Successful Workshop on Wireless Construction

The acknowledged value of the day-long Wireless Construction Workshop on November 7, 2006 to the 40 participants was as varied as the topics of the presenters. Attendees commented that the workshop was “interesting and presented well,” “thought-provoking” and that it was a “very good case study!” One learned “how to plan using wireless technology in construction,” while another mentioned the benefits from showing “practical field applications.”

Vendors were equally enthusiastic. One found that “the value for me was learning about other applications of wireless in construction, and to talk with people involved in the commercial construction business.”

Co-sponsored by the Center for Advanced Infrastructure & Transportation at Rutgers and the Conti Group from South Plainfield NJ, celebrating 100 years in construction, the event was organized and hosted by Dr. Trefor Williams of Rutgers University. The contributions of all three were critical to make it happen.

Kai Pooagith of Fluor presents a case study on wireless tablet PCs

Ten presenters shared in the mission of the workshop - to educate participants about the exciting new ways to access or make available project data/information at anytime and from anywhere. Each presentation was followed by questions and discussions that offered everybody opportunities to deepen their understanding about how the many applications are able to benefit construction sites and users.

The rainfall on the morning of November 8, 2006 forced the optional, more hands-on half-day program to be held in a large conference room instead of at a construction site. The participants received solid immersions into the world of the BlackBerry, the invisible fields of Wi-Fi signals and, finally, the secrets of designing Web pages for use with wireless applications.