Sri Lanka is now in the midst of a grave economic crisis, the worst economic crisis that the country has faced in its history, which has badly affected the construction sector, a barometer of the national economy. Yet, this is not the time for us to become demoralised, which would further aggravate the crisis. We need to stay strong and find ways to get through the crisis. Sri Lanka urgently requires radical economic reforms, which can liberate and emancipate its people. Moreover, the country has to move toward an export-oriented economy, which would require proactive changes in many sectors and strengthening of the rule of law to combat corruption and improve transparency and public accountability. The time is opportune for the construction industry to think afresh and make a new beginning and a determined attempt to follow new construction trends.

As key construction professionals, we, the quantity surveyors, have a vital role to play during the current economic crisis our country is undergoing. In this context, one key role expected from a quantity surveyor would be to provide advice to clients on the best use of resources in terms of construction economics. The current linear industry model that works in isolation should not be allowed to shape our future roles in resource management when preparing the best value proposition. We need to embrace natural laws and emulate natural cycles in rethinking value while being conscious of the fact that people and businesses will not be able to survive in a world without natural resources. Thus, a technological and behavioral approach will be required for us to work within a collaborative system and identify a sustainable solution to the economic crisis we are currently experiencing.

Available information suggests that full-scale digitalization would significantly reduce the costs of construction globally. Industry 5.0 with the help of technology and automated processes, merges human ingenuity, social collaboration, and sustainable development to yield an improved holistic production model. The 4-point framework of Industry 5.0 focusses on people, collaboration, sustainability, and technology and enables the harmonization of project activities toward improving long-term project performance. Therefore, as quantity surveyors, we need to play a challenging dynamic role in the delivery of construction projects by making use of the new developments in Industry 5.0.