A problem that has plagued the construction industry for years is the technology gap between building engineers who work on construction sites and the architects who design the plans used to put up a building.
Theometrics is working to bridge that gap through automation. It has created a digital layout and robotic system for taking architectural measurements and plans and applying them accurately to a construction site.
The New York company says it is pioneering the field of "architectural navigation." Its system uses tablets equipped with CAD and lasers to map out a construction site in much the same way GPS does.
A Theometrics graphic shows how its architectural navigation system works. The New York company -- founded by Sam Stathis, a longtime electrical engineer -- aims to help the construction industry by automating processes through lasers, robotics, and CAD. (Source: Theometrics)
Sam Stathis, the founder and CEO of Theometrics, is an electrical engineer and contractor with 32 years of experience. He has witnessed firsthand the need to automate the construction industry to eliminate mistakes caused by faulty measurements.
"With conventional methods, it's nearly impossible to get the type of accuracy we can with laser equipment," Stathis told us. "The bigger problem also is I would have to rely on my predecessor's work. If there was a mistake made, you never knew who made the mistake, and oftentimes, even if I was accurate, I would be using an inaccurate benchmark."
The inherent problem that creates errors and costs the construction industry billions of dollars every year is that, even though architects and designers use CAD and computer systems to design buildings and take their measurements, those on site during the construction process use an archaic method of string and tape measures to measure points located on architect drawings.
Vincent Frasca, vice president at Theometrics, told us that, to automate this process, his company has repurposed technology from a surveying instrument called a total station to measure distance with a laser.
The technology, which the company calls a master station, can use CAD via a tablet to point to sites in a construction environment with a laser, take measurements, and draw line work in CAD. "You select a coordinate in CAD -- an end point, midpoint, point on a curve, it doesn't matter," Frasca said. "The instrument will turn and point a visible laser right to that spot and transposes the accuracy of CAD to real life with no paper step or tape measure."
Thanks for all the comments, everyone. I think there is definitely a unique value proposition in this technology. Lots of times a new company says it's doing something completely different and filling a real gap in the market, but I think in this case (especially from what I'm hearing) that it may actually be true.
When they send in the mapping robots to scan the underground structure in the movie "Prometheus," you can see that mapping bots are going to be the norm. Ease and accuracy is key. Though, in the movie the bots used some sort of laser scanner system that recreates the whole surface while flying through tunnels at high-speeds. Today's bots are not at that level. When they are... architecture, exploration, and the military will be revolutionized.
Very simplified versions of an instrumented (azimuth and elevation)laser sight have been in use for many years in the remodel industry for residential buildings. Manually operated and tripod mounted these devices can map out that not-quite-square countertop so the fabricatior can make a perfect replacement. The concept isn't brand new, but the automation of it is.
There is no doubt in my mind that better methods are desperately needed when workers make necessary layouts relative to CAD plans for building construction. We have examples in our city relative to huge mistakes during construction with thousands of dollars lost in penalties due to corrections needed. In our town, unions are very strong and the thought a robotic system may take the job of a union member would be a real issue. I do hope this augments the process and creates value added relative to the construction industry. Time will tell.
My company has been doing work in inside and outside construction with our robots. We had multiple inquires at the RoboBusiness conference this year on small bots for doing floor lines for the interior walls.
Perhaps the application of robotics and lasers can provide an improvement in the accuracy of construction, and it would be valuable if it would actually deliver. My observation is that the errors are mostly made far downstream from the project management and supervision. The problems seem to happen at the actual point of application of materials, either through inadequate following of the measurements or through ignoring the measurements completely.
BUT being able to produce very accurate measurements will offer the chance to reduce the problem, so it is a potential source of benefit.
Depend on how cumbersome it is to use the bots, I see this as a great new tool. I don't see it having much of an impact on the drafting community. For many, it will solve problems. Perhaps it will not be a detriment to the industry either. It may just end up being a new and useful tool. Like moving from the simple transits of the past to the GPS connected ones today. Higher skill gets more money. Perhaps that will be the case here too.
Elizabeth, this is a very useful tool for the construction industry. Designers can check their design for strength and accuracy, but many problems in buildings are caused by construction errors. Some of these errors are in measurement, and this system is a great complement. Of course, there are errors that are more related to process that are not addressed. Therefore, while some contingency money will be saved, perhaps, it is not going to be possible to eliminate it using this system. Frankly, in the construction industry, hours lost are hours lost. I don't think that they will be applied to something else. That is not really a problem for society in general, but it could be for construction workers.
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