FEATURE
From Bid to Build: The Paving Industry’ s“ Tech-Up”
By Kevin Garcia
Much like the unified layers that create a long-lasting concrete or asphalt foundation, the means and methods for forming these surfaces are now possible through one cohesive data-driven endeavor. From the office tools that support concept, bidding, financial management and scheduling to the field-based tools that drive execution and maintenance of a project, implementing digital workflows has been proven to enhance project delivery, jobsite safety and material efficiency for paving contractors and project owners. More recently, the integration of technologies such as artificial intelligence( AI), reality capture and mobile mapping are further enhancing today’ s industry best practices across the construction lifecycle of roads, airports, parking lots and other concrete or asphalt surfaces. Here’ s a look inside the paving industry’ s tech-enabled lifecycle transformation.
Operational Incentives
There’ s a growing recognition that the tools driving more streamlined operations across the lifecycle of a project are critical to remain competitive in the paving space, with contractors investing in solutions that begin in the earliest days of bidding a proposed project. With the goal of eliminating paper processes, these solutions allow a seamless data flow between various activities, including estimating, scheduling, field tracking and accounting systems. When a new project comes in, progressive contractors use estimating and project management software to transform engineering plans into a comprehensive project blueprint, performing digital takeoffs, calculating the precise resource requirement, project duration and required materials- whether road base, soils, sand, asphalt or concrete. Estimating data is seamlessly transitioned to resource scheduling and performance tracking
applications to sync on-site operations and timelines with what was envisioned in the bid. Solutions such as electronic field logs and drone surveying are also increasingly valuable to track project progress in real-time, reduce manual data entry, minimize errors and help stakeholders make informed decisions. As an example, paving contractor Bituminous Roadways demonstrated the value of this digital workflow on a recent 282,000-square-foot FedEx warehouse project. In this case, data used for precise bidding was augmented with drone-captured data for field tracking and accounting. According to the firm, what once took weeks of manual paperwork now happens in real-time, with digital tools providing instant insights into project performance. Nate Larson, construction technologist with Bituminous Roadways, said,“ Our dispatchers, foremen and superintendents rely on the real-time updates and digital visualization of the scheduling software to coordinate crews, equipment, materials and up to 200 trucks daily during peak season. The daily visibility into project progress via the performance tracking software is especially important on long-term projects where scope creep can be a concern.”
A Surface of Symmetry
In parallel to estimating and operations workflows, paving contractors are also continuing to advance their integrated fieldbased digital workflows, particularly those that include automated machine control and survey solutions. In the world of concrete, surface smoothness is everything, with the International Roughness Index( IRI) roadway roughness statistic guiding most specifications. Of note, some total station-based paving systems are accurate to +/- 3 mm horizontally and +/-1 mm vertically. The nearly $ 2 billion airport expansion of the Jorge Chávez International
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