Author: Constructech Editors
Many people think of “infrastructure” as the roads and bridges they drive on daily or the train, subway, or airplane they take. Other infrastructure elements—the power grid, water and other utilities, broadband—are just there, unassuming and consistent. When construction, repair, or maintenance disrupts the planned movement of those people, it tends to upset them more than a power outage might. Unfortunately, some react in aggressive ways to those interruptions. According to the AGC (Associated General Contractors of America) and HCSS, a heavy construction software company, 55% of highway contractors report motor vehicles had crashed into their construction work zones during…
Imagine the frustration of inventing the light bulb five years before there was electricity readily available to power it. In many ways, that is the status of the growing EV (electric vehicle) market, ready to take over transportation but still lacking the infrastructure to support it across the nation and the world. It is estimated more than 180,000 public fast charging stations will be required to support 26 million EVs in the U.S. by 2030. According to the experts at EnergIIZE, infrastructure will remain the biggest barrier to electric vehicle adoption. Infrastructure challenges, such as deployment lead time, costly upgrades,…
As more and more construction technologies are being moved to the cloud, companies are finding benefits they didn’t expect. Easy access by all participants, from remote locations and main offices, is primarily the one that comes to mind first. After all, that is the beauty of the cloud, it covers you wherever you are. Depending on the vendor, other aspects of the original application are also enhanced. For example, originally launched as desktop software, Command Technologies Inc.’s Contractor’s Command Post is a tool for construction companies seeking to eliminate reliance on spreadsheets and gain forecasting and analytics capabilities. Its latest…
The term “blockchain” came to prominence with the birth and evolution of cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin and Ethereum. According to Investopedia, a blockchain is a distributed database or ledger shared among a computer network’s nodes. They are best known for maintaining a secure and decentralized record of transactions, but they are not limited to cryptocurrency uses. Blockchains can be used to make data in any industry immutable—the term used to describe the inability to be altered. Because there is no way to change a block, the only trust needed is at the point where a user or program enters data. This…
Unemployment is down, skilled workers are getting harder to find, companies are seeking technology as ways to improve productivity with fewer staff. And one aspect of modern business has taken a major hit in the last three years: office occupancy. Employees spend far less time working at the office than they did before the pandemic, according to McKinsey Global Institute. When the COVID-19 pandemic began, it dramatically changed the way people worked, lived, and shopped in cities around the world. The starkest change was where and how they worked. Obeying lockdowns and office closures, tired of uncomfortable masks, and enabled by…
In the early days of desktop computing, businesses eagerly embraced this newly accessible technology to help run their companies, starting with tasks like accounting. As the construction industry adopted computers, they added estimating and project management to the mix. The result? Three distinct silos of data. This marked the beginning of a persistent challenge for contractors: data integrations. Data Integrations, initially bespoke endeavors, required the services of professional agencies. Maintenance was a constant concern, as software upgrades and version changes could disrupt workflows. In some cases, specialized apps were developed to run alongside existing software. Another hurdle was posed by…
As power and performance can be achieved in smaller formats, companies are moving to reduce the size—but not the capabilities—of their equipment offerings. One of the most indispensable pieces of gear for a general contractor, especially one that does grading and foundation prep or landscaping, is the end-loader and, in particular, the tracked loader. A go-everywhere in any conditions track adds benefits that can easily outweigh the added maintenance. Compact loaders are more popular now due to their power/weight improvements and versatility over “full sized” loaders. A newer mini-loader category has even more potential due to its smaller form-factor and…
M&As (mergers and acquisitions) are a fast way to expand a company’s portfolio, bringing existing skills under the roof quickly and often with minimal changes. A master plan can be a significant benefit, organizing the acquired companies into strategic groupings that play to the combined strength of all the parts. Fidelity Building Services Group (Fidelity BSG) is such a company, having been on an acquisition binge lately. In 2023 alone, Fidelity BSG has acquired ESC (Environmental Systems Corp.), SSE (System Service & Engineering), Darnold Mechanical, and most recently, Power of Clean Energy. To add these companies to their portfolio with…
Congress has them, the Supreme Court has them, the White House has them—although fewer than years gone by—and everybody in Washington is looking for them. Of course, “they” are leaks. Some can be strategic, some political, others national security related; in each case, the government wants to plug the leak and prevent damage. Builders and building owners are also on the look out for leaks, physical ones more than data or political. Leaky buildings signal dwindling energy efficiency and higher utility bills to homeowners and commercial building managers. Air that escapes from a building through windows, doors, and walls creates…
Building information modeling, otherwise known as BIM, has been around now for several decades, although not always by that name. BIM is a process that generates and manages digital representations of physical and functional characteristics of places. Building information models span the whole concept-to-occupation or concept-to-use lifecycle of a structure or infrastructure component. BIM models are computer files that may be in proprietary formats and contain proprietary data. However, the concept is that the data can be extracted, exchanged, or networked to support decision-making regarding a built asset. Open-source versions are becoming popular, especially with smaller companies, as they can…