How Buildings And Other Materials Change Over Time And What Changes Them?

Some of the things I believe that spur on development of materials and procedures for buildings in the U.S., are competition, desire to lessen time to build, desire to cut costs by those financing work, and desire to make more profit by builders.
By competition I mean submitting a bid low enough to get the job.  If every bidder is using the same materials, methods, and number of workers bidding is just a game of luck.  If a contractor has an innovative way of speeding up the work, he may have an advantage that will get him the job.  Similarly, maybe there is a new concrete mix that doesn't require as much cure time and can receive loads faster.
The owner of the building wants the job done asap so he can move in and make money.  He may require a quick completion requiring innovative materials and methods, possibly at a higher cost to him.
To sum it up, the changes come about just about exclusively to increase profits by all the entities involved.