Skip to content

Customers' Unmet Needs and Pains

Construction in Brazil Current Pains Analysis

The Brazilian construction market is expanding ( +4.3 % GDP contribution in 2024, CBIC 2024) and demand remains strong in both B2C (housing, small-scale renovations) and B2B (commercial, industrial and infrastructure) segments. Yet, customers consistently report a set of structural pains that diminish satisfaction, inflate costs and delay the capture of value from their investments.

  1. High Costs & Budget Overruns
    • Material price volatility (steel, cement, ceramics) and freight inflation raise direct costs.
    • Real-estate financing is expensive; Selic-linked mortgages erode affordability for households and raise WACC for corporates.
    • Insufficient cost planning and inaccurate budgets lead to overruns averaging 10–30 % of original CAPEX (COST OVERRUN GAP ANALYSIS, 2024).

  2. Project Delays & Extended Timelines
    • Average completion delay for building projects is 20–25 % beyond contractual dates (Study on the factors of delay in construction works, SciELO).
    • Root causes: slow municipal licensing, supply-chain disruptions, and skilled-labor shortages (60 % of firms struggle to hire – Click Oil and Gas, 2024).

  3. Quality Defects & Rework
    • Defects in structure, finishing, plumbing/electrical components observed in 15–20 % of new residential units (THE CUSTOMER SERVICING PROCESS, CORE).
    • Rework triggers extra costs (≈5 % of project value) and heightens dissatisfaction.

  4. Bureaucratic Complexity
    • Multiple layers of regulation (municipal, state, federal) and opaque permitting create unpredictability and discourage investment.
    • Condominium associations cite 3-to-6-month waits for façade or retrofit approvals.

  5. Limited Transparency & Communication
    • Fragmented information flow among developers, contractors, suppliers and end users generates mistrust and dispute.
    • Home-buyers often lack real-time visibility on construction progress or change-order impacts.

  6. Labor & Productivity Constraints
    • Low digitalisation, limited BIM use and informal practices curtail productivity (Brazilian output per worker is < 60 % of EU benchmark—THE CIVIL CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY, 2020).
    • Safety incidents and absence of certified training add hidden costs.

  7. Sustainability & Energy-Efficiency Gaps
    • Growing consumer demand for green, energy-efficient housing is outpacing the availability of economically viable certified options (Sustainable construction in the Brazilian Amazon, 2024).

Collectively, these pains translate into higher total cost of ownership for B2B buyers, reduced housing affordability for families, and reputational risks for developers and contractors.

Unmet Needs and Pains

The juxtaposition of customer pains and current industry practices reveals eight critical unmet needs:

  1. Affordability & Cost Predictability
    • Need: Stable pricing models and hedging mechanisms for materials; innovative funding (e.g., capital-markets securitisation, green bonds) to lower mortgage rates.
    • Pain if unmet: Households postpone purchase; SMEs delay facility expansion.

  2. Speed & Certainty of Delivery
    • Need: Streamlined permitting (digital one-stop-shop), integrated scheduling tools (BIM + Last Planner) and penalty-backed SLAs across the supply chain.
    • Pain if unmet: Businesses defer revenue; families incur double housing costs (rent + mortgage).

  3. Verified Quality & Reduced Rework
    • Need: Standardised quality management systems (ISO 9001, SiAC) and IoT-enabled site inspection to detect defects early.
    • Pain if unmet: Rising maintenance OPEX, safety hazards, legal disputes.

  4. Transparent Communication & Real-Time Tracking
    • Need: Customer portals/mobile apps that provide milestone photos, budget burn-down charts, and change-order approvals.
    • Pain if unmet: Erosion of trust; higher churn and negative word-of-mouth.

  5. Professional, Reliable Small-Scale Services
    • Need: Formalised networks of vetted “maridos de aluguel” and retrofit contractors, with digital booking, payment and warranty management.
    • Pain if unmet: Homeowners face unreliable workmanship and lack recourse.

