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Healthcare: Protect Our Critical Infrastructure
Peggy talks about the rise of hackers targeting our critical infrastructure—with a focus on the healthcare sector. She says the most recent incident is a reminder of the connected nature of a healthcare system—and it points to the urgency of strengthening cybersecurity and resiliency. She also discusses: The impact of one of the most recent…
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The Digital Engineering Side of Automotive Design
John Reed, global solutions leader, manufacturing & mobility industries, Microsoft, and Peggy Smedley talk about how AI (artificial intelligence) is transforming the automotive industry—and the transformation in the digital engineering side of automotive design. He also gives an update on the SDV space (software-defined vehicle) space. They also discuss: The implication of integration of design…
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The Rise of Sustainable Data Centers
Peggy explains how new demand for generative AI (artificial intelligence) requires greater power—and data centers must evolve alongside all of this. She explains how we are tasked with building sustainable, innovative data centers. She also discusses: How data centers are being designed and optimized. How to keep sustainability front and center. What comes next for…
What's Trending
Robots are coming to the rescue! They are helping in a number of industries, including in the healthcare market where invasive surgery can be made easier with robotics and AI (artificial intelligence). Let’s take a look. As one example, the Paoli-Calmettes Institute is using the Epione Quantum Surgical robotic platform, which can destroy cancerous tumors. This is only the fourth center in the world to offer this minimally invasive treatment. Here’s how it works: Robots and AI enable the interventional radiologists to perform percutaneous tumor ablations. The technology is designed to plan, target, execute, and confirm the ablation of abdominal and pulmonary tumors, with other locations currently under study. Here is how this can help: Minimally invasive procedure. Enhance quality of life and reduce after-effects. Treat more patients. Looking to the future, the advent of robotics in interventional radiology will further enhance the safety and precision of these…
As technology continues to evolve, so will the way construction professionals build our homes, buildings, cities, and infrastructure, brick by brick. Robotics are set to reimagine how contractors build both on-site and off-site. Let’s look at how AI (artificial intelligence) is powering autonomous construction robots to do work on jobsites across Europe. As one example, Monumental was founded in 2021 by CEO Salar al Khafaji and CTO Sebastiaan Visser. Together, they have brought together artificial intelligence, autonomous technology, and low-cost hardware to develop robots that are capable of working on-site. Earlier this year, the company raised $25 million to scale this technology across Europe. The funding will be used to grow the team, scale the number of robots, and increase the types of blocks and construction tasks the robots can manage. Here is how this can help in construction: Place bricks and mortar with precision, accuracy, and efficiency and small enough to go anywhere a human can. Could increase productivity by 50-60%. Monumental serves as a sub, removing the financial risk. This meets a big need today, as more than half of the countries in Europe are facing a severe shortage of bricklayers. In the U.K. alone, there’s an estimated lack of 75,000 bricklayers needed to build the 300,000 houses needed annually by 2025. Certainly, this isn’t necessarily a completely new concept. We first met SAM, the bricklaying robot from Construction Robotics back in 2016. SAM wasn’t alone either in the market. Another bricklaying counterpart is Hadrian X, developed by FBR in Australia. What is new is the rise of AI and how that could contribute to building structures in new and efficient ways. Stay tuned. The robots are sure to impact…
Automotive shipping could use a resurgence with AI (artificial intelligence). Consider this: What if a system could autonomously manage 85% of shipping orders, minimizing the need for manual intervention? One company aims to do this with AI. As one example, RunBuggy has launched RunBot, which is an AI system that integrates into RunBuggy’s transportation management platform. The company says this acts as the central nervous system for orchestrating the complexities of the automotive shipping process. Here is how it works: RunBot uses machine learning models to prioritize operational tasks, predict delivery challenges, and offer insights. The predictive capabilities ensure logistical bottlenecks are anticipated well in advance. This allows for better operations. Here is how this can help in automotive: Enhance user experience. Reduce operational overhead. Streamline operations for shippers and transport companies. Looking to the future, we will see this technology continue to speed up operations while also keeping an eye on ultimate sustainability, by reducing empty miles. The end result is better business workflows, reduced costs, and a better environment for…
In depth study of the worker of the future.
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All about Soil and Composting
Stephanie Szkolnicki, owner, Southern Garden Solutions, and Peggy Smedley talk about soil and composting. She says there is a huge myth around composting that it is complicated—but she combats that myth. They also discuss: What composting is and the value add to the soil. The growing movement surrounding soil health. How to set up a…
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Water Stewardship
Stephanie Szkolnicki, owner, Southern Garden Solutions, and Peggy Smedley talk about the importance of water. She shares about the significance of the management and the usage of water. They also discuss: The benefits and impact of capturing water. How to create a system for water stewardship. If technology and rain charts can help monitor water.…
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All about Pollinator Gardens
Stephanie Szkolnicki, owner, Southern Garden Solutions, and Peggy Smedley talk about building pollinator gardens. She says a pollinator garden is a garden designed with plants that provide food and shelter to our pollinators like bees, wasps, butterflies, moths, and more, which helps our edible gardens as well. They also discuss: Why a pollinator garden matters.…
What You Missed
Is the smart home finally here? One big topic of conversation at last week’s NAHB (National…
While there were a bevy of announcements at last week’s NAHB (National Assn. of Home Builders)…
The construction industry is getting connected with the rise of new equipment and technologies that enable…