# Interoperability of Digital Tools for the Monitoring and Control of Construction Projects
## 1 Introduction  
The construction industry is an important and dynamic economic activity that is characterized by one of the economy's reactivating mechanisms and by its contribution to the generation of employment; however, it has also been characterized by its low productivity [1, 2]. Currently, the world economy is experiencing a major crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This public health emergency has presented a change in paradigms and challenges due to the lack of workers in the whole supply chain, extended closing of businesses in other areas of the economy and interruptions due to social distancing measures in existing projects [3]. These changes imply challenges for the reactivation of the economy, where strategies focus on digitalization and sustainability [4].  
With the arrival of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, Industry 4.0 is a new paradigm that proposes to encourage the use of cyber physical systems; that is, technologies that enable the merging of virtual and physical worlds to create a real networked environment in which intelligent objects communicate and interact with each other [5]. In this context, the concept of Construction 4.0 has been proposed as a response to Industry 4.0 in the Architecture, Engineering, Construction and Operation (AECO) industry, which seeks toupgrade digitalization to improve the efficiency of production processes, business models and value chains. This transformation is possible due to the convergence of existing and emerging technologies, which promise to reformulate the way of designing and building the assets of the built environment [6; 7].  
Integration and interoperability are two key factors in Construction 4.0 [7]. Interoperability is the ability of two systems to understand each other and use the functionality of the other, which represents the ability of two systems to exchange data and share information and knowledge. Integration of information systems achieves seamless cooperation between organizations and industries [8]. The traditional method, which involves manual tracking of construction progress, still dominates the AECO industry [9]. Current monitoring practices during the execution of a construction project require multiple inspections, which are time intensive and may, by their nature, include mistakes. Therefore, a reliable monitoring system that can provide early detection and notification of project problems, whether actual or potential, is necessary [10]. In this context, the application of several technologies has great potential to improve management practices in the construction industry [11]. The advances in digital technologies that have been established in many productive sectors are permeating the AECO industry [8] at less accelerated rates [12].  
The goal of this research is to perform an interoperability analysis of digital tools for monitoring and controlling construction projects during the execution phase. For this purpose, innovative technologies that are classified according to their use, in this case, field data capture technologies (FDCT) and communication and collaboration technologies (CT), which are responsible for the processing and management of information, are revised. Although these technologies have unique advantages, they often offer integration with other technologies, allowing for the formation of more powerful hybrid systems with more than a single intelligence dimension.