ONE-KEY™Resources

In recent years, software providers have jumped into action to solve construction’s big data problem, while hardware providers have disrupted old, inefficient installation procedures  with innovative technology. 

What would happen if we put architects in charge instead of politicians? This is the question that the Brazilian city of Curitiba asked itself in the 1960s and 70s. The answer would radically reshape the city and catapult Curitiba into the limelight as the “ecological capital of the world.” Branded as one of the world’s first and most influential green cities, Curitiba became a model of sustainability in a time when that word was just beginning to enter people’s vocabulary. The echo of its contributions to public transit, urban planning, and environmental restoration can be heard in cities all over the world to this day. The rise and decline of Curitiba is a paradoxical tale of concentric rings and radiating lines, accordion buses and verdant parkways, powerful visionaries and harsh realities. Like all cities that survive into the future, it is a story of growth. What makes Curitiba’s story unique is what it decided to do about that growth.

Power tools are bridges between the worker and the work, the points from which force is generated and applied toward the completion of a task. If power tools are not designed with thought and care, that force can reverberate backward instead of outward, causing damage to the user. There’s a word for the kind of thought and care we’re talking about, a word that guides the design of the industry’s safest and easiest to use power tools. That word is ergonomics. In this article, we will explain what ergonomics is, why it’s important in power tools, and how Milwaukee Tool approaches ergonomics in the design of our power tools. Then we will explore some of the features that go into the design of an ergonomic power tool and discuss how ergonomically designed power tools can reduce the risk of musculoskeletal disorders. Finally, we will showcase two examples of Milwaukee’s most ergonomically designed power tools.

Editorial Note: This article was brought to you courtesy of Rose Morrison, managing editor of Renovated.com.    The construction industry has a significant impact on the environment. Building homes and manufacturing materials releases carbon emissions and uses tons of resources. In fact, it generates 50% of annual carbon dioxide pollution. That's why it's essential to consider making the industry more sustainable.  Architects can play a significant role by advocating for more sustainable practices. Here are 12 ways to get started. 

Editorial Note: This article was brought to you courtesy of Tom Stemm, the CEO/Founder of Ryvit. Contractors and subcontractors have to work closely and collaborate effectively to ensure that construction projects are completed on time and within budget. These relationships can form the foundation for long-term collaboration—or they can sour to make existing projects even more complex and challenging. Here are some tips on how contractors can manage their relationship with subcontractors effectively.

As we’ve previously written, construction continuously ranks as the #1 most dangerous occupation according to BLS data. Contributing to these factors is power tool usage, a common cause of accidental injury, which accounted for 4,057 cases from 2005-2015 as observed in two emergency departments in Queensland, Australia. Chief among the causes of injury while using power tools is power tool kickback. For example, an epidemiologic study of 594 participants ranked power tool kickback as the second most common cause of injury, accounting for 8.2% of injuries by end users of electric saws; injuries observed were caused by chain saws, electric saws, and hand grinders (ranging from simple lacerations to tendon injuries, fractures, and even amputations in extreme cases). In this article, we’ll put power tool kickback into context—explaining what it is, what causes it, what precautionary safety steps you can take to prevent it from happening on the job, as well as share out on some cutting-edge power tool technologies that exit today and how they can help you perform installations safer.

With the rise of machine learning and big data, contractors can now, more than ever, leverage data and technology to be more productive, safer, and draw insights to make smarter decisions. Consider the words of Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella at the recent Microsoft Inspire event, when he urges companies to move beyond talking about “digital transformation” to delivering on the “digital imperative for every organization.” “Digital technology,” he remarks, “is a deflationary force in an inflationary economy. It’s the only way to navigate the headwinds we are confronting today.” We in construction face many of the unprecedented challenges Nadella hints at and can feel them ripple through our industry: the lingering effects of a global pandemic; labor shortages, particularly among skilled trades; growing supply chain impediments for key construction materials like lumber and wood, concrete, and metal; etc. To navigate these headwinds, Nadella believes organizations across all industries must “infuse digital technology into every business process and function so that they can do more with less.” Tech-focused organizations, he believes, will have the competitive advantage to “thrive [while those that don’t] get left behind.” One such technology concept we hear a lot in our industry, so much that it’s almost become a buzzword, is the digital twin, a piece of technology that’s expected to grow by 38% by 2026 and representing a $17.8 billion market, according to a Deloitte study. But what is a digital twin, exactly, and what’s it all about? We’ll discuss that in this article, how the digital twin model can be used to make the largest of construction enterprises lean and agile.

Lean construction is one of those evocative phrases that you hear getting thrown around a lot in industry circles. And yet, like the best of buzzwords, it’s unclear to what extent anyone actually knows what the heck it really means. Don’t worry, though, we’ve got you covered. In this article, we will explain what lean construction is and explore some of the history that led to its creation. Then we’ll sketch out some of the benefits of lean construction, dive into its core principles, and provide a few resources for those who want to learn more. Finally, we will cast a critical eye on what has become one of the most popular business strategies in the construction world.

