technology trends in road building
TRANSCRIPT
WHERE WE’RE HEADED: A LOOK INTO HOW TECHNOLOGY TRENDS APPLY TO ROAD BUILDING ORBA Convention 2015 #ORBAconvention
LAUREN HASEGAWA Co-Founder, Bridgit
Lauren is a Structural Engineering graduate with a background in concrete restoration. As a young engineer, Lauren has always had an interest in how new technologies can improve efficiency and productivity on construction projects. With this passion, she founded Bridgit, a mobile and web communication platform for the construction industry in 2012. Bridgit focuses on developing mobile-first solutions that can help relieve on-site pain points, such as deficiency management. Lauren is an active m e n t o r t o y o u n g w o m e n i n engineering and a frequent speaker at local and national industry events focused on construction innovation.
Technology is evolving at an exponential rate
It took less than 40 years to go from the first PC
to the first iPad
… and just 4 years to go from the first iPad to
Google Glass
We need to pay attention to emerging trends in
technology
LET’S TALK ABOUT… 1. Paperless Jobsites Finally Being
Attainable
2. Massive Improvements in Site Photography / Video Options
3. The Internet of Things Hitting our
Roads
1. PAPERLESS JOBSITES ARE FINALLY ATTAINABLE
• Dynamic documents. Notes and updates recorded on paper cannot be searched, duplicated or properly digitized
• Data opportunities. Everyone is talking about “big data” sets these days. With paper, you essentially have no data.
• Enhanced sharing & communication. Digital documents can be shared, updated and accessed in the click of a button. This makes communication much easier, especially on large projects.
Why Paperless?
• It’s fairly impossible to go paperless without leveraging cloud-based document storage
• Cloud-based document storage allows you to work on live documents (no versioning required) and share permissions as required
TREND ALERT: Cloud-based Document Storage
Ex: Custom File Hierarchy and Permissions
Storing documents, photos and files in the cloud can be done using an enterprise system like Egnyte, SharePoint, Box or simpler solutions such as Google Drive and Dropbox.
Using the Cloud – Storage Options
When you’re working towards going paperless, the hardware you have available on-site is key.
• Rugged and durable
• Large screen sizes
• Enough hardware to go around
The Proper Hardware is Key
Some processes will need specific software solutions in order to thrive in a paperless environment.
In road building, the following areas are great targets for mobile apps since they are done on the go:
• Safety checklists
• Material and equipment tracking
• Timesheets
• Inspection checklists
TREND ALERT: Mobile Apps
Going paperless is best done as a gradual process. You can start small and still see big results! • Use the cloud to share. Start by analyzing everything that gets
printed and identifying if there are any opportunities to share this information over email or as a file stored in the could instead of printing
• Invest in proper hardware. Often times, screen size is the biggest reason that documents need to exist as a hard copy instead of digital. Better hardware such as TV screens or tablets can help here
• Research the software options / mobile apps. Identify opportunities to use software instead of manual processes and begin investigating effective solutions
Going Paperless: Where to Start?
2. MASSIVE IMPROVEMENTS IN SITE PHOTOGRAPHY / VIDEO OPTIONS
Site photography is about to become more important
than ever
Site photography is used in three basic situations:
1. Pre-construction for surveying of terrain, environmental issues, etc.
2. Construction progress photography
3. Maintenance management
The Current State of Site Photography
The options for high quality aerial images have been historically expensive and cumbersome.
• Satellites
• Helicopters
• LiDar Maps
The Current State of Site Photography
The photos are then manually reviewed by field engineers and compared
with separate models / specifications
While helpful for the time being, field engineers agree that these processes are:
• Highly subjective as they are based on one field engineer’s judgment or experience
• Tedious as they require manual effort
• Difficult to scale, again, due to their manual nature
How Current Photography is Failing Us
• Making photography less manual via the use of drones and UAVs (more on that later!)
