Innovation Radar tech lets diggers see pipes before digging Israeli tech firm RodRadar and Sitech Deutschland have joined forces to market a product that uses radar and AI technology embedded in excavation equipment to prevent cable and pipeline strikes…
Innovation Researchers probe rubber roads’ carbon credentials to boost take-up Researchers from the University of Missouri’s College of Engineering have been given a $1.2m grant to develop environmental product declarations (EPDs) for asphalt made with ground rubber tires. Their goal…
News See the printed floor cassette researchers say could replace concrete, steel Researchers at the University of Maine have released images of the 3D-printed, natural-material floor cassette they say is strong enough to replace steel-and-concrete floors in multi-storey buildings. The university worked…
Innovation Professor invents instant concrete strength-checker. Highway bosses like it. AASHTO – the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials – has approved a Purdue University-invented device that uses vibrations to check when concrete has cured. After seven years…
Innovation Engineering carbon out of Australia’s construction business In Australia, a voluntary alliance of tier 1 contractors, government agencies, specialist subcontractors, engineering firms, cost consultants, architects, and material manufacturers – representing the whole construction supply chain – are…
News Swedish university develops of textile-reinforced concrete Researchers from Sweden’s Chalmers University of Technology are working on a method of using textile-reinforced concrete for the creation of vaulted structures. The team’s work builds on existing work in…
Innovation Michigan researchers make breakthrough in designing origami-style modules Researchers from the University of Michigan have found a way to better use the principles of origami to design structures that are relatively easy to transport, deploy and reconfigure. The…
Innovation Data to information to control: improving construction management If you turn data into information, you can use that information to exert greater control over a construction project. That was one of the key messages from Buildots at a…
Innovation Lego-style apartment complex opens doors in Florida A 96-unit apartment complex built with Lego-style, snap-together blocks has opened its doors to residents in Palm Springs, Florida. It was put up by a small crew of unskilled workers…
Innovation Just a mallet and glue gun: US block-system builder celebrates trio of wins A US start-up selling a Lego-style, interlocking block system for residential construction has had a very good few months. Last week, Renco USA cut the ribbon on its first development…
Innovation Meet the start-up developing microreactors Nuclear reactors come in three forms. The largest are the 700MW-plus units that power entire countries and are produced by a handful of national champions, the largest three being Areva,…
Innovation Self-guided compactors save time, fuel, and emissions, Trimble study shows Construction technology firm Trimble says a field study it conducted shows that roller compactors in self-steering mode do their job faster and more effectively than when steered by people. Two…
Innovation US states line up to see how ‘talking concrete’ can cut repairs Nine US states with concrete interstate highways will test sensors developed by Purdue University that tell engineers when a section of road is ready for heavy traffic. Attached to rebar…
Innovation Save money by heating a room’s surfaces, not its air, tech firm says A thin film impregnated with tiny heaters and incorporated into floors, walls and even furniture can provide instant, on-demand heating more cheaply and sustainably than conventional space-heating, a Finnish tech…