Contractors know that accurate numbers to track job site activity and topography can mean the difference between completing a project on time and on budget. With the addition of Smart Construction Field and Smart Construction Drone to Komatsu’s suite of job site technologies, contractors have two new tools to better manage projects.

“When the Smart Construction group came in, they integrated everything together, and the transition felt seamless. Now, we can take the data, transfer it to the machines, get data back from the machines to the office, and utilize all of that information across the board forbidding, customer reference and billing,”

said Kevin Hawkinson, vice president of operations, A.W. Oakes & Son.

Smart Construction Field

Using data to track spending allows contractors to analyze those numbers quickly and find cost-effective ways to manage and resource projects. Komatsu has partnered with Moovila, an experienced provider of project management software, to develop Smart Construction Field, a mobile app that allows contractors to easily record job site activity and analyze operational efficiencies in near real-time.

Reports generated by Smart Construction Field can track daily job site conditions, and task progress can be broken down by labor, equipment, and materials, including machine utilization and fuel distribution, receipts, time cards, and subcontractor work. Regardless of equipment brand, Smart Construction Field can collect machine data from an entire fleet.

Smart Construction Drone

Collecting accurate topography is easy with Komatsu’s Smart Construction Drone survey technology. This drone solution captures quantities for production tracking and billing, without personnel walking the job site to do a manual survey.

Contractors can gather and analyze data throughout each project phase with topographic surveys that incorporate hundreds of thousands of data points. With the capability to take still photos from up to 400 feet above ground level or under bridge decks, Smart Construction Drone can be used as pre-job verification or to keep stakeholders up to date.

Smart Construction Drone pairs very well with Smart Construction Dashboard. Built to combine data from multiple sources into one comprehensive picture, Smart Construction Dashboard combines 3D design data with aerial mapping and intelligent machine data, to let contractors confirm quantities and visualize job site progress. Smart Construction Dashboard is powered by the 3D visualization power and geospatial accuracy of Cesium, a leading platform to visualize, analyze and share 3D data.

Both Smart Construction Drone and Smart Construction Field are part of Komatsu’s Smart Construction solutions, an umbrella of smart applications created to help construction customers optimize their business remotely, and in near-real-time.

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To address customer needs for a drone with more payload options, RDO Integrated Controls partnered with Vision Aerial in Bozeman to develop a new unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) primarily for construction and earthmoving companies. Effective immediately, the new RDR series drones are available on www.rdomarketplace.com and RDO Integrated Controls will support the drones through its Solutions Center and Fleet Shield Services program.

Initially developed with a mapping component, the RDR series UAVs are customizable for companies needing various configurations, including LiDAR, hyperspectral, multispectral, and thermal. Two models are offered: the RDROne drone is a tri-copter design, while the RDRTwo drone, designed for heavier payloads, is a hexacopter.

The drones are ideally suited for companies in the construction and aggregates industries, with custom options available for applications in agriculture, inspection, law enforcement and security, mining, oil and gas inspection, professional photography and cinematography, as well as survey.

Designed and built in the United States, a key feature of the Vision Aerial UAVs is non-Chinese component options. According to Adam Gilbertson, Vice President of RDO Integrated Controls and RDO Equipment Co.’s Midwest Construction – West region,

“UAV use is widely accepted on jobsites, however, because of growing concerns regarding data management security, an increasing number of government jobs, military sites, and security projects do not allow use of drones that are manufactured in China or with Chinese components.”

The new UAVs give companies assurance they are in full compliance with these rules and regulations on every jobsite.

The Vision Aerial drones provide fast and accurate volume and grade measurement, to a 10^th-foot accuracy or better when used with ground control or the additional RTK systems now available. The drones are built to fly in winds up to 35 miles per hour and offer up to 35 minutes of continuous operation in a single flight.

The RDROne and RDRTwo are easy to use, even for first-timers, from set up and flight planning to easy automatic or manual flight. The drones are compatible with any photogrammetry data management software including RDO’s new online product, RDOai, a cloud-based 3D data management system and analytics platform.

Regardless of software choice, both the RDROne and RDRTwo are supported by the RDO Integrated Controls Solutions Center, based in Billings, and customers may choose various levels of support through the company’s Fleet Shield Services program.

Source: RDO Equipment

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Using the most advanced technology, Laux explained how AgDrone Pro gives producers an eagle eye view of their entire field to help them precisely evaluate and plan for the highest and healthiest crop yields.

AgDrone Pro allows producers to monitor crop growth and protection measures in real time. By identifying areas of concern, AgDrone Pro can advise producers on how to proactively respond with targeted measures of care – saving time, money and potential losses. AgDrone Pro uses military-grade drones and technology, capable of flying up to 360 ft. above your fields. With data driven results and personalized service, their agricultural scouting drones they deploy allow you to see data in terms canopy coverage, areas of stress in your crop and also allow you to track growth over multiple seasons.

According to Laux, the multispectral imaging used by AgDrone Pro is very effective in evaluating soil productivity and analyzing plant health. He says, viewing the health of soil and crops with the naked eye is very limited and is reactionary. Multispectral sensor technology, on the other hand, allows you to see further than the naked eye. Data from multispectral imaging is proven to help identify pests, disease and weeds, optimize pesticide usage and crop sprays through early detection, detecting nutrient deficiencies, count plants and determine population or spacing issues, estimate crop yield, measure irrigation and more.

“Right now, we’re not seeing the price of crops go up – they’re staying put or going down,” Laux said, explaining the benefit of AgDrone Pro’s services available to clients. “So, with AgDrone Pro, instead of using the ‘spray and pray’ method – you got a thousand acres, so you buy a thousand acres worth of chemical, spray it and hope it works – now I can literally ground truth that and then treat specific trouble spots with the exact amount it needs, no more no less. So, now you’re spending less on your treatment upfront saving you potentially thousands of dollars.”

Source: Oklahoma Farm Report

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