• Using systems to automatically map together series’ of individual photos and match them to a model
• Using these model overlays to identify deviations from the plan or damages
Where Site Photography is Headed
How would you take this photo?
+
Some companies in the civil construction space have already begun to experiment with drone enabled photography • Taking aerial imagery of a site prior to construction and
integrating the model over top
• Digitizing graphical terrain of an area for construction and bringing that into the model
• Surveying areas, quantity takeoffs and analyzing environmental issues
TREND ALERT: Drone / UAV Photography
In addition to simple photography or video, imaging technology is advancing at a rapid pace.
We will soon have
commercial access to
options like 360
degree video.
Taking Drone Photography a Step Further
How would you take this photo?
Yes, however the Canadian regulations regarding unmanned aerial vehicles are always changing. Transport Canada unveiled new guidelines in the Fall of 2014 which essentially say:
• Follow the rules set out in the Canadian Aviation Regulations
• Respect the Criminal Code as well as the federal, provincial and territorial laws related to trespassing and privacy
Are Drones / UAVs Legal?
Researchers at the University of Illinois are working on a solution that will do this using drones, plus it will allow images to be mapped to the original plans to identify deviations
They are testing with:
• Turner
• Zachry Construction
• University of Illinois
Capturing Construction Progress Using Autonomous Vision-Based Systems
Definition - What is 4D?
The 4th dimension represents time. 4D involves being able to see a location as it
looked in the past, present and future (model overlay)
This system will enable users to align a set of photographs with 4D building models to allow for new modes of construction-site interaction.
TREND ALERT: 4D Building Models
If you are interested in testing aerial video via drones on your next project, here are the initial steps to take:
1. Identify a project and contact Transport Canada to confirm aerial regulations in that area
2. Secure Transport Canada Insurance and Liability Insurance
3. Secure Transport Canada flight permit (currently 10+week wait after insurance is purchased)
4. Determine if you are going to invest or outsource (recommendation is to outsource for initial trials)
5. Set goals for your first trial (what information do you 100% want to capture)
6. Examine footage and identify future opportunities
Drones in Canada: Where to Start?
Recommendations provided by:
3. THE INTERNET OF THINGS IS HITTING OUR ROADS
Definition - What does Internet of Things (IoT)
mean?
Everyday objects that are connected to the internet and are able to identify
themselves to other devices.
IoT AT HOME nest Thermostat
IoT AT HOME Roomba Vacuum
IoT AT WORK IFTTT work automation
IoT ON-SITE See Control
IoT ON-SITE Smart Structures
• Embed intelligence into the elements that make up a bridge foundation
• Sensors are embedded directly into the concrete
• Enable real-time testing of all foundation elements
The UK’s A14 becomes the first “smart” road with Interconnected
Network of sensors
• Automated toll charge payments
• Monitoring for road traffic patterns
• Adaptive speed limit setting
• Direct communication with drivers
• RFID tags inserted intro pre cast concreted (Smart Structures)
• Communication between roads and drivers regarding traffic patterns, weather conditions , etc.
• Traffic pattern tracking and real-time reactions from the roads
TREND ALERT: IoT Technologies embedded into our roads
• Start playing around with simple IoT integration services like IFTTT to automate things in your day to day. Ex: Automatically upload photos taken on your phone to Google drive (great for site photos!)
• Ideate on how these same types of relationships would make sense on-site. Ex: Would it be better to upload these photos to another location?
• From there, you can contact various IOT technology providers to learn more about their solutions, or platforms for building customizations for your company
IoT: Where to Start?
Solutions are all around us.
It’s time to start the conversation.
• Stay informed
• Encourage discussion
• Identify problems and seek solutions
• Be open-minded, but stay critical
• Support evolving industry initiatives related to technology
What seems like a stretch of the imagination today, may
well be the reality of tomorrow.
Finally, some punch list therapy. Use Closeout to easily manage your punch lists in real-time from your mobile phone or computer. Watch the overview video or request a 1:1 demo to see how Closeout can give your team some much deserved punch list therapy.
