fischer Highlights - Managing Director of BauBot Services

00:00:06: Welcome to Fisher Highlights, the podcast from The Fisher

00:00:09: Group.

00:00:35: In the Engelberg tunnel near Leonburg, one of Germany's busiest highway tunnels three construction robots were active simultaneously drilling over nine thousand holes.

00:00:48: And in Utrecht —in the midst of one of The Netherlands' largest urban development projects—the construction robot worked its way through concrete slabs at a height of twenty meters operating overhead with precision and tireless efficiency.

00:01:03: The person behind this robot is also our guest today.

00:01:06: His name is Emil Krall, he's the managing director of Fisher Baobot Services GMBH which was founded in twenty-twenty four.

00:01:14: prior to that He worked as a WIM project manager for Fisher around the world.

00:01:18: This means he brings exactly the experience needed To significantly advance digitalization on construction sites.

00:01:25: My Name Is Wolfgang Pott.

00:01:27: Welcome to Fisher Highlights Mr Krall.

00:01:29: Good Afternoon Mr Pott.

00:01:30: Thank you For Letting Me Join You.

00:01:32: Yes,

00:01:33: we're really excited too.

00:01:34: Mr.

00:01:34: Kroll you run a company that sends robots to construction sites?

00:01:38: That sounds a bit like dream job is it

00:01:40: the answer?

00:01:41: actually quite simple no It couldn't have been my dream job, because a few years ago we had no idea that robots would be on construction sites so soon.

00:01:49: So I can say that i dreamed of a job like that but of course thankfully things have developed in such a way that I can do this now and I'm very happy that I was able to take on this role And um... Be part of revolutionizing construction sites Yes!

00:02:03: But as I said Ten years ago I couldn't have imagined that we'd be using this kind of technology on construction sites so soon.

00:02:11: Yeah and all the sudden there it is, The Construction Robot?

00:02:14: That's just incredible!

00:02:16: And its a revolution in construction sites

00:02:19: A true revolution.

00:02:20: I always tell my employees that when our children or grandchildren read about the first, second and third industrial revolutions in their history textbooks there will surely be a section on the revolution of construction sites.

00:02:37: That

00:02:39: sounds very, very exciting.

00:02:40: But if we take a brief look back at your personal history you've always had pretty exciting jobs.

00:02:45: You were involved in Fisher Projector projects around the world as a BIM project manager.

00:02:51: Could you tell us exactly what your role was there and above all What BIM stands for?

00:02:57: I started out As a structural engineer And i was lucky enough to work with some Very innovative architects In a firm that Was really pushing The envelope even twenty years ago.

00:03:07: That's when I first realized the kind of benefits it could offer.

00:03:12: Yes, back then It was on the planning side.

00:03:15: and Then When i joined Fisher?

00:03:29: And what that means is I've been working, or rather trying to work... ...to make BIM a reality.

00:03:44: Our goal was to achieve whats known as Big BIM.

00:03:47: That means helping our clients see the big picture That it's possible to have a model that accompanies the building throughout its entire life cycle and is continuously updated with data.

00:03:58: For example, we're already talking about anchors sensor anchors And so on.

00:04:02: all of that data can then be automatically transferred into the BIM model in.

00:04:06: The same goes for robots that for example Automatically send reports.

00:04:10: All of that can be fed back Into the model?

00:04:12: Then In twenty or thirty years anyone Can look Back and see if there Is anything what was done and when.

00:04:17: So that means what you've done in the past is helping you immensely with your current work.

00:04:23: Absolutely, I was so happy to do things which would later help me in my next role and BIM was one of those things because it's also about optimization and increasing efficiency on construction sites in building industry Because unfortunately construction is probably the most conservative industry And a lot of things there don't run the way they should.

00:04:47: And now robotics as well.

00:04:50: These are all things that help make construction sites and the processes on them more efficient and better, and BIM is about planning and data management.

00:04:59: The robots which is particularly important to me makes work more humane because in my view drilling isn't human work.

00:05:06: so there's several aspects of it.

00:05:08: It's more about planning efficiency then with robots naturally making the work easier for people.

00:05:21: So let's take another look at the Guinness World Record.

00:05:24: Three thousand seven hundred seventeen drill holes in twenty four hours.

00:05:28: no human could do that.

00:05:29: or if they did, They definitely have to see an orthopedist afterward right?

00:05:33: Absolutely.

00:05:34: We've also conducted various tests where we directly compared human workers against machines, and it just wouldn't work even when comparing some construction sites directly Where a human can drill about one hundred to one hundred thirty holes per day And that's just in a single day.

00:05:52: So the three thousand two three thousand seven hundred holes.

00:05:55: That was an incredible achievement and I have to say, i didn't believe myself that we'd actually managed to drill that many holes in twenty four hours.

00:06:04: Our goal was a bit lower but the robot exceeded our expectations.

00:06:07: it exceeded our expectations by a wide margin so The whole team was very proud afterward.

00:06:12: But the most important thing Was probably...that We're just getting started And we've already managed To achieve something like this.

00:06:19: It shows what's still possible Where were headed.

00:06:22: So this world record was really just a way for us to show what we're capable of and where were headed because it's only going get better.

00:06:30: And I'm sure will surpass our own World Record by wide margin in the future!

00:06:34: Wow, We are really excited to see that.

00:06:36: A world record like these would probably go over very well with your customers and generate lots attention.

00:06:43: You have plenty strong points to highlight simply through activities on construction sites.

00:06:48: One example is the Engelberg tunnel near Leonburg where three construction bots were deployed and drilled over nine thousand holes.

00:06:56: Nevertheless, tunnel projects are inherently challenging!

00:06:59: Why is that actually?

00:07:01: Exactly it depends on the tunnel.

