Tools, Equipment, and Robotics Research Launches with New Specialty Areas

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BuiltWorlds’ Tools, Equipment and Robotics track kicks off next week. This year’s research will feature two additional technology specialty areas: Equipment Safety and Equipment Fuel Alternatives. Here's a preview of the two topics and what to expect from our research coverage:

Equipment Safety

These solutions include proactive safety alerts to employees such as obstacle detection and automatic crash avoidance, reporting and data analytics capabilities, and operator and equipment protection solutions. Examples of companies with solutions in this category include:

  • SafeAI provides an autonomous vehicle retrofit kit for any vehicle type or manufacturer. The kit is built on a safety-certifiable framework and has the potential to increase productivity, safety, and cost savings.
  • Volvo offers an intuitive platform called Load Assist that hosts a variety of applications that help operators improve their performance while increasing productivity, safety, and accuracy. The solution is currently available for buckets with a known weight calibration.

Check out our analyst call on February 28, 2024: Modern Approaches to Improving Construction Fleet Safety.

Equipment Fuel Alternatives

Our research in this area will cover alternative fuel types and electric options for powering large equipment such as excavators, bulldozers, cranes, backhoes, and haulers. Equipment alternative fuel options include sustainable biodiesel, synthetic gas-to-liquid fuel, and low-carbon alternatives such as hydrotreated vegetable oil (HVO) and natural gas, as well as electric machinery. Well-known equipment fleet manufacturers developing electric vehicles include:

  • Caterpillar announced a successful demonstration of its first battery electric large mining truck in late 2022, a large milestone in helping clients meet sustainability commitments. 
  • Volvo Construction Equipment currently offers several electric machine options for construction fleets. Users can stay ahead of charging requirements with Volvo’s web application, Electric Machines Management Application, which provides real-time insights into electric machine fleets.

For more, check out our analyst call on July 17, 2024: Equipment Fuel Alternatives: Practical Options To Consider In The Short-Term.