolution Construction System).
Ibai Inziarte, Innovation Director at Aldakin and Dissemination and Communication Lead for RoboCons, delivered a presentation as part of the session highlighting the digital and automated solutions being developed across ShieldBot, RADIANCE and RoboCons, titled “Industrialisation of Construction through Collaborative Robotics and Intelligent Automation”. Ibai demonstrated how these EU research and innovation projects are accelerating the adoption of robotics and intelligent systems on construction sites, enhancing operational efficiency while improving working conditions and supporting the transition towards a more resilient built environment.
You can download his presentation on Zenodo.
IDEKO Representing ShieldBot
ShieldBot was represented at the congress by Iker Mancisidor Aizpurua, Engineer in the Dynamics & Control Department at IDEKO Research Center, the project's coordinating organisation.
His participation reinforced ShieldBot’s commitment to advancing innovative robotic solutions that support safer, more efficient and more sustainable construction and renovation processes. The event offered an excellent opportunity to engage with industry stakeholders, exchange knowledge and demonstrate how collaborative research projects are helping to drive the sector’s digital transformation.
More about RADIANCE and RoboCons
RADIANCE is a Horizon Europe project developing an integrated suite of robotic, digital, and AI-based technologies to support the full renovation process, from inspection and diagnosis to repair, safety, planning, and sustainability assessment. Through three real-life validation scenarios in European buildings, the project aims to accelerate renovation workflows, support workers with advanced tools, improve safety, and reduce the environmental footprint of construction activities.
RoboCons is another Horizon Europe project dedicated to advancing cooperative robotics for a safer, more efficient and sustainable construction industry. Bringing together 14 partners from across Europe and coordinated by CONSTRUCCIONES ACR, the project is developing innovative human-centred robotic and AI solutions that enable seamless collaboration between workers and machines on construction sites. Through the creation of a Robot-Human Adaptive Construction Ecosystem and a Digital Construction Platform, RoboCons aims to reduce waste, improve productivity, enhance worker safety and accelerate the digital transformation of the construction sector.
More about IC2 2026: Innovation Industry Construction Congress
The Innovation Industry Construction Congress (IC2) 2026 is one of the leading international events dedicated to innovation in construction, infrastructure and building. IC2 brought together industry professionals, researchers, technology developers and policymakers to explore the digital and sustainable transformation of the sector. The congress provided an ideal platform for showcasing cutting-edge solutions that are helping to shape Construction 5.0, where human-centred innovation, automation and sustainability work together to improve productivity, safety and resilience across the construction value chain.