Author: Constructech Editors

Technologies can work together provide more benefits than the sum of their parts. In the “old days” when mainframes were the platform employed by major companies, the software was, for the most part, proprietary and limited to what the hardware company provided or allowed on their system. By the 1980s, minicomputers were becoming the norm and relatively open operating systems, such as Unix and Linux, the default. A new tech segment opened up, the systems integrator. Find the hooks that allow software from various “prime providers” to interoperate was the rallying cry—and the lack of standards had many IT (information…

Nights are getting shorter, as winter passes the torch to spring and summer. But the workday is still a controlling aspect of a jobsite’s security; when workers leave, the site “goes dark” and becomes vulnerable for theft and intrusion. Most developers, owners, and contractors require a major site to be secured 24/7 and at night that includes lighting as well as monitoring onsite or remote. But lights require energy—electricity specifically—and in the early days of construction, not every area will have power available. The usual response is to bring in portable generators that run all night on gasoline, diesel, or…

Construction has always been mobile by nature. After all, the pyramids were built thousands of years ago and most certainly required some form of project coordination and management to erect such enormous structures. But now technologies can help access and share information in new ways that makes planning and managing work on both small and large construction jobs even easier. With mobile project-management technology, construction professionals can track and report progress, which ultimately leads better project delivery. Have you looked for a way to do this effectively and efficiently on your projects—but are still searching for the right tool? Consider…

The old way was to locate a landmark and say, “I’m a mile and a half from X.” Now, you don’t say anything, you let your GNSS (global navigation satellite system), such as a GPS, send the precise coordinates to the person—or more likely, machine—that needs the information. The use of satellite positioning has grown to a major source of data points for automation and autonomous equipment. For decades, original equipment manufacturers like Caterpillar and aftermarket suppliers, such as Trimble and Topcon Positioning Systems, have been supplying the equipment necessary for GNSS location mapping of machinery. Topcon, for example, has…

Since the days of levers and pulleys, machinery has been critical for construction. We’ve come a long way from A-frames to massive cranes and from spades and shovels to backhoes, but throughout, equipment has been the backbone—and back saving—element of the industry. How the market has been changing points to the expansion of two subsets: rental equipment and autonomous equipment. Both are showing substantial growth, according to various research agencies. Take the overall global construction equipment market as projected by Grandview Research. Its prediction is the market size will reach almost $162 billion by 2030, showing a 3.9% CAGR (compound annual growth rate) from…

Waiting can be the most frustrating part of a construction job. The crew is ready, the equipment is on standby, and no one knows where the concrete is. Calls are made, promises are made, and the waiting continues. When materials are late, it creates a ripple effect that impacts every activity and significantly adds to project costs. The answer might be coming from a “customer portal” that is being developed by Command Alkon, a software and solutions provider that recently introduced a mobile application to provide visibility in the materials delivery cycle. Called, logically, Customer Portal, the app allows materials…

Everything digital—and almost every resource—is now floating in the cloud. Consumer and business apps are resident in the cloud, data is at home in the cloud, and even AI (artificial intelligence) chatbots are roaming the cloud, looking for answers. The cloud is getting crowded! Since the cloud has become so important, it’s a good idea to know what it is. According to one of the major players, AWS (Amazon Web Services), cloud computing is the on-demand delivery of IT resources over the internet with pay-as-you-go pricing. Instead of buying, owning, and maintaining physical data centers, servers, and applications, you can…

Are we “at the edge” or “going over the edge” with computing technology? Or not even close to the edge? It all depends, as they say, on what you mean by “the edge.” Gartner’s Tom Bittman thinks enterprises aren’t doing “edge computing,” as the phrase is accepted, but “they’re doing automation, and agility, and speed, and customer experience, and productivity, and predictive maintenance, and office health, and public safety, and quality control, and on and on.” According to Gartner, digital transformation at the edge means that people and things at the edge can interact digitally. They can also interact with…

https://youtu.be/3tRsvW8I-Rc There’s a tangible talent and skilled labor gap in the construction industry. And it’s only getting wider. According to an Associated Builders and Contractors press release from early February, the construction industry will need to attract an estimated 546,000 additional workers. That’s in addition to the normal pace of hiring in 2023 to meet the demand for labor. Deloitte’s 2023 engineering and construction industry outlook sheds light on why job openings in construction remain high; it’s a combination of declining interest in the industry, an aging population, and talent pressures from industries such as technology and trucking. Another number…

Concrete is a heavy building material. Or not. When concrete is filled with air, like a balloon, it can be light weight. The AAC (autoclaved aerated concrete) is made with fine aggregates, cement, and an expansion agent that causes the fresh mixture to rise like bread dough. In fact, this type of concrete contains 80% air, according to the PCA Portland Cement Assn.) In the factory where it is made, the material is molded and cut into precisely dimensioned units. Cured blocks or panels of AAC are joined with thin bed mortar and components can be used for walls, floors,…