Skanska UK is to trial on site DAQRI Smart Helmets – professional industrial grade wearable technology that provides users with instant and relevant information, overlaid on their line of sight.
Skanska is the first UK contractor to become part of DAQRI’s early adopter programme, building on the relationship that has grown between Skanska and DAQRI over recent years.
The DAQRI Smart Helmet is wearable Augmented Reality (AR) technology, meaning it provides additional and intelligent information about the world around you, directly in your field of view.
It is highly configurable and can utilise many different types of project data, expanding the possibilities for project teams and clients alike. It has the potential to help save time, cost and carbon.
Thomas Faulkner, Executive Vice President, Skanska UK, said:
“This trial demonstrates our commitment to exploring on site new digital technology, collaborating with technical partners to give us the potential to transform the way we work.
“If, as an industry, we are to deliver on the targets set in the Construction 2025 strategy, we need to be innovative in our thinking. It will help us to be more efficient, delivering projects more quickly while reducing costs and carbon.
“It’s very exciting to be working with DAQRI during the course of this year to see how we can benefit from their diverse perspective, to challenge the industry’s traditional working practices.”
The trial comes on the back of Skanska’s recent membership of the Manufacturing Technology Centre (MTC) – one of the UK’s High Value Manufacturing ‘Catapult’ centres. The (MTC) develops and proves innovative manufacturing processes and technologies in an agile, low risk environment.
Paul Sweeney, Vice President and General Manager of DAQRI International said:
“Our purpose-built DAQRI Smart Helmet changes the way work is done.
“A forward-looking company like Skanska recognises the power of augmented reality and wants to integrate the most cutting-edge technology in the field.”
Benefits of DAQRI Smart Helmet include:
• Remote expert, which enables a member of staff to connect to the helmet remotely and see through the eyes of the user – enabling them to talk, receive guided instruction and agree courses of action
• Thermal vision, helping users to identify potentially dangerous temperatures preventing scolds and burns – while assisting with maintenance or monitoring of plant and machinery
• Guided work instructions, providing augmented work information in real time helping workers to understand processes – reducing errors and time spent on site
• 3D reconstructions of buildings, enabling workers to visualise the world around them as it is and will be as a construction project progress through to completion – overlaying the design at key project milestones
The DAQRI Smart Helmet complements other new wearable technology that is already being trialled by Skanska, including the Microsoft HoloLens.