Starting Off
Last Friday, the #ConTechTrio aired episode 30 of the podcast in which James Benham (@jamesmbenham), Rob McKinney (@conappguru) and Josh Bone (@bim2thebone) discussed the latest construction tech news. Headliners last week included Intel’s announcement of its VR headset, construction equipment playing soccer, the world’s largest delta-style 3D printer, Nemetschek acquisition of Solibri and much more! Special guest Josh Kanner (@jkanner1), Founder and CEO of SmartVid.io (@Smartvidio) also joined to discuss Artificial Intelligence for photos & videos.
Weekly Poll
The JBKnowledge Twitter poll question from last week’s episode, “Is your company using a 3D scanning tool?” – resulted in 53% Yes and 47% No. A new poll question was also highlighted on the show, related to this week’s episode – cloud based photo and video storage platforms. The question – “Is it easy for you to find old project photos when you need them?” The poll can be found on the JBK Twitter page and participants need only answer the single question with “Yes” or “No.” Also, just a reminder, the ConTechTrio launched their own Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn, to foster open Q&A and group discussions.
Construction Tech News
The trio kicked off the industry news with Intel’s announcement of its virtual reality headset, Project Alloy, which will offer the first open-source, third-party ‘HoloLens’ headset. Marla McIntyre’s weekly technology and software rundown was featured on the podcast, which showcased new iOS drone features, Graphisoft’s BIMX and Bagel Lab’s Smart Tape Measure. Equipment World released an article attributing the construction “digital divide” to a company’s culture, not age demographics, that makes employees reluctant to adopt new tech. Didn’t attend this year’s AGC IT Forum? Check out the top 7 memorable moments, which include yours truly, the ConTechTrio!
Also in the news, Elon Musk, Founder of Tesla and SolarCity, announced that SolarCity will be offering entire solar roofs by the end of 2016. In honor of the 2016 Summer Olympics, Construction Junkie released a video showcasing construction equipment and cars playing soccer, which we have to admit, is really fun to watch! Nemetschek acquired leading BIM specialist Solibri to strengthen their global position as a leading provider of Open BIM solutions. In regards to drones, a new image-based mapping system was developed (photogrammetry), called Hydra Fusion, which involves stitching together multiple images/videos to form a detailed 3D map.
MCAA just released its 3rd installment of the Construction Technology Research Series with a report, produced by JBKnowledge, on BIM to Field Software (Note: Must be a MCAA Member to download.) Ford Motor Co. revealed an aggressive strategy last week to make fully autonomous cars available for sale by 2021! The World’s Advanced Saving Project (WASP) revealed the world’s largest delta-style 3D printer, which can create full-size buildings out of mud for nearly zero cost, completing its first house at a cost of just 48 euros.
Another acquisition made headlines, Hexagon AB, a leading provider of IT that drives efficiency and quality across geospatial and industrial enterprise apps, acquired Multivista, a leading provider of visual cloud-based construction doc solutions. Ever wondered what percentage of your state’s economy is based on construction’s contribution? View the breakdown in ABC National’s report. Microsoft announced it will be delivering Windows Holographic to the public, with a Windows 10 update included, to make it easier for users to blend physical and digital reality on any PC.
In other technology news, BBC decided to test out the durability of Tuffphones, new hard-wearing handsets aimed at construction workers, and other industry giants with similar handsets, by throwing them into a cement mixer – see the results! Dubai’s DP World is looking into building a high-speed hyperloop to transport containers from Dubai’s Jebel Ali Port to an inland storage depot. The trio finished out their construction tech news with McDonalds now offering activity-tracking wearables in their 500 calorie happy meals – spoiler alert, they started giving kids rashes and were removed.
Interview
In the second half of the podcast, Josh Kanner, Founder and CEO of SmartVid.io, joined the #ConTechTrio to discuss AI for photos and videos. After graduating from Brown University, Josh worked as a technology consultant, helping companies adopt innovative technology to improve their processes. After a couple of years in this field, Josh felt the urge to take his consulting recommendations to the next level by offering complementary software, and has been doing enterprise software ever since. He went on to start his own company, Vela Systems, which developed cloud and mobile field management software for the construction industry. Vela Systems was later acquired by Autodesk in 2012, leading Josh to create his new company, SmartVid.io, a cloud-based platform that helps construction professionals manage, collaborate and analyze videos and photos. On the podcast, Josh discussed SmartVid.io’s capabilities, including its Smart Tagging Engine feature and much more. The ConTechTrio and Josh wrapped up the interview with his thoughts on the concept of ‘App Fatigue,’ in terms of companies moving towards cloud based photo solutions and artificial intelligence (AI).
Tune into the #ConTechTrio podcast again this Friday for Episode 31, featuring Yves Frinault from FieldWire! Until then, you can catch up on past episodes of our construction technology podcast and even check out some bonus episodes via the links below!
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JBKnowledge: @JBKnowledge
ConTechTrio: @ConTechTrio
James Benham: @jamesmbenham
Rob McKinney: @conappguru
Josh Bone: @bim2thebone
