INFRONEER Holdings and Accenture has announced an agreement to establish a joint venture (JV), INFRONEER Strategy & Innovation, aimed at resolving key issues in and promoting innovation for the safe and efficient construction and operation of infrastructure in Japan. The investment structure of the JV is 81%-owned by INFRONEER HD and 19%-owned by Accenture. The JV will be established on April 1, 2025, and consist of approximately 100 employees.
In recent years, Japan’s aging infrastructure—including roads, airports, water supply and sewage systems, and public facilities—has led to numerous serious accidents across the country. Additionally, local governments’ financial constraints, along with the declining birthrate and aging population, have worsened the labor shortage, driving up challenges in construction and infrastructure management.
These not only reduce daily convenience for residents, but also hinder regional economic activities, potentially leading to a decline in Japan’s international competitiveness and further increasing the gap between urban and rural areas.
The JV plans to take a leading role in addressing these critical issues by applying advanced digital technologies, including AI, across INFRONEER group. It will accelerate the adoption of data-driven models – from optimizing IT operating costs and making strategic IT investments at the management level – to improve productivity at construction and infrastructure operation sites. The JV will pursue these initiatives through a multifaceted approach, supporting the creation of new businesses as a strategic think tank, driving business reform through data analysis and managing continuous digital transformation.
The joint venture will also be responsible for cultivating specialized talent to handle these functions and for managing IT investments and governance across INFRONEER group. The JV will undertake the following initiatives:
Implementing a data-driven management model:
The JV will shift INFRONEER group’s current business management model to one that is data-driven, based on scientific evidence and leverages AI and other technologies to enhance management decisions. First, the JV will build a digital platform that links data such as personnel, costs and processes across the entire value chain of sales, design, procurement and construction in the civil engineering and building construction business. The JV will implement a management cockpit that visualizes the data aggregated in this platform, which in the future may be leveraged by other business divisions to optimize the allocation of human resources and costs.
Improving productivity on construction sites:
The JV aims to improve productivity through the use of digital technology and increased funds for wages, making the INFRONEER group and the industry more attractive and enhancing sustainability within both. As an example, the joint venture will implement a system that uses technology combining 360-degree camera and BIM (Building Information Modeling) to reduce the burden of reinforcement inspections, which account for about 10% of working hours on construction sites. Additionally, the JV will develop and deploy solutions to make time-intensive estimation work more efficient, and will look at the possibility of proposing next-generation facilities that result in labor reductions and unmanned operations in manufacturing and logistics sites.
Improving efficiency and quality in infrastructure operations:
For infrastructure such as roads and public facilities that are owned by municipalities, the JV will propose and promote efficiency through private sector knowledge and digital technologies. So far, INFRONEER and Accenture have been jointly involved in the construction of EAM (*1) software for Japan’s first toll road at Aichi Road Concession, a member of the INFRONEER group, and in developing utility cost reduction solutions for the Miura Sewerage Concession. In the concession business (*2) of the INFRONEER Group, the JV will continue these efforts while further integrating the extensive expertise of this joint venture’s seasoned experts to apply and expand a new management model that balances efficiency and quality improvement in infrastructure operations in Japan.
INFRONEER group has undertaken the largest number of concession projects in Japan and is an industry-leader in implementing cost disclosure contracts (*3) ahead of its competitors. Accenture has a track record of being the reinvention partner of choice, with a focus on generative AI, increasing technology fluency and promoting regional revitalization efforts through the use of digital technology.
Kazunari Kibe, Director Representative Executive Officer and President of INFRONEER Holdings, said: “INFRONEER Holdings’ mission is to challenge the status quo of existing infrastructure businesses and deliver the most suitable service globally with innovative ideas. We have been working with Accenture since April 2022 to demonstrate how we take the lead in innovative initiatives especially in an infrastructure industry which is lagging in digitalization. This initiative not only aims to solve issues within Japan but also considers global infrastructure operations and construction projects. It is driven by the ambition to create one of the pillars for future economic growth in Japan. We are confident that the establishment of this JV will dramatically accelerate this initiative and bring us closer to its realization.”
Atsushi Egawa, CEO of Accenture Japan, added: “Japan is facing a severe labor shortage, and we believe digital technology is the key to solving this challenge. Digital technologies augment human capabilities and facilitate collaboration within and beyond organizations, and across borders, resulting in gaining unparalleled advantages in productivity and efficiency for businesses and organizations. This JV is Accenture’s first initiative in the construction industry in Japan, which will not only accelerate INFRONEER group’s competitiveness, but will also contribute to solving structural challenges that Japan is currently facing. We will do our utmost to lead to the growth of both our customers and Japan as a whole.”
