The construction industry has come a long way. We are now in a time where we no longer use material that do not last a long time, or the construction of a single building or piece of infrastructure lasts years! The creation and development of engineering products that have helped accelerate the speed at which construction is now carried out at, is one of the main reasons buildings can now be built within a year. Let’s go through some of the main engineering products for the construction industry that are on the market today.

Robotic Welding

Robotic welding was invented in 1962 and started to gain traction in the 80s. The benefits of such a technology soon became apparent and the applications soon branched out into other industries. 3D laser vision was recently added to robotic welding and has since improved and made the technology much more efficient.

Robots, unlike humans, can repeatedly produce quality, precise welds. The consistency of the work is what makes this technology so much more efficient than if a human worker was doing the same job. These robots can also carry out complicated welds simultaneously, this improves productivity along with the fact the robots work does not diminish as they do not get tired.

As well as the many benefits for productivity and quality of work, the robots also increase safety on a job site. The keep humans safe by keeping them away from the welding process, and away from any accidents that may occur when humans are carrying out the welding tasks. Welding also emits toxic fumes which are harmful to humans, robotic welding gets rid of all of these potential hazards.

Beams

For all construction, but especially commercial construction, it is critical to use the right materials the will ensure that the structure will last a long time and have satisfactory stability. Lifting beams and spreader beams are both forms of below-the-hook lifting apparatus. Lifting slings are kept at particular angles to not damage rigging hardware, the load, and stop the slings from sliding off while lifting.

Spreader beams are used for lifting loads that put compressive stress on the beam. Experts recommend to spreader beams for this application because of how light they are, as this makes them easier to transport and handle.

Lifting beams are used for lifting loads that put a bending stress on the beam. Lifting beams are heavier, but this is because they are stronger and perform well where overhead room is an issue.

Fabrication

Fabrication is where steelwork components are created to form a full frame when assembled together. This workflow creates a finished product from semi-raw or raw materials, rather than a product that has been made from ready-made materials. There are multiple different manufacturing processes, the process used depends on the particular end product that is desired and the materials to be used.

There are many different aspects that affect the design that creates economic fabrication. This is most often related to the particular project and the challenges it poses. Precise information and measurements are crucial for the correct design to be created. If steelwork is ready-made, all sizes have to be shown and connection types should also be available or shown. Most fabricated items are made from readily available materials and their respective alloys. Common choices include: copper, gold, brass, nickel, aluminum, iron, magnesium, tin, titanium, and other grades of steel.

A commonly used form of fabrication is casting. This is a process where molten metal is carefully poured into a mold, which is the shape of the desired product. The metal cools and hardens into the shape and the product is made. The mold can be used over and over again, so this method is great for producing a lot of parts quickly. There are many different forms of casting, such as die-casting: which is where the molten metal is poured into a mold and it is subjected to a certain amount of pressure to keep it in place until it is fully cooled.

Transport Frames and Lifting Platforms

Transporting, lifting, and handling materials efficiently and effectively is crucial to make and moves as smooth as possible, to prevent damage to the materials, and improve safety measures around the moving of such materials. Lifting platforms and transport frames are crucial to improving the speed, safety, and efficiency of handling cargo.

In addition to any of these products, there are a plethora of engineering tools that can be used to also speed up the process.

So, what do you think about these engineering products for the construction industry? Do you have any experience using any of these? Engineering Solutions would love to hear your experiences and thoughts in the comments below. Thanks for reading!