Electronic Support in Installation of Special Foundation Products - Ensuring Safe Production and Increasing Quality Control-Paper

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The paper describes how electronic support systems can improve the safety, consistency, quality, and cost-effectiveness of special foundation work, particularly piling. Machine systems such as B-Tronic use sensors to monitor equipment and production, display operating information to the operator, and transmit data for remote monitoring, troubleshooting, and reporting.<br /><br />Automated assistance systems support routine tasks and reduce operator workload and errors. The Drilling Assistant regulates drilling speed and crowd force, helping prevent over-flighting—which can loosen soil and increase concrete use—and the corkscrew effect, which can trap or damage equipment. The Concreting Assistant monitors concrete flow and pressure and adjusts extraction speed to help maintain pile quality, avoid blockages, and reduce concrete waste. Satellite-based positioning also guides rigs to pile locations and records completed pile coordinates.<br /><br />The paper highlights iCFA, a system that measures concrete pressure and pile inclination at the bottom of the drill string. Inductive data transmission through the drill-string joints allows measurements to reach the operator in real time. This provides more accurate pressure control, can reduce unnecessary concrete consumption, and enables earlier correction of alignment problems. Projects cited demonstrate its value for controlling pressure near water wells and maintaining verticality in secant pile walls.<br /><br />Production and machine data can be viewed remotely and used to create reports, compare planned and actual progress, identify downtime, and support maintenance and project planning. Together, these technologies extend jobsite monitoring beyond physical dimensions to include time and cost. Although they require investment and operator training, the paper argues that improved quality, reduced material use and equipment wear, and better project control can offset the costs.

Keywords

electronic support systems

piling

machine monitoring

automated assistance

drilling assistant

concreting assistant

iCFA

concrete pressure control

satellite positioning

remote monitoring