Robots in operation at Autodesk’s robotics lab in San Francisco
Skanska UK has been awarded a £709,000 government grant to develop the use of robots for onsite and offsite construction.
The funding has been awarded by Innovate UK and the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) as part of their collaborative R&D programme.
The two and a half year project, Flexible Robotic Assembly Modules for the Built Environment (FRAMBE) will get underway tin October this year. The robotic construction units will be designed to carry out several tasks, including cutting, drilling and fixing on site.
Sam Stacey, Skanska’s head of innovation, told Construction Manager, “The overarching aim is introduce robotics to construction.
“The first stage of this project will be to identify the specific tasks we want to address. We will then pilot the machinery needed for one or more of these opportunities. The final stage of the project will be to pilot the processes that will need to be implemented.
“We are confident that [by the time the project concludes] we will have produced a framework for how to introduce robotics into a project, along with demonstrating how specific techniques can be used for construction,” he concluded.
It is anticipated that the robots will also be deployed in mobile “flying” factories to allow near-site manufacture in controlled conditions.
These temporary factories close to the work site would potentially remove the effects of bad weather and other onsite hazards, speeding up the assembly of the building on site.
The robots will also be deployed in mobile “flying” factories
Stacey alao said: “We are delighted to have been awarded this grant. Robotics in construction is an unknown field and provides great opportunities.
“A robot to drill and fix to the underside of slabs, for example, would eliminate a lot of work at height in dusty, noisy environments.”
Skanska will be heading up the research consortium, which includes ABB Robotics, a division of engineering giant ABB, to create the automated construction units.
Sam Stacey: opportunities
Skanska and ABB are already working together on another industry first, a programme to scale up Loughborough University’s 3D concrete printing technology to a commercially viable scale. That project is currently midway through its 18-month timetable.
The remaining partners in the new robotics research project are BRE, software company Tekla UK, lean consultant Exelin and the University of Reading.
Stacey added: “This approach, of collaboration with experts from a range of industries, is bringing to construction the levels of quality and cost reduction experienced in sectors such as automotive. Our relationship with ABB has been established through the 3D concrete printing project and, in Sweden, with robot solutions for civil works; Exelin is a partner on flying factories.”
In February 2013, Skanska also secured a £750,000 government grant to trial “flying factories”, or near-site workshops. Other partners in that project are the University of Reading, Modcell, and BRE.
