When ENR's Technology Senior Editor Tom Sawyer picks up his video camera, something interesting is bound to happen. Browsers on ENR.com will not be disappointed by what he captured at the recent conference in Las Vegas of FIATECH, a group that concentrates on technology solutions to construction problems, including interoperability. Sawyer wondered if technology would take a lower profile in the middle of a recession. That is not the case, from what we see here.

Golden-i, a verbally controlled Bluetooth computer interface, wowed the crowd at the FIATECH meeting. See how the device works on ENR.com this week.

How does FIATECH pursue its mission to fi nd technology solutions to problems in construction? Find out by listening in as ENR Senior Editor Tom Sawyer interviews FIATECH Director Ric Jackson.

In one video, viewers can see the debut of the Golden-i headset, a jobsite communications device. “We've been coining the phrase 'information snacking,' because this is what Golden-i is about,” says Chris Parkinson, Golden-i software consultant to Kopin Corp., who demonstrated the device to Sawyer. “It's about getting the information you need and getting back to your work. You're not meant to sit here and watch videos for five hours at a go.”

FIATECH also showcased some of the most important efforts aimed at industry interoperability. Sawyer interviews Ric Jackson, FIATECH founding director, who described one advance. “What we've produced is a mechanism to tie software together and companies together, but we can also tie standards together,” says Jackson. We hope watching these reports will help you tie your world together. Enjoy.