Digital solutions are also gaining acceptance on the construction site: PERI, an international manufacturer of formwork and scaffolding technology, is supplementing its digital offering with an Internet of Things (IoT) solution from Telekom. Formwork is equipped with a tracker. Telekom and SYFIT deliver the digitally recorded data to PERI. In this way, the formwork can be located anywhere and managed digitally.
Digital solution instead of “man-machine” interface
On a construction site, the formwork serves as surrounds for the concrete that will later form the building wall. Coordinating formwork for construction sites is challenging: it is erected according to requirements, filled with flowing concrete, dismantled again after the concrete has hardened and used elsewhere. Until now, PERI recorded and processed this data in a cumbersome way via the “man-machine” interface. In the future, the management of the formwork will be largely fully automated via the IoT solution from SYFIT and Telekom.
Robust digital technology
In accordance with the harsh conditions of a construction site, the tracker is shockproof, waterproof and resistant to chemical substances. Shutterings on the construction or storage sites are found by the digital solution with up to one metre accuracy. SYFIT uses its BLE tracking solution (BLE: Bluetooth Low Energy) for this. The device from the telecom partner retrieves its tracking data via existing WiFi networks on the construction sites, for example. If the formwork is sent over further distances, the Telekom low-cost tracker predicts the delivery time or sends the storage location. In addition to NarrowBand IoT, Telekom’s LTE-M and 2G networks are also used. Depending on the application, the data is stored in the Open Telekom Cloud, Telekom’s Cloud of Things and SYFIT’s AYE-OT-Box. PERI accesses this via a service interface and administers the data on a customer-specific basis.
Find components faster
PERI sells and rents formwork. The tracking system from SYFIT and Telekom considerably simplifies inventory and warehouse management. Due to the better overview of free resources and their locations, deliveries can be coordinated more easily. Even delivery routes are shortened to some extent. Furthermore, the solution also serves to protect against theft.
“Finding components in the construction yards, on the transport routes and also across construction sites is difficult and is like looking for a needle in a haystack. Our goal was to solve this problem. Right from the start, we were convinced by the comprehensive and coherent concept, which we were able to tailor and optimise even better to our products through targeted further development measures,” says Wolfgang Span, responsible for digital solutions in the “Identification & Tracking” area at PERI. “The almost collegial, cross-company cooperation has led us to a result that we can offer our customers without reservations.”
“Digitalisation in companies can often start in small ways, yet it has an enormous impact,” says Dennis Nikles, Managing Director of Deutsche Telekom IoT GmbH. “PERI is the best example of this. By combining two tracking solutions on our NarrowBand-IoT machine and sensor network, PERI sustainably improves its service to its end customers and can thus achieve a significant competitive advantage.”
