On a Pennsylvania bridge last month, a prototype robot tied more than 24,000 rebar intersections at a rate of 5.5 seconds each. Its creators are preparing to make it commercially available to contractors next year.

Brayman Construction debuted the so-called TyBot on the Freedom Road bridge project in Beaver County, Pa. Tybot’s arm dangles over each rebar intersection, working from a frame that spans the width of the new bridge deck. In the demonstration, Tybot completed more than 5,000 sq ft of deck, according to Jeremy Searock, co-founder of Advanced Construction Robotics (ACR).