Innovation

Drones to propel new innovations in the construction industry The construction industry is changing rapidly and to cater to the booming demand and increased expectations, the role of technology would increase at every level of construction. It is expected that in the next 10 years, the use of drones in construction will register a manifold growth and for futuristic buildings, drones will play a leading role. Drones would lower the costs of projects, increase productivity and enhance data sets through improvements in photographic visualization. Improvement in surveying accuracy would be another benefit of using drones in construction which would help...

Autodesk snaps up S.F. construction planning software company in $875 million deal Autodesk is snapping up San Francisco-based construction software company PlanGrid in a $875 million cash deal. The move is intended to bolster Autodesk's cloud-based construction platform. San Rafael-based Autodesk, which makes software used in architecture and manufacturing, will be integrating PlanGrid’s software with its Autodesk Revit software and Autodesk BIM 360 construction management platform. PlanGrid’s software is designed to offer real-time collaboration between various parties, such as general contractors, sub-contractors and building owners. Many contractors still use paper blueprints. “There’s a massive labor shortage, there’s more work and...

Construction of government buildings such as schools and hospitals could be sped up by ‘prefabbing’ them in factories Setting out £600billion worth on infrastructure spending over the next decade, Treasury minister Robert Jenrick said “new methods of construction” needed to be “embraced”. Exchequer Secretary Robert Jenrick has said the government will 'embrace new methods of construction' over the next decade Gov.org 2 Exchequer Secretary Robert Jenrick has said the government will 'embrace new methods of construction' over the next decade Get the best Sun stories with our daily Sun10 newsletter Your information will be used in accordance with our privacy...

Researchers simplify tiny structures' construction drip by drip Princeton University, Engineering School IMAGE: Shown are three lab samples in descending size. The rings were cured in a centrifuge using acceleration to control the length scale of the droplet structures, which can be used. Credit: Pierre-Thomas Brun Popping the top on house paint usually draws people to look inside the can. But Princeton researchers have turned their gaze upward, to the underside of the lid, where it turns out that pattern of droplets could inspire new ways to make microscopically small structures. The trick comes in controlling the droplets, which form under...

Construction starts on 220-megawatt solar park in Mexico Magdalena II is slated to commence operations in the second half of 2019. The solar power facility will produce around 600 gigawatt hours of energy per year. Anmar Frangoul Published 6:31 AM ET Thu, 8 Nov 2018 CNBC.com The solar park is set to commence operations in the second half of 2019. The solar park is set to commence operations in the second half of 2019. The Enel Group has commenced construction of a 220 megawatt solar photovoltaic park in Mexico via its subsidiary, Enel Green Power Mexico. The Magdalena II facility...