00:07:03: we've drilled in several different tunnels... ...and each one has its own challenges.

00:07:08: The Engelberg Tunnel was our first major tunnel project using three robots simultaneously And there we really faced a variety of challenges.

00:07:17: The first challenge arises right from the planning stage because the tunnel has very complex geometries, no straight sections at all.

00:07:25: Everything is curved or bent and has an incline.

00:07:28: so there are a few reference points And data generation and programming of robots.

00:07:33: that's already the first major challenge.

00:07:35: Just getting the data.

00:07:36: So robot knows where to drill During operation.

00:07:39: it basically doesn't matter whether its drilling in a tunnel.

00:07:44: The robot doesn't really care whether it's drilling in the tunnel or not, that is actually an advantage.

00:07:50: But In the Engelberg Tunnel for example we worked on one side while traffic was still moving and That Was quite a challenge!

00:07:56: For Example...in the Englberg tunnel We Worked On One Side While Traffic Was Flowing.

00:08:00: It Was Also A Challenge For Our Operators To work Under Those Conditions Or Rather..In The Second Phase The Tunnel Was Only Closed From Ten PM to Five AM Which Is When We Could Work.

00:08:10: So Everything Was Done During Nightshifts.

00:08:12: Those Are The Challenges.

00:08:14: Another tunnel in Austria is thirty-two kilometers long and when they were drilling in the middle or thereabouts our section was twenty five kilometers deep inside the tunnel.

00:08:26: And every day you had to go twenty five kilometres into the tunnel but not by car because it was a rail tunnel.

00:08:33: So for example, you had to ride a bike back and forth for almost two hours every day just to get the work site.

00:08:40: There are really various challenges that make tunnel construction sites so unique in general And we're also excited to have received another contract from Austria A roadtunnel similar to Engelberg where will be drilling over ten thousand holes.

00:08:56: again.

00:08:57: That sounds really exciting!

00:08:59: And apparently... You always managed to rise to this challenge even if it means biking to the scene, but you get the job done in the end.

00:09:07: By the way I heard that your construction boards names are actually true?

00:09:12: Do they have

00:09:13: names?!

00:09:14: Yes each of our robots has a name!

00:09:17: What kind of names do we have?

00:09:19: Most of them are names from fairytales – fairytale names

00:09:22: i.e.,

00:09:23: we started with animated films.

00:09:25: so from there we have Anna and Sven And now we have Dory, for example Nemo Maria Pablo Marcus Siggy and it's incredible how well that actually works with people.

00:09:35: When we give the robots names People refer to them by those names even though they're just robots.

00:09:40: Each one has its own quirks and sometimes behaves a little differently.

00:09:46: We can name some robots based on their behavior so-to speak.

00:09:50: It definitely makes work easier when you've got names easy to remember.

00:10:00: That sounds exciting and you're helping the industry as a whole.

00:10:04: You could certainly say that because in the industry, The construction industry –that is–the shortage of skilled workers Is major issue And if there's machine like Baobao that can drill so many holes Automatically then your also Helping & Supporting the Industry In that regard.

00:10:19: Is that correct?

00:10:20: Making work on Construction sites humane.

00:10:23: I've seen this my life having been On So Many Sites Myself.

00:10:26: The conditions under which people perform certain tasks, especially when you try it yourself and see that these are all people who by the time they're thirty five or forty end up with damaged limbs.

00:10:37: And so on.

00:10:38: There is clearly a solution for how we can address this shortage of skilled workers also major issue.

00:10:45: our customers say this I must say not just in Europe were getting inquiries from South America Brazil where people no longer want to go construction sites or do hard labor.

00:10:56: So it's clear that there has been a shift in peoples mindset and our construction robot, and our web services which are certainly set to open up even more possibilities in the future.

00:11:05: Are something that really helps construction sites And makes things better for our customers and everyone involved right?

00:11:11: Because we've often seen it on construction sites.

00:11:13: People who have watched a robot in action We're certain they'll never pick-up a drill or do any drilling by hand again because They've seen there's another way.

00:11:22: So By setting an example were actually showing people That There is already ways today To work differently.

00:11:28: That means it's faster, safer and more precise.

00:11:32: And that is already the case today.

00:11:34: looking ahead say five years from now.

00:11:38: where do you see possibilities on construction site with the Fisherbau Board?

00:11:43: We'll certainly be able to handle applications other than drilling, we will definitely be able install anchors and then see which direction we go in terms of other applications.

00:11:53: I suspect that as a first step we tackle tasks just as physically demanding as drilling such as grinding, grooving, milling concrete cutting or similar heavy duty work And what we'll definitely do is develop new application-specific robots and truly automate the construction site so that ten robots can come in, handle everything.

00:12:16: In five to ten years it will likely even include installation of addon components.

00:12:21: So considering how quickly we've gotten where are now... ...in five years could be further along cover much more.

00:12:28: That sounds really exciting.

00:12:30: when you think about future I can totally imagine that whenever you walk past

00:12:42: a construction site, That would be ideal for our application.

00:13:02: So definitely yes!

00:13:04: And it's also ideal for your company, the Fisher Construction Robot which can be deployed worldwide.

00:13:10: We're truly excited to see what future holds of the Fisher construction robot on construction sites around the globe.

00:13:16: Mr.

00:13:17: Kroll, thank you very much for speaking with us!

00:13:19: Whether it's nine thousand drill holes in a tunnel or world record in twenty-four hours – You've certainly shown what is possible when robotics and fastening technology come together.

00:13:29: We wish your team continued success And are definitely looking forward to the next construction site The Baobour will conquer.

00:13:41: Thank you for listening and thank you very much Mr.

00:13:44: Kral, for joining us on Fisher Highlights!