The following transcript was edited for brevity and clarity from one of two concurrent Feb. 2 discussions at the 2024 Pit & Quarry Roundtable & Conference.
PIT & QUARRY: For producers, what transformational equipment and technology have you invested in or explored? For equipment suppliers, how are you incorporating technology into your equipment offerings, and what factors are driving innovation at your company? How would you characterize the industry’s willingness and readiness to adopt the latest wave of technology?
PAUL ROSS (DOUGLAS MANUFACTURING): We’re investing in our products to help them last longer. We’re focusing on equipment and parts to reduce maintenance costs and the number of people required to maintain equipment.
We’re also breaking ground on a new facility to produce those products using automation. We’re aiming to reduce the amount of labor that we require while making it easier for our team members to learn the skills they need to make the products that we produce.
MATTHEW VALLE (HAULHUB): DOTs (departments of transportation) are looking at multiple ways to figure out how to digitize the entire construction process. That’s starting to push some of the digital transformation back on the OEMs to think about how, as these materials are being produced, the critical information starts to get out to the DOTs.
OEMs are now starting to outfit their equipment with digital technologies in a standard way so that DOTs can think about inspection out on the jobsite in a more digital manner.
THOMAS JORDAN (KLEEMANN): Everybody wants machines to run as efficient and as long as possible. If the folks operating them don’t understand all that technology and what’s going on, then you run into a problem.
It’s amazing how much more support folks need when they haven’t been properly trained on the technology versus folks who take the time to understand why it’s there, what it’s doing in the background and more. The training is very important.
VINCENT ROCCO (AMCAST): One thing we’ve been investing in is a hybrid of robotics assisted by humans. Where a guy would sit there and have to grind all day with a 20-volt grinder, which is a heavy piece of equipment, we have made investments in an exoskeleton type of robotic equipment to reduce fatigue, reduce injuries and with the ultimate goal of trying to make the workplace overall safer and more enjoyable.
JOHN BENNINGTON (SUPERIOR INDUSTRIES): One of the things we’ve tried to focus on is problem solving with technology improvements in areas that customers are having issues with. If you go to the West Coast, water is an issue. There are a lot of large portions in the country where electricity is more expensive than average. So, trying to run machines with less electricity or less water are things we’re focused on.
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