Statistically, construction sites are among the most dangerous workplaces, but this is not due to a lack of safety standards. Thanks to developments in robotics, construction workers can now enjoy increased safety during drilling operations. Skanska experienced this in 2021 on the jobsite of a new healthcare building in Malmö, Sweden.
Overhead drilling ranks among the most strenuous, accident-prone construction activities, but it is an essential task and is required in most mechanical, electrical or plumbing (MEP) installations. As this type of routine work takes a toll on workers’ health and safety, it can lead to increased absenteeism. Add to this the fact that physically demanding work is already making the industry less attractive to younger generations, and it becomes evident why labor shortages are registered acutely on jobsites worldwide, especially in the regions where exoskeletons and robots are not yet used for heavy-duty tasks.
The Hilti Jaibot can do what the majority of construction workers can’t: drill 500 overhead holes per day, unbothered by vibration and without suffering from sore shoulders at the end of a shift. Customers say that the robot works between three and four times more efficiently than if the work was carried out manually. And Jaibot has the same stamina the next day and the days after that.
User safety has always been at the core of what we do as we aim to make our industry safer and more productive.
Thomas Hillbrand, Member of the Hilti Executive Board
“User safety has always been at the core of what we do as we aim to make our industry safer and more productive,” says Thomas Hillbrand, Member of the Hilti Executive Board. “New technology such as the Jaibot enables workers to perform in a healthier environment and it increases their ability to remain in the job until retirement, with fewer work-related injuries.”
Based on data fed to it through building information modeling (BIM), the semi-autonomous, mobile robot knows where to drill and how to correctly mark each hole with a certain number of dots, indicating what the hole will be used for. Jaibot then sends a “job complete” signal to the BIM-powered application on site. Once the signal has been received, all team members having access to the application know the drilling status.
How many overhead holes can the Hilti Jaibot drill per day?
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The correct answer is:
The robot drills 500 overhead holes per day, increasing workers’ safety during drilling operations.
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You are absolutely right. The robot drills 500 overhead holes per day, increasing workers’ safety during drilling operations.
“Hilti is often the last specifier on a project as we depend on the MEP designers to lock in the construction plans,” explains Daniel Bill, BIM Project Manager for Hilti Sweden. “However, we are also the first supplier to go into production, for instance when we deliver prefabricated systems or BIM-to-field applications such as the Jaibot. This gives us an incredibly tight design window, where planning and solid communication with the customer are crucial. If all goes well, we can fully leverage the health, safety and productivity gains enabled by the BIM applications.”
Hilti colleagues Johan Engdahl (left) and Daniel Bill (right) of Sweden and Gintare Vybernaityte (center) of The Netherlands visiting the Malmö Hospital site in June 2021 to review BIM drawings and see Jaibot in production.
Functionality aside, Jaibot is also easy to operate or store when not in use. It was made to fit in most elevators and to charge inside the box in which it was delivered. Here is a preview of a day in the life of Jaibot.
Jaibot meets the Skanska team
Skanska is a world-leading project development and construction group, aimed at building for a better society. Because of this, the company has always been on the lookout for solutions that increase the health and safety of their employees. The new healthcare building at Malmö Hospital offered the perfect setting to put Jaibot to work.
“The health and safety of our colleagues are our strongest goals and always a top priority for Skanska. We are strongly committed to constantly improving the working environment and conditions on site. Digital tools and innovative technology, like Hilti’s Jaibot, help us to reach our goal of eliminating risks and unhealthy work conditions and, at the same time, enable more efficient production,” says Amanda Glave, Skanska Project Director of the new healthcare building at Malmö Hospital.
