Ground-penetrating Radar a Productivity Enhancer

Brief 

Having ground-penetrating radar on hand can enhance job site productivity by helping to deal with the unexpected and ensure no underground conflicts. New units have been simplified allowing workers to “use it for clearing an area, double checking to see if possibly a sleeve has been forgotten — or to make sure concrete drillers are not going to hit anything,” all with little training required, writes Brett Caldwell, an application specialist for GSSI.

Insight

As the saying goes, “Time is money,” and general contractors, superintendents and project managers know that the cliché means focusing on keeping workflow going as smoothly as possible.

Like a conductor of a symphony, GCs make sure each trade “chimes in” when needed – not before and not after. Especially in the construction world, the GC’s role is to keep the “instruments” (mechanical, electrical, and plumbing contractors, concrete, framers, fire and sprinkler, drywallers, and steel contractors) working together in harmony.

Giving construction crews ground penetrating radar (GPR) systems helps enhance the safety and efficiency of the jobsite.

Many Factors Can Reduce Construction Efficiency

Construction efficiency can be affected by a variety of factors. There can be breakdowns in timing due to shipment delays. Did a plumbing sleeve get knocked out of place during the pour?

Did steel pieces needed to weld framing together get covered by concrete? Is there a change order that requires a conduit or pipe run to be moved 10 inches – on all 30 floors? While these issues are being sorted out, there is often a domino effect with multiple contractors; even one or two minor issues can result in a cascading delay for the tradespeople on site.

Data Sharing on the Construction Site

While construction cultures do tend to vary by region, it is not uncommon to see superintendents, assistants, project managers, and engineers walking around with ToughPad tablets connected wirelessly, giving them real time access to individual plans, schedules, and drawings.

Imagine standing on the 30th floor of a high rise and being able to pull as-builts on a screen rather than having to walk all the way to a construction office that may or may not even be within the building.