Digitisation successfully implemented in medium-sized businesses: Wilhelm Jost GmbH & Co. KG relies on road construction 4.0

Digitization is a hot topic in the construction industry. Existing processes are changed and supported by digital media such as tablet PCs. Traditional professions are changing. Digitisation is not an issue to which only corporations have a claim. On the contrary, digitization provides a new starting point in the area of process management and opens up new opportunities. Small and medium-sized enterprises in particular clearly demonstrate how stable and highly professional process solutions can be implemented through digitisation and how this can be done without having to employ dozens of staff in staff positions. This process technology revolution makes it possible for small and medium-sized enterprises in particular to catch up with the big innovators or even to overtake them.
The construction company Wilhelm Jost GmbH & Co. KG from Hesse. As part of the surface course renewal on the B 275, the company used the process solution for construction process optimization (BPO) for the first time. The complete operational process planning was digitally implemented by the system. The system is specially designed for civil engineering and road construction and enables a significantly faster working method than with Excel lists and manual calculations using a pocket calculator. In this way, the complex installation and logistics processes could already be optimized in planning by weighing up different scenarios against each other. During installation, all process participants, from the site manager and foreman to the mixing plants and the logistics chain, can be networked in real time. Deviations from the plan can be detected at an early stage and countermeasures can be initiated in good time. After the column and management experienced the system in everyday construction work, Wilhelm Jost GmbH & Co. KG by contract for BPO.
Modern, software-supported solutions for process optimization are increasingly establishing themselves in asphalt road construction. Building Information Modellig (BIM) and Industry 4.0 offer construction companies new opportunities to streamline processes and make them more efficient. As promising as these new approaches are, it remains a challenge to implement them in everyday construction work. In order to anchor the new methods precisely in the company, Wilhelm Jost GmbH & Co. KG draws on the expertise of Volz Consulting GmbH from Mühlacker, which is the market leader in this field with over 40 permanent licensees in Germany and also offers comprehensive consulting services and training concepts in addition to the BPO software.
Optimum planning as a compass for the construction site
Planning lays the foundation for a successful project. Potentials that remain unused here are often not recognized or recognized too late in the execution. Optimal planning is therefore essential. BPO offers the possibility of checking and ensuring a wide variety of process scenarios in advance without great effort. Automated calculations and intelligent proposals facilitate work preparation and the creation of planning documents. These then serve as the basis for the construction and are the guidelines for controlling the project. In addition, the documents required by the customer, such as installation and logistics concepts, can be created at the push of a button and without additional effort.
Streamline paving processes and control them efficiently in real time
In order to ensure integrated control of the processes, the mixing plant, the truck logistics and the construction site were networked first. This network created a uniform information basis that provides all participants with an overview of the current material inflow and construction progress.
In particular, BPO was responsible for coordinating the trucks between the construction site and the mixing plants in the right cycle. At the mixing plant Jost Philippstein the delivery note data were recorded by the mixing master. This can be done manually, via QR code scanner or fully automatically via an interface to the weighing software. More than 300 of 400 mixing plants in Germany already have interfaces to BPO. Real-time data transmission ensured that the mix supply was always available on site via a tablet PC and mobile smartphone apps, and the mixing plant was always informed of the current mix demand.

The construction was documented in detail by the integrated diary function. Photos and notes can be easily integrated into the building data model (BIM) and all information is linked to the respective construction phase and delivery note. In this way, even short-term changes to plans could be recorded easily and quickly. Telephone traffic has been considerably reduced, which leads to a noticeable relief for all parties involved. After only a few hours, the system could be handed over to the users for independent use. This is also thanks to the dedicated team of Wilhelm Jost GmbH & Co. KG.

 
With BPO it is possible to create transparency, shorten the construction time and achieve a cost advantage. Machine downtimes are reduced and the paving performance increases noticeably. The Wilhelm Jost GmbH & Co. KG is convinced of the new possibilities offered by digitization and has decided to introduce BPO in the company after the successful completion of the pilot project. BPO has also become an integral part of many other construction companies and enables a major step towards Building Information Modeling (BIM) in asphalt paving – not only in Germany.
 
Source: Volz Consulting GmbH Press