About 10,000 years ago, in the Neolithic era, mankind made a revolutionary transition in its development, abandoning the nomadic lifestyle in favor of sedentary life, which led to the appearance of the first primitive buildings made of clay, wood and stone (С. D. Gillespie, “Clay: Earth’s entanglement in the age of clay,” 2024). From this moment the history of the construction industry begins.
As civilizations developed, architecture became increasingly complex, leading to the first ritual temples and public buildings. The increasing complexity of architectural designs required the engineers and managers of antiquity to create the first records and calculations. The first records on clay tablets and papyri often included a description of the logic behind calculating the amount of building materials needed, their cost, and calculating payment for the work performed (“Papyrus, 3rd century B.C. Language is Greek,” 2024).Thus began the era of data use in construction – long before the advent of modern digital technologies (Fig. 1.1-1).
