Construction Automation: all or nothing. Lessons from the curb machine.

Have you ever seen a curb machine at work, the mixer truck feeding in concrete at one end, perfectly formed curb walls and drain channels coming out the other end, the concrete flowing like butter but magically standing up as if already fully set? And a handful of guys nonchalantly strolling behind the machine while it does its thing?

It's not as easy as it looks.

When our company switched from hand-formed curb walls, I became the curb machine operator.

We eventually did figure it out, but it was a journey.

The first mystery was getting the concrete mix to flow properly. If the concrete was too soft, as soon as it exited the machine it would droop sadly. But if we made the concrete just a bit stiffer, the machine would get constipated. The first sign would be small voids in the concrete. The guys knew what was coming next (complete breaks in the concrete) and they would shout out “Tu'n up the vibration, boss!” “More vibration!” Oh yes, I remember it well.

But here the laws of physics created a dilemma: increasing vibration increased flow but also caused all the cream to rise to the top, and all the heavy aggregate to sink to the bottom. Soon the machine would be well and truly bunged up and the pour abandoned while we gave the machine a power-wash enema.

Eventually we resigned ourselves to the unthinkable: reading the manual.

Here's a verbatim quote (including the ALL CAPS) from page 3:

“The MBW Paver is capable of slipforming a great variety of applications. It will look easy. It will be easy IF YOU KNOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING AND PERFORM ACCORDINGLY. When you purchased your MBW Paver, you also bought into, COMMITTED TO, a complete Slipforming Process. Your MBW Paver will produce the desired results ONLY if you UNDERSTAND and PROPERLY EXECUTE the prescribed procedures.”

Ok, so I'm not the only idiot out there. Phew!

“And we advise you now that lack of knowledge and follow through on the Paver will result in disappointment, poor quality curb, wasted money, and frustration.”

Ah mi fi tell yu!

Even after reading the manual we still had troubles. But at least now we knew why we were failing. Eventually, we got it right. We got to the stage where we could pour curbs on an 80-house subdivision in two days. Honestly, it was fun. And we would not consider going back to hand forming.

But we learned that it wasn't just about buying a machine. It wasn't even just about getting the concrete mix right. Every variable had to be controlled; every team member had to be trained.

Lest you get the wrong impression, the crucial role in the curb machine operation was not my role as operator. It was my boss, who acted as team coordinator. While my attention was fixed on the machine, he monitored everything: the slump of the mix as it came out of the truck, the concrete mixer truck driver, the newly-formed curb as it came out of the machine, the masons doing touch ups, the height and straightness of the cordline, potential obstacles in the road ahead of us…you get the idea.

Success depended on everyone “taking talk” from him.

It only took one person going rogue (like adding too much water to the concrete) to cause problems.

The same thing applies when using software to automate an entire project, only more so. Everybody must recognize the authority of the system; everybody must comply. Otherwise, things go sideways and then people lose confidence in the system and things fall back to “every man for himself.”

For automation to work, four things are required:

1. The Software must be Authoritative: i.e., capture the actual workflows in fine detail. If people need workarounds to get their job done, the system loses credibility fast.
2. Data entry must be Intrinsic to performing the task, not an admin chore at the end of the day.
3. Users must be Trained on how to use the system, and on how their use of the system impacts others.
4. Compliance must be Enforced across the entire company.

When choosing automation software for your construction project, be sure you are convinced the software provider has convincing answers for the first three of these requirements.

Then ask yourself if you're committed to the last requirement—enforcement.

If you're satisfied you have all four covered, go for it! Yes, construction can actually be fun.