Experiencing the Worksite of Tomorrow Today

Recently I headed to Chicago for the unveiling of the Oracle Construction and Engineering Innovation Lab. As co-founder and CEO of a construction technology company, it’s been incredible to witness the industry’s transformation over the last 18 months.

The Innovation Lab, based in Deerfield, IL represents the culmination of this shift. The Lab is an important step towards merging the experimental with the practical, enabling contractors and industry partners to truly experience the power of the connected jobsite for the first time. 

E&C: One of the Least Digitized Industries

Construction is one of the least digitized U.S. industries. Despite increasingly sophisticated buildings, tasks onsite are completed in largely the same manner as 50 years ago.

It’s remarkable to contrast today’s hi-tech buildings with decidedly low-tech processes, including paper timesheets, manual headcounts, and other point solutions. The industry’s sluggish adoption of technology is due to several factors, including the lack of scalable, construction-specific solutions.

Construction is a fast-moving, results-oriented industry. Solutions need to perform well on often unpredictable jobsites.

The Value of Scalable Solutions

Fortunately, over the last twelve months, construction has shed its low-tech image. Growing backlogs, a labor shortage, and record outside investment has resulted in the rise of construction-specific solutions to connect the jobsite, enable remote visibility, and provide data-driven insights that help the industry build safer and more efficiently.

During this time, the industry conversation has shifted towards fusing technologies with key strategies to maximize investment and scale solutions across their organization. The last piece— scale —is of the utmost importance.

As technology matures and more solutions hit the market, systems must be able to communicate and work with each other. Systems can be fully utilized in the long term by adding value across departments and functions.

The Oracle and Triax Partnership

This is where partnerships come in. Triax believes in the power of innovative, intelligent technology and real-time data to streamline processes, improve safety, and boost productivity.

Our Spot-r system automatically collects and transmits location, utilization, and safety data (such as worker falls or push-button alerts) via a proprietary, scalable network, compact hardware, and a cloud-based dashboard, which is accessible from any smart device.

Our network allows us to collect information from a variety of sources in real-time. This real-time data is the key to unlocking knowledge and insights. (Think: data, insights, action.)

By partnering with industry leaders like Oracle, we’re able to extend the reach and value of our solution, bringing actionable insights and project intelligence to more contractors and in the most relevant way.

Combining Oracle Prime Projects with Spot-r Data

In April, we announced our integration. Users can sign into Spot-r using Oracle Prime Projects credentials (single sign-on), create a Spot-r site from an Oracle Prime project, and push Spot-r hours into Oracle Prime Projects – the first step towards a unified construction platform that combines Spot-r data with Oracle Prime Projects.

The Innovation Lab is a watershed moment for our partnership and the industry. Construction is a physical, hands-on world. The Lab brings to life the connected worksite of tomorrow, empowering visitors to experience the potential of wearable and sensor technology, drones, autonomous vehicles, and visualization technology for themselves.

Encouraging Collaboration and Integration

As a partner of Oracle, we are thrilled to participate in this effort to demonstrate how the worksite of tomorrow is available today. When the unfamiliar, the digital, or the experimental is grounded in the physical world, we can drive adoption of technology.

We can also encourage collaboration and integration, and help build a stronger, smarter, and more connected future for the industry.

Explore innovation in action at the Oracle Construction and Engineering Innovation Lab, a simulated worksite with integrated technologies.

Chad Hollingsworth is the co-founder and CEO of Triax Technologies. You can connect with him on LinkedIn and stay tuned for more partner blog posts.