AEC Business

In this episode of the AEC Business Podcast had the pleasure of interviewing Gary Ng, CEO of viAct. We discuss the use of AI in making construction sites safer. viAct is a ConTech startup from Hong Kong backed by Alibaba Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund, Artesian Ventures, and ParticleX. viAct provides “Scenario-based Vision Intelligence” solutions exclusively for the construction industry all across...

My guest on the AEC Business Podcast is Jeevan Kalanithi, CEO of OpenSpace, the AI-powered construction technology company. We discuss OpenSpace's customer survey that clearly shows how technology adoption has increased on construction sites across the world. We also touch on construction technology investments and how to deploy new tech in construction. OpenSpace provides 360° construction photo...

In this episode of the AEC Business Podcast, Aarni interviews Carson T. Carney, the VP of Technology Integration at Advanced Construction Robotics. They discuss construction robotics and how doing one thing – rebar tying – extremely well, ACR's robots increase project profitability, reduce schedule risk, and keep workers safer. "We've talked to people across the globe that have similar problems, a...

In this last AEC Business Podcast episode of 2021, Paul Wilkinson and Aarni Heiskanen discuss the AEC technology news and phenomena that they found interesting this year. Paul and Aarni started collaborating in 2020. They host AEC TechTV and organized two AEC TECH Webinars with WDBE this year. Both Aarni and Paul blog about AEC technology. Aarni is the host of AEC-Business.com - the blog and podca...

I had a great conversation with Stuart Maggs, the CEO of Scaled Robotics. On the AEC Business Podcast we discussed how AI, machine learning, robotics, and BIM work together to create situational awareness of a construction project. Scaled Robotics is a startup that leverages computer vision, machine learning and AI to provide precise construction quality and progress information. With their cloud-...

I had the pleasure of interviewing Joe Giegerich, founder and CEO of ProjectReady. We discussed why and how the construction sector should start using an integrated data environment on large infrastructure projects. You can listen to the interview on the AEC Business Podcast. The USA, Japan, China, and the EU are among the economies that will see a considerable amount of money poured into their CO...

I had the pleasure of discussing the latest technology in construction management, robotics, with Prasoon Shrivastava, CEO of Zepth. The company has partnered with Boston Dynamics and uses Spot, the robot, for data collection on construction sites. "The construction industry is going through rapid digital transformation, especially post-pandemic, and there are studies that indicate that in the nex...

In this episode of the AEC Business podcast, Brian Toppel talks about Mixed Reality for construction. Brian has over 30 years of experience working in the construction industry. He has worked for several of the largest general contracting companies in the United States. In 2003, Brian started Toppel Consulting, Inc providing services to owners, architects, and general contractors. In early 2019, B...

AEC firms have a huge and constantly growing repository of photos and other digital assets. How to manage them effectively for marketing, sales, and PR is the topic of this podcast interview with Daniel Emmerson, Co-Founder and Joint CEO of OpenAsset. "Our vision is to inspire people through visualization of the built world," says Daniel. "We're all about trying to make marketing teams more effici...

In this episode of WDBE talks, we sat down with Rune Huse Karlstad of Varjo Technologies to talk through the real-world use of VR/AR hardware and the capacity for BIM technologies to integrate and visualise sensor data to help add value for clients. Our discussion covered the increasing role VR headsets play for the sector, obstacles to adoption, and what Covid 19 revealed about the reality of whe...

In this episode of WDBE Talks, we sat down with Danielle Dy Buncio of VIATechnik to discuss the role sensor technology has when it comes to on-site integration and the potential it possesses for helping us quickly understand and act to address future challenges. Our talk covered the power of unified digital technologies, the need for issue resolution in the fast-paced modern built environment, and...

How to manage construction safety risks intelligently with jobsite data? This is the topic of episode 112 of the AEC Business podcast where Aarni chats with Josh Kanner, founder and CEO of Newmetrix. As one of the customers of Newmetrix had noticed, the industry had hit a plateau both in terms of the fatality rate per man-hour worked as well as the total recordable incident rate. That's what inspi...

