Photo Courtesy DroneBase Drone surveying can be used to double-check grading, as is being done in this photo. Related Links: DroneBase As U.S. Drone Approvals Grow, So Does Need for Expertise FAA's Summary of Major Provisions of Proposed Part 107 A web service called DroneBase connects drone operators with construction owners nationwide and offers visual and surveying packages."It's hard for clients to know what to pay," says Dan Burton, CEO of DroneBase, Santa Monica, Calif. Compared to helicopter or airplane surveying, drones can deliver better output and fly more often for a cheaper price, he says, adding, "It's thousands [of
Related Links: Parsing Distributed Energy Resources NREL Report: Impact of High Solar Penetration in the Western Interconnection A growing challenge from the evolution of energy resources—especially from solar arrays that now are starting to be enhanced by backup battery storage—is causing electric utilities to rethink the projects they build and the technologies they use to design, construct and operate them.The incremental installations of distributed generation are starting to add up. Solar power, while still a small fraction of the nation's installed base, is the fastest-growing form of new power generation, and that's a trend with implications for the power industry.DODSON"The
Courtesy NASA NASA puts up $2.25 million in prizes for tinkerers who develop solutions to three challenges to building on Mars with on-site material. Related Links: Air Force Research Lab Invests in 3D Printing Technology Development Advancing 3D Printing Capabilities Excite Construction Leader The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is offering $2.25 million in prize money for three competitions, all aimed at dramatically advancing 3D printing in three areas: dwelling design, printing aggregate and printing mechanism.NASA's Centennial Challenges Program, in partnership with America Makes, allots $50,000 of the prize money for the design of a habitat for astronauts on Mars.
Construction mega projects are complex undertakings, prone to scope creep and schedule and cost overruns. Configuration Management (CM)—the detailed recording and updating of project information—can help organize a mega project and fend off cost overruns. CM establishes a project baseline, a clearer definition of project responsibilities and paper work flows, and a way to track and monitor project changes to prevent scope creep. New advances in data analytics can automatically identify construction project issues and problems in CM systems by mining text and numerical construction data for information and drawing conclusions from that data.As senior researcher at the Center for
Image courtesy of MultiVista MultiVista's photo-documentation captures interior and exterior progress and substantial construction details at predetermined intervals. Related Links: New Technology for Construction Jobsite Cams Become Common, Useful Tool With the proliferation of easy-to-use cameras in smartphones and other electronic devices, contractors can gather an almost unlimited number of project images.But more is not always better. If a problem arises during construction or after work is complete, how can a contractor be sure it has the right photographs to capture exactly what happened, and why? Photos can be lost or forgotten if not shared immediately or taken too late
A new feature from a construction communication software automatically produces a daily report at the same time every day, compiled from the field notes of superintendents, foremen and subcontractors.“To stay an extra hour at the end of the day to compile your observations that you might not accurately remember, is silly,” says Chad Falgout, a general superintendent Abbott Construction, Seattle, who has worked as a super for 20 years. Falgout uses the new daily-reports function from the FieldLens, New York, as he walks the job site. He says he makes 10 to 20 observations during his 8- to 10-hour days,
Many modern robots function within highly controlled surroundings, like the factory or even the home (think Roombas). But how would automatons fare and function in the complex environment of a construction site? What traits would they need to operate in a place where workers, vehicles and materials are constantly moving, where the landscape itself is changing as structures rise and grow?These are the questions we’re exploring at the University at Buffalo.With a team of architecture and engineering experts, we’re prototyping a series of On-Site Construction Robots (OSCR). The research is led by Karthik Dantu and Nils Napp, two computer science
Oculus Rift As head of Boston-based Suffolk Construction's 18-month-old national R&D group, Jason Seaburg leads a team searching for new technologies that may become standard tools on company jobsites. His excitement is infectious, says Corren Collura, chief information officer. "Colleagues really buy into it and want to partner with him," she says.Recent explorations include drones, thermal imaging cameras, Google Glass, and still and video cameras on extenders to examine hard-to-reach locations.The 12-member R&D group investigates and recommends the most promising proposals for testing during biweekly conference calls. It works to keep costs within an R&D budget set at the start
Related Links: BIM Masonry The masonry trades risk contributing to their own obsolescence by failing to get into step with building information modeling (BIM) — the 3D modeling and information laden process for building design and construction planning that is sweeping the industry. BIM, a process for designing and building that saves time and cost, improves estimation accuracy, reduces waste and avoids conflicts in the field, is not new to the construction industry. Yet the masonry trades lag well behind most others — including concrete placement and steel —in developing tools specifically designed to improve trade-specific planning and execution through BIM.
Images Courtesy Gafcon Charting what it takes to go from data to correct decisions. For many municipalities and government agencies, construction projects programs and projects are hitting a fever pitch. Deadlines are looming and time is of the essence. All the while, these initiatives are under the increasingly watchful eye of the public, elected and appointed officials looking to make sure that those in charge stay on budget, account for every penny and still achieve the intended outcomes on time.Managing it all and meeting expectations can be daunting, which is why program managers are implementing program control software platforms at a
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