We in the manufacturing and building/construction industries know the value of lean principles, which have enabled companies, and the factories that support these companies’ production needs, to improve product quality assurance while increasing the quantity of products they can produce. For example, the Maytag Corporation’s Jackson, Tennessee dishwasher plant was able to cut work-in-process by 60%, reduced space needs by 43,000 square feet, and improved quality by 55%, while increasing capacity by 50% (the latter which resulted in their ability to switch their production mix and respond to department store demand for various models).  We’ve previously written about how lean construction, particularly about the intersection of lean construction and agile software methodologies, which have a lot of overlap from an ideological standpoint.   A closely related topic is SCRUM. Software companies and app developers alike use Scrum, a project management framework not wholly dissimilar to how some of the largest product manufacturers (e.g., from aeronautic to automobile manufacturers to manufacturers of household appliances) use lean principles as their north star, resulting in waste reduction, streamlined production timeliness, and improved outcomes.  As your company grows, you might look to hire software engineers to help assist building and managing your website and digital properties (e.g., building a company app to improve your customers’ experience, integrations between various software providers you rely on, etc.).   Knowing the different kinds of project management frameworks (in this case, SCRUM) can help owners and contractors alike understand the processes used by their multifaceted teams. What’s more, it can help them better understand and empathize with their employees and inspire the whole company to employ similar lean processes and project management frameworks that increase productivity and improve outcomes.

Heat is a killer that claims more than 5 million lives every year. We know that human-caused climate change is making it worse. The Earth has warmed about 1.1 degrees Celsius since the dawn of the Industrial Revolution, and we’re on track to breeze past 1.5. Wildfire seasons have become longer and more destructive. The Western United States is currently in the middle of the worst drought it has experienced in 1,200 years. Global warming has grown so intense in some areas that cities all around the world–from Athens to Los Angeles–are beginning to name heat waves like we name hurricanes. It has been so hot this year that streets have buckled, car windows have shattered, and thousands of cattle have fallen dead where they stood, baking under the sun in triple digit temperatures. And that was all before summer even began. Now for the good news: There are a lot of things we can do right now to approach our buildings and our cities with sustainable construction methods in mind. When it comes to beating the heat, one of the most effective tools we have is green roofs. Simply by seeding the tops of our buildings with plant life, we can make our cities cooler, healthier, and more sustainable places to live. In this article, we will explain what green roofs are, where they come from, and lay out some of the biggest advantages they offer in the fight against climate change. Then we’ll take a quick dive into the weeds by describing how green roofs work. Finally, we’ll showcase a few helpful resources for anyone interested in learning more about green roofs or perhaps building one of their own.

It’s easy to lose track of the human element when thinking about technology. Nowhere is this truer than along the increasingly fuzzy border between the tool and its user, the machine and the person at its controls. This isn’t idle contemplation. Boundary blurring, wearable, cybernetic technologies like power suits and augmented reality goggles are no longer the stuff of science-fiction. They’re here right now, radically reshaping how we perceive and execute the work in front of us. If they remain on their current trajectories, bio-mechanical exoskeletons and smart glasses might very well someday be as commonplace on construction sites as hard-hats and reflective vests. All too often, the praises of a new technology are sung most loudly for the boost to productivity it provides, how much money it will save, or the heights of efficiency it might enable a business to achieve. Granted, these are all valid and worthwhile reasons to get excited about a new gadget or tool, but they pale in comparison to what should be the number one priority on any construction site: the safety, health, and wellbeing of human workers. In today’s article, we’ve decided to focus exclusively on how two ground-breaking wearable technologies–exoskeletons and smart glasses–can improve the lives of the highly skilled men and women who work in construction. We will begin by explaining what exoskeletons and smart glasses are. Next, we will offer some real-world examples of each. Finally, we will expand upon the safety and health benefits that these wearable technologies can provide to construction workers. (We’ve also included a section of construction wearable technology examples to give broader context into wearable tech and construction, what it is and which technologies and innovations it generally encompasses.)

Tool theft is a growing problem. A 2016 report conducted by the National Equipment Register in conjunction with the National Insurance Crime Bureau found that construction companies face losses between $300 million and $1 billion annually due to equipment theft. The same report also suggests that, beside the expense of losses of materials and equipment, tool theft can often lead to construction project downtime (time spent filing police reports and insurance), resulting in costly project overruns as onsite productivity and project progress screech to a halt. The England the Construction Index, citing police data, revealed £17.5 million worth of tools were stolen in London in 2020, representing a value of £57,000 stolen each day. What’s worse, only about 1% of stolen power tools were recovered, they note. A tool had been stolen from a tradesperson every 17 minutes in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland since March 2021, according to analysis of police data from Direct Line business insurance. Direct Line reports that £83 million worth of tools have been stolen across England and Wales between 2017 and 2019, while £245,893 worth of tools have been reported as stolen from vehicles every day across the UK since the easing of lockdown in April 2021, according to a more recent report. What’s more, the same study found that 4 in 10 (38%) had fallen victim to tool theft in the past, a growing threat with 56% reporting they leave equipment in their vehicles overnight, and 59% not carrying specific insurance to cover the event of tool theft. Preventing stolen tools is thus ever important to keeping budgets in check and projects moving along as expected. But what do you do when tools are stolen? In this article, we discuss power tool theft protection, how to protect your tools and stop tool theft, as well as what to do when tools are stolen and how to track stolen tools.