In this episode of WDBE Talks, we sat down with Dr. Sofie Pelsmakers of Tampere University to discuss the role of sensor technology in the modern built environment and the continuing need for sustainable change within the contemporary built environment. Our conversation covered the need to address the 'performance gap' within the sector, the ethical issues surrounding data capture, and obstacles i...

In this episode of WDBE Talks, we sat down with Brian Ringley of Boston Dynamics to discuss the role robots can play on-site when it comes to scanning and data capture. Our conversation covered the challenges of operating autonomously in construction, the importance of digital twins, and the renewed need for remote site access in a post-covid world.  Brian Ringley is the Construction Technology Ma...

For this episode of WDBE Talks, we sat down with Aviad Almagor of Trimble Ltd. to discuss sensor technology in the modern built environment. Our conversation touched on the on-site implementation of robotics and AI-based solutions, the importance of data capture, and the challenges facing the sector today and in the years ahead.  Aviad Almagor is the Division Vice President of Emerging Technologie...

For this episode of WDBE Talks, we sat down with Microsoft’s Jeff Schumacher to discuss sensor technology in the modern built environment. Our conversation covers the role the tools play in helping us evolve our spaces, understand those living in them, and the renewed importance of privacy.  Jeff Schumacher is the Global Workplace Services Lead at Microsoft, a multinational technology corporation...

I had the pleasure of interviewing another construction podcast host, Todd Weyandt of Applied Software. We discuss innovation and how to do it successfully. This is episode 107 of the AEC Business Podcast. Todd Weyandt is the Director of Creative Marketing at Applied Software and host of the Bridging the Gap Podcast, winner of the 2020 Best Construction Podcast. He is a champion of industry dialog...

This episode of WDBE Talks features Lorri Rowlandson of BGIS. We discuss the role sensor technology and technical innovation play within the modern workplace. Our talk covers the historic reaction to change, understanding value, and the challenges facing the industry in a post-covid world. Lorri Rowlandson is Senior Vice President of Strategy and Innovation at BGIS, a global provider of Facility M...

In episode 105 of the AEC Business Podcast Aarni's guest is Burcin Kaplanoglu, Vice President at Oracle Industries Innovation Lab. In the interview, we discuss Oracle's role in the construction industryOracle Industries Innovation LabHow can we better manage risks in construction innovationHow to make construction projects more predictableThe role and potential of construction tech startupsExcitin...

What can construction companies learn from other industries regarding artificial intelligence? This is the topic of my interview with Daniel Faggella in episode 104 of the AEC Business podcast. Here are our main topics: What are the common misconceptions regarding the use of AIWhy AI implementation is an R&D project, not a purchase of another appExamples of use AI use cases in construction and oth...

I had the pleasure of talking with Ali El Hariri, the co-founder & CEO of BulldozAIR, a French construction project management software startup. In this podcast episode, Ali shares his insights on how to succeed with digitalization in construction. He also talks about the journey of his company. Here are some takeaways from the interview: Construction projects are unique, but all the problems and...

In this WDBE Talks podcast episode, Jaan Saar, Head of Digital Construction for the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications in Estonia, talks about finding and implementing a common language for digitalized construction. To unlock the real benefits of all the cool technologies like AI, VR/AR, XR, IoT, and hyper-automation, we first need to make sense of the underlying data. This is exactly...

In this episode of the AEC Business Podcast, Hugh Seaton of CROSSWALK and Cyril Verley of CDV Systems talk about the new integration that automates BIM workflows. With BIM workflows increasingly dominating the construction sector, professionals need easy and immediate access to libraries and organizing principles. To satisfy this need, CDV Systems and The Construction Specifications Institute (CSI...

In the 100th episode of the AEC Business podcast, Aarni Heiskanen interviews Aviv Leibovici, the CPO and co-founder of Buildots. Buildots is an innovative construction tech start-up established in Israel in August 2018. The company was created with the aim of creating the equivalent of a mission control room for construction sites. Bringing together AI and wearable hardware, Buildots technology cr...

In this episode of the AEC Business Podcast, Aarni's guest is Hugh Seaton who has released an interesting book. It's titled The Construction Technology Handbook: Making Sense of Artificial Intelligence and Beyond. The book is available on Amazon. Listen to the podcast (also available on Apple Podcast, Spotify, and other platforms)