Technology

Construction Technology and Software Rundown: July 23, 2021

By Marla McIntyre
July 20, 2021
Topics
Technology

Apps

SafeSite Check In digital check in, jobsite safety and productivity app now features detailed weekly reports containing activities and hours worked by subcontractors, employees and project via daily log automation. Supervisors can upload pictures and videos and use speech-to-text to capture notes that can be integrated into weekly productivity reports.

Products

Brokk’s 800S remote-controlled demolition robot has a 32-foot reach with a three-part arm. For heavy-duty demolition, the 800S can be equipped with the 2,646-pound Epiroc MB 1200 breaker and can be used with concrete crushers, drum cutters, grapples, buckets, drilling equipment and metal shears.

Substrata’s Perma-Zyme bonds soil particles together to increases the strength of native soil on gravel or dirt roads, turning the soil into a concrete-like surface. Perma-Zyme’s permentation process increases the strength of the soil when the Perma-Zyme interacts with clay particles in the soil. It can also be used to treat the subsurface of paved roads.

KINETIC wearable technology has an updated dashboard interface to its Reflex wearable device and software analytics platform. A Weekly Active Time metric highlights which employees are wearing the devices, at what frequency and duration of use. With Hourly High Risk Posture comparison metrics, operators can compare risk levels across employees and jobs. Individual employee reports enable the sharing of data to support training and celebrate employees’ safety wins. Weekly email reports distill the data and highlight key metrics at both the individual-facility and facility-wide levels.

Software & In the Cloud

With XOi Technologies, MEP contractors can connect field service technicians, offices and their customers while enabling on-the-job photo and video documentation, workflow automation, real-time remote video support and training, as well as access to an extensive knowledge base of relevant equipment documentation and training content.

Partnerships, Acquisitions & Integrations

The Nemetschek Group announced that its Allplan and SDS2brands will join forces to create a customer-focused product portfolio of BIM solutions for the entire structural workflow. With the merger, Allplan, a global provider of BIM design software solutions headquartered in Germany, is completing its offering with engineering detailing software for steel. SDS2, a provider of BIM solutions for the structural steel detailing industry, is expanding its expertise in concrete construction.

AvidXchange accounts payable and payment automation solution AvidPay is now integrated with TimberScan to create a complete purchase-to-pay AP solution for construction industry professionals. The API integration supports AvidSuite for Construction, a portfolio of construction-specific, fully automated AP products that work directly with construction accounting systems like Sage 300 CRE. Users can match purchase orders, manage invoices, curate reports and access stored real-time and historical payment information in one centralized platform. With AvidSuite for Construction, users can send secure, accurate payments through the AvidPay Network of 700,000 suppliers.

Video & Cool Stuff

InEight’s first annual Global Capital Projects Outlook, based on research conducted with 300 of the world’s largest capital project owners and contractor construction professionals across the Americas, Europe and APAC, found that despite COVID-19, the global construction sector is displaying deep resilience and optimism combined with a clear commitment to digital transformation. The report found that 71% see digital transformation as the biggest short-term source of opportunity with data analytics, AI and machine learning most critical for success. More than half of owners and contractors say in the last three years, projects completed on or ahead of schedule and on or under budget have increased, with 83% confident of completing future projects on or ahead of schedule, and 82% confident of doing so on or under budget.

Skyward, A Verizon company, has signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the Federal Aviation Administration to test cellular-connected drones. Titled “Unmanned Aircraft Systems—Cellular Technologies to Support UAS Activities,” the MOA enables Skyward and the FAA to mutually research the capabilities of cellular communication networks for command and control within the National Airspace System. The two groups will propose standards for operations, including BVLOS and over commercial wireless spectrum.

by Marla McIntyre

Marla McIntyre is a digital editor of CE This Week and ConstructionExec.com. She edited Construction Executive’s Tech Trends and Risk Management eNewsletters and is the author of more than 200 articles and publications, including Construction Executive’s annual technology predictions, Technology & Software Rundown column and an award-winning series for the Risk Management Association. Her extensive construction and risk management background includes stints as executive director the Surety Information Office and American Subcontractors Association of Metro Washington.



Related stories

Technology
Employing Supporting Roles for Your IT Team
By Christian Burger
For construction businesses to be effective in selecting, managing and deploying technology—especially when the influence, intelligence and complexity of that technology is growing—they need a new approach to IT.
Technology
Integrating Software and Hardware Technology in the Field
By Bryan Williams
Field technology has advanced increasingly in recent years. Combing the advancing software with hardware in the field can significantly improver performance on the jobsite.
Technology
Simplifying and Extending a Building's Lifecycle With Digital-Twin Technology
By César Flores Rodríguez
Digital-twin technology takes data beyond BIM, out of silos and into the interactive real world in real time.

Follow us




Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Stay in the know with the latest industry news, technology and our weekly features. Get early access to any CE events and webinars.