Photo by Holcim The WeatherAPP is a four-day weather forecast that accounts for air and concrete temperatures, wind speed and humidity. Related Links: The Holcim Weather App Concrete contractors should take note. A free, new tool just arrived to make their lives easier. It's a mobile app that instantly displays a four-day forecast to predict whether the weather is right to place concrete."In Utah, we have a huge issue with cracking. It's dry and windy, and the humidity is very low," says Mark Sweats, tech services manager at cement and aggregate provider Westroc Inc., Pleasantville Utah. "We use the app
Related Links: The Building Research Information Database The American Institute of Architects National Institute of Building Sciences A new website formed by two buildings organizations aims to be a bank of peer-reviewed research projects and case studies that dive into every phase of the building cycle, from predesign through occupancy and re-use."I believe that it has the potential to be transformative in our industry," says A. Ray Pentecost III, chairman of the board of direction for the new site: BRIKbase.org.BRIK stands for "Building Research Information Knowledgebase" and was formed by the American Institute of Architects and the National Institute of
When brainstorming technology story ideas at ENR, our editors frequently start by trying to feel your pain. Our readers are the construction people who depend on technology to improve their personal and company performance, but they also are the people who are left frustrated or wistful when needed technology fails them or has yet to be invented. When we hear those stories about common technology wishes and issues we start looking for folks who have found or invented solutions, and then we write about those. If it is new and helpful and we can find it and it’s not widely known,
Related Links: Latista The LATISTA App LATISTA, a leading field data management software vendor, is set to release a new iPad version on Jan. 15 with upgrades that include increased speed for viewing building information modeling files in PDF format."We benchmarked it against many leading companies," says Patricia Remacle, vice president, product management at LATISTA, Reston, Va. She says the product was faster in most tests. The benchmarking was done by opening 20 files of varying size and complexity on the same iPad. The programs tested against were Good Reader, Adobe Reader and PDF Expert. She says LATISTA was faster
Photo courtesy of Livescribee Livescribe's pens allow users to record written and verbal notes and synch them directly to a computer or device via WiFi. Related Links: Livescribe Sky Smartpen Evernote Whenever ENR editors find a tool we want for ourselves that also has crossover appeal for architects, engineers or construction managers, we like to show it off. Livescribe's Smartpen is one of those tools. At first glance, it just looks like a stocky pen, but the technology inside allows users to record audio and, at the same time, turn any written notes into digital files that users can save
Related Links: Thing Magic “In the old days, we would hire a security guard at the door of every clean room so no one would go in,” says Osman Chao, project executive at DPR Construction, who recently adopted Trimble’s ThingMagic, a radio-frequency identification (RFID) system that has replaced the guards at egress points and helped automate his site security.Before the job began, Chao was faced with securing a 900,000-sq-ft site with many work zones and four phases of building protocol in which the level of cleanliness would increase with each phase. “Cleanliness isn’t a big issue when we’re building up
Courtesy Bridges to Prosperity I look back fondly to the days when jumping on a plane was synonymous with reconnecting to silence; when transoceanic flights were absent of the buzz of emails, phones and social media’s barrage of connectivity. But when United Airlines began adding in-flight WiFi this fall, I folded. No longer do I look forward to reflective, stress-free hours. For as much as I want to keep the computer in the overhead bin, I cannot help but appreciate the opportunity for a few extra hours of access.Perhaps in-flight access will take a bit of getting used to, but
Skip Pennington, Brasfield & Gorrie Job Site in a Box is a rugged connectivity portal to get remote job sites up and running fast. Related Links: Feeney Wireless' Mobile Ready Office Williams Scotsman's Techsuite Construction companies and service providers are getting together to offer multiple solutions for instantly connecting remote job sites with all the technological trimmings needed to operate at the speed of 2013.One general contractor found a quick, ruggedized solution to wiring job sites to the internet anywhere in range of 3G or 4G cellular connection, which would free staff from having to wait for utility companies to
Related Links: Acoustimaxx Safety Glasses Car Connection magicJack Plus netTalk Duo WiFi Bald Technologies Liquid Displays Lantronix XPrint Server ENR's editors are always on the lookout for new and useful electronic devices that have the potential to improve construction. As 2012 comes to a close, we've gathered a collection of the most promising gadgets we've run across or experimented with lately. Some have obvious applications to the jobsite, while others may just be convenient for companies fielding new devices or mobilizing workforces. Still other devices are noted simply for their ability to reduce the cost of sought-after tech and increase
Related Links: Video Demonstration of the MARS App PARWorks Website Augmented Reality for Facilities Management Leaping Into Use Photos of construction projects are as common as hardhats and work boots on a jobsite these days.But what if construction crews could use photos and videos to assemble an updated 3D building information model of their project in seconds, using that overlay to check the building's progress against a 4D BIM schedule?That's just one example of the possibilities and new applications bubbling up from a hybrid 4D augmented reality (4DAR) platform developed by construction engineering professors and students at Virginia Polytechnic Institute
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