  6. Skilled Workforce & Productivity Boost
    • Need: Vocational up-skilling, apprenticeship programmes, and adoption of prefab/modular construction to mitigate labour scarcity.
    • Pain if unmet: Persistent delays and cost escalation.

  7. Sustainable & Energy-Efficient Solutions at Scale
    • Need: Cost-competitive green materials, solar-ready designs, and access to ESG-linked financing that rewards low-carbon projects.
    • Pain if unmet: Regulatory risk (future retrofit mandates) and growing consumer dissatisfaction.

  8. Inclusive Financing for SMEs and Low-Income Buyers
    • Need: Alternative credit-scoring, project-finance guarantees, and micro-credit for small contractors to bid competitively.
    • Pain if unmet: Concentration of market power, limited innovation, underserved affordable-housing segment.

These unmet needs represent significant whitespace opportunities for technology providers, financial institutions, policymakers and construction firms willing to redesign processes and offerings around end-user value.

Key Findings

# Customer Segment Core Pain Point Unmet Need Business / Social Impact
1 Residential buyers (B2C) High mortgage cost & price volatility Affordable, predictable financing (green bonds, fixed-rate schemes) >200k households defer purchase annually
2 Corporates & SMEs (B2B) Project delays (avg. +22 %) Faster permitting & integrated project management Lost revenue; NPV erosion
3 Public entities Budget overruns Robust cost control & transparent procurement Taxpayer burden; stalled infrastructure
4 All segments Quality defects & rework Standardised QA/QC and IoT inspections 5–10 % CAPEX wasted; reputational harm
5 Homeowners & condo associations Lack of trustworthy maintenance services Formalised, tech-enabled service networks Safety & asset-value preservation
6 Developers & contractors Skilled-labour shortage Vocational training, prefab adoption Productivity uplift (15–20 %)
7 Environment-conscious buyers Limited green options Scalable, cost-effective sustainable solutions ESG differentiation; lower utility bills
8 Small contractors Limited credit access Alternative funding & guarantees Greater competition; cost reductions

References

• CBIC projeta crescimento de 4,1 % para a construção civil em 2024, mas desafios persistem para 2025 – CBIC (https://cbic.org.br/cbic-projeta-crescimento-de-4-1-para-a-construcao-civil-em-2024-mas-desafios-persistem-para-2025/)
• Construção civil cresce 4,3 % em 2024 e impulsiona economia nacional – CBIC (https://cbic.org.br/construcao-civil-cresce-4-3-em-2024-e-impulsiona-economia-nacional/)
• Study on the factors of delay in construction works – SciELO (https://www.scielo.br/j/ram/a/zCj5nJgS7J75f7wL7bcyRqn/?lang=en)
• COST OVERRUN GAP ANALYSIS IN CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS – Engineering Research Journal (https://erj.journals.ekb.eg/article_308141_3147290d5d7b7cf48704b4841519c653.pdf)
• Labor shortage hits Brazil and 60 % of companies struggle to hire – Click Oil and Gas (https://clickoilandgas.com.br/noticia/2024/11/23/labor-shortage-hits-brazil-and-60-of-companies-struggle-to-hire-or-retain-professionals)
• THE CUSTOMER SERVICING PROCESS IN THE BRAZILIAN HOUSE BUILDING INDUSTRY – CORE (https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/11853532.pdf)
• Sustainable construction in the Brazilian Amazon – ResearchGate (https://www.researchgate.net/publication/380640040_SUSTAINABLE_CONSTRUCTION_IN_THE_BRAZILIAN_AMAZON_AN_ANALYSIS_OF_ENVIRONMENTAL_CERTIFICATIONS_ALIGNED_WITH_THE_2030_AGENDA)
• THE CIVIL CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY IN BRAZIL: A COMPARATIVE STUDY – ResearchGate (https://www.researchgate.net/publication/340832592_THE_CIVIL_CONSTRUCTION_INDUSTRY_IN_BRAZIL_A_COMPARATIVE_STUDY_IN_RELATION_TO_UNITED_STATES_AND_EUROPEAN_UNION)