Here at SITECH, we have been in the construction industry for a long time, providing construction management software and technology in Colorado. Few industries have the kind of scope of project that construction has, and rarely does the finish product offer as much of a “wow” factor. When you think about, it is truly amazing all that goes into a construction project, from the planning, design, and organization to the actual building process. It took us a long time to get to our current marvels of construction, though, and the history is a long and storied one. While it’s too large of a subject to really get into in one article, we’d like to present a quick overview of the history of construction here.
Neolithic Era
The term “neolithic” refers to a time period between 9,000 and 5,000 BC, and is known as the “new stone age” due to the fact that it preceded wood working cultures. All tools were made from natural materials either hunted or foraged by the indigenous peoples. These included stone, wood, grass, bone, antler, hide, etc. From these materials tools like the axe, celt, and adze were created as tools for building, cutting, pounding, etc.
Obviously construction doesn’t end with construction tools. People of this time used these tools to build extremely basic forms of infrastructure that we all know today. Simple wood bridges and shelters were common, and makeshift fortifications weren’t uncommon either. Everything that was constructed in this era was made from locally available natural materials using traditional communal designs, which is known as vernacular architecture.
Because of the nomadic nature of many of these people, and their very basic structures, very little archeological evidence of this era exists. One of the best preserved neolithic villages is in Skara Brae, Scotland, where dry stone walling techniques created permanent structures. The creation of mud bricks is also credited to this time period, with archeological evidence found in Jericho.
Another staple of the neolithic era is the megalith, which is just an arrangement of very large stones. And we are all aware of the most famous of these megaliths: the Stonehenge in Scotland.
Copper/Bronze Age
The Copper Age is essentially just the first part of the Bronze Age, as bronze is just copper with tin added (as brass is copper added with zinc). Copper gained widespread use around 5,000 BC, and bronze became accessible starting around 3,100 BC, although these dates vary widely by geographic location. The addition of bronze allowed for the creation of more durable tools, as well as the ability to mold into casted shapes. This allowed for the creation of new tools like the saw. Advances in architectural design in this era include the corbelled arch, the wheel, advances in boat construction, and the construction of stone temples.
Iron Age
Spanning from 1,200 BC to about 50 BC, the iron age marks the beginning of iron use in civilization. Effectively, iron is not much more useful than bronze, as it isn’t much harder, that is until carbon is added to produce steel. However, steel wasn’t regularly produced until about 300 BC. The creation of steel allowed for a revolution of tools in all trades, such as the hand-plane for wood working.
At this time, many cultures used the the mud brick to create adobe buildings. By this point, a sharp division of labor was necessary along sophisticated design patterns were necessary to create the large structures of the time. The creation of cities, like in Mesopotamia, required complicated new technologies like sewers and paved streets.
In ancient Egypt during this time, builders took a different tact than mud brick construction. We’re all aware of the construction marvels of the Egyptians: the pyramids. These structures used huge slabs of stone rather than adobe bricks, and required mass amounts of paid and slave labor to build. Many new inventions and improvements in construction technology appeared in this area at this time, including ramps, glass, awnings, locks, and more.
As you can see, we’ve barely scratched the surface of the history of construction here. As awe inspiring as historical marvels like the ancient Egyptian pyramids are, we are still making huge strides in construction technology. If your company needs construction management software in Colorado, you’ve come to the right place. Give one of our knowledgeable representatives a call to find out more.