Author: Peggy Smedley
Perhaps one of the greatest opportunities the construction industry has at its proverbial fingertips today is to bring together sustainability and infrastructure to create a world of tomorrow that just might stand the test of time. Many recognize this, yet there are still many challenges that stand in the way. ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) acknowledges this as well and has developed a new standard that provides guidance to infrastructure owners on their journey to build a more sustainable infrastructure. The objective here is to help develop and implement sustainable solutions throughout a project’s entire lifecycle. The ASCE 73-23…
What happens when the robots don’t rise up? There are those who fear robots will displace humans, but have you taken a moment to consider when robots are just not up to the task at all—simply, they are not the right fit. What about when robots require more attention and care than hiring a human to do the job? One new survey looks into this conundrum that many manufacturers face with legacy systems. The Challenge This research from Visual Components suggests more than half of manufacturers in the U.K. say time-consuming manual programming is required for robots to complete welding,…
Earlier this month, I had the opportunity to go to Singapore to attend the annual Year in Infrastructure conference. Here Bentley Systems addressed key industry challenges—namely the engineering resource capacity gap—and highlighted solutions. “There is already an average of one unfilled position for every 10 infrastructure engineers at work,” says Greg Bentley, CEO, Bentley Systems. “In fact, presumably as a result of this engineering resource capacity gap, it seems that our application users are working days that are longer by an average of 23 minutes since pre-pandemic 2019. So, all of us who contribute to infrastructure engineering are ever more…
I have written many times about the manufacturing industry here in South Carolina—and the success stories continue to ring across the state, so much so that on Friday, Oct. 6, 2023, Governor Henry McMaster even issued a proclamation recognizing National Manufacturing Day and October as the official Manufacturing Month in South Carolina. What types of progress are we making here in South Carolina? Today, the manufacturing industry has a presence across all 46 counties with an annual economic impact of $206 billion, accounting for tens of thousands of jobs statewide, according to the Economic Impact of Manufacturing in South Carolina,…
Many industries are facing new challenges amid a worker shortage, changing economic conditions, rising fuel costs, and the need for sustainability. Perhaps there is no greater place for this than the aviation and airline industry. These industries have also been grappling to meet increased customer demand with the emergence of innovation. This is a recent conversation I had Julie Shainock, global managing director for travel, transport logistics, and hospitality, Microsoft. Let’s take a moment to explore a few of the hurdles and opportunities that this industry faces. (I would also be remiss if we did not note the Israel-Hamas war…
Huw Roberts, CEO, Graphisoft, began his career more than three decades ago as an architect working on projects including private homes, restaurants, healthcare, and sports facilities. He knows firsthand what it means to learn and train on the job with other great architects—and he provides some great insights about what it will mean to train and inspire today’s next generation of young workers, all while leveraging the latest technologies and BIM (building information modeling). “I think back to when I was an intern to become an architect. I learned by osmosis and by working with the old guy who smoked…
Sustainability is top of mind for many these days, but what about resiliency? How does it factor into what we are doing in our own homes and even in our own communities? A new framework just might change how we move forward in the days ahead. In late September, the White House Climate Policy Office hosted the Summit on Building Climate Resilient Communities and as a result the unveiling of the new National Climate Resilience Framework, which aims to build more resilient communities—particularly as severe weather events are on the rise. According to the National Centers for Environmental Information with…
Edge computing is still emerging in manufacturing—but where are we right now, as I write this, and where are we headed? A new report looks to answer these very questions, explaining how edge computing is changing manufacturing to solve operational issues and reduce costs. Now that’s the tricky part when you consider manufacturing is changing faster than we can even say smart manufacturing. AT&T recently released its 2023 AT&T Cybersecurity Insights Report: Focus on Manufacturing. One of the key takeaways reveals that there are critical elements needed to deliver both secure and effective edge solutions. After covering this space for…
How is our infrastructure fairing following the IIJA (Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act) passage in late 2021? The American Road & Transportation Builders Assn., digs in and provides some interesting data, specifically on the state of bridges. Perhaps it’s time to take a closer look at where we are and what we need to do to build a better and more resilient infrastructure future, together. The association says one in three U.S. bridges needs repair or replacement. Yikes. More than 220,000 spans need repair, including 76,600 bridges that should be replaced. Placed end-to-end, these structures span more than 6,100 miles—and…
Many homes across the country have solar panels on their roofs, powering their homes through the rays of the sun, but could solar come to other areas of our world, like our roadways, powering our towns on a grander scale? Roughly a decade ago, there was quite a bit of talk about addressing the energy crisis with solar roadways. The concept is a good one: put panels in the road to produce electricity while also heating the roads to melt the snow and ice. As a longtime Chicagoan, I could appreciate this concept. The University of Minnesota Institute on the…