Truck & Off-Highway Engineering - October 2023 - 12

TECHNICAL INNOVATIONS
AUTOMATION
Digital transformation of the construction jobsite
Komatsu offers its Smart
Construction Dashboard
to enable the digital
transformation of
customer's jobsites.
There has been talk in recent years of an
oncoming digital transformation coming
to the construction jobsite. While there
are some components of this transformation
that have yet to be realized, in
many ways the industry's digital transformation
has already begun.
During a CONEXPO 2023 session on
the topic, Jason Anetsberger of
Association of Equipment Manufacturers
(AEM) member company Komatsu spoke
on the technology that is currently available,
as well as where the industry could
be headed. " You see these themes of digitalization,
automation and sustainability
- in my mind those are not just industry
trends, they are a reality today, " said
Anetsberger, the Director of Customer
Solutions for Smart Construction / Quarry
at Komatsu.
A digital transformation in any industry
is defined as the process of adopting
and implementing new digital technologies
to enhance current products
and services, or to create new products
and services. In the construction industry,
the digital technologies that will
enhance the products and services of
the future include automation, digital
modeling and smart equipment. In the
equipment manufacturing industry, it is
essential that OEMs grow their capabilities
and build trust in these new
12 October 2023
technologies with their end-users.
During his session, Anetsberger outlined
the phases of the digital transformation
while mapping out what technology
is already available to consumers.
Digitization allows the industry to integrate
technology and product offerings
to provide customers with data-driven
guidance in real time. This is currently
happening, whether in the cloud or
through interconnected apps. There are a
variety of sources in which digitalization
is present, and it's a concept that has
been at work in the industry for years.
Automation also has been in use for
years. However, tech capabilities continue
to be siloed, according to
Part of Komatsu's suite of Smart Construction
products, services and digital solutions, iMC
2.0 offers enhanced automated-assistance
features on the company's mid- to large-size
construction excavators.
Anetsberger. It's critically important that
recorded data and automated parts can
work together, and that all data is able
to be recorded and utilized. Automation
empowers safer and more optimized
jobsites by leveraging increasingly automated
equipment and processes. For
example, automated vehicles have been
in use for decades in mining.
Sustainability connects customers
with both product-level and jobsite-level
tech to minimize carbon emissions and
improve efficiency. Sustainability has
been thrust into the spotlight in recent
years, and strides can be made with the
help of digitalization and automation.
Ultimately, jobsite efficiency leads to
TRUCK & OFF-HIGHWAY ENGINEERING
BOTH IMAGES: KOMATSU
Truck & Off-Highway Engineering - October 2023

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