The camera drone—also called a UAS (Unmanned Aircraft System) or UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle)—has moved from the toy department to the construction company’s tool supplier. Buzzing about, checking the site and the work, drones are becoming as familiar on the job as hard hats and safety vests. And like those ubiquitous safety equipment staples, drones have a place in protecting workers as well as feeding high-level information to the boss.
For years, the concept of an autonomous jobsite has been forecasted, with the advent of autonomous construction equipment and driverless vehicles driving the discussion even further. Now—especially on mining sites—that concept is starting to become a reality.
This past week was truly a special honor for me receiving the ASCE Excellence in Journalism Award. When the American Society of Civil Engineers bestowed so much such praise on me for my work in civil engineering, I was humbled for many reasons. While the Black-Tie OPAL (Outstanding Projects and Leaders) Gala was amazing, as my husband and three grown children were able to attend to share in the festivities, along with other friends and family, the message that resonated the most is that we all need to continue to look to our future; and that means our next generation of innovators.
The construction industry is the fabric of our country. It has proven that it has a notably resilient ecosystem. We have seen this time and time again. But without the right investment how long can we expect our productivity to have a positive impact on both our workforce and our infrastructure? How can we even consider rebuilding and making the necessary reinvestment in our roads, bridges, and waterways?
For chief operating officers, operation managers, and project managers, the performance of field personnel and their productivity is crucial. Therefore, the need for realtime jobsite intelligence and an accurate decision-support tool remains at the forefront.
When the Nevada ASCE (American Society of Civil Engineers) released its 2018 Infrastructure Report Card, immediately my heart started to race with anticipation. Regardless of what the report card revealed, there was no question I was feeling a tad anxious by the outcome. Now, I have to admit, I was a little surprised; not because Nevada improved, that was the good news, but that I was really so nervous at the outset.
For those of you who follow this blog closely, you know that I have been covering what it takes to enable a smart, connected construction jobsite. In the past four weeks, I have dove into workers, materials, construction equipment, and tools. Today, I am going to wrap the series up, giving my perspective on what works, what doesn’t, and what is needed going forward.
For the past few weeks, I have been talking about practical ways to connect the construction jobsite, looking at workers, materials, and connected construction equipment. Today, let’s address the topic of connected construction tools.
For those of you who follow this blog regularly, you know that I have been honing in on smart, connected jobsites lately. Last week, I kicked off a new series identifying the best ways to help connect the jobsite, focusing on workers. Up this week, materials.
There has been a lot of talk lately about smart, connected jobsites—which encompasses everything from tools, to equipment, to workers, and even materials. For the next few weeks, I want to focus on a few of these areas to identify the best way to help connect the jobsite. First up, workers.