The increasing value of real-time data

While the construction industry is anchored in the physical world, the megatrend of digitalization is making its mark. Sika offers a range of customer-facing digital products and services that improve construction processes as well as outcomes. Three Sika experts highlight the short and long-term advantages of incorporating digital technologies into the Sika portfolio. 

Faster analysis

Kristof Weyns, Corporate Digital Products Manager Construction at Sika, cites the efficiencies created by digital technology. “Customers are always looking to streamline processes, reduce errors, and complete projects more quickly. Digital products add an extra layer to our value proposition by enhancing our offerings and providing data in a meaningful way.”

The Sika Sand App is a strong example. The app helps customers tackle the global shortage of virgin sand and aggregates – which make up 70% of concrete volume and 80% of its weight. It provides a tool to analyze low-quality sand and aggregates, enabling their use in combination with other materials to create high-quality concrete. 

The traditional sieving analysis requires extensive equipment, a laboratory, and time. The Sika Sand App provides accurate, on-site, and rapid interim analysis to speed up decision-making. Customers need only a smart device and a compact light pad to assess key material properties, including particle size distribution, shape characteristics, and their variation across sieve openings. The results can be shared in different formats, integrated with other Sika technology, and used when determining concrete mix designs.

Optimized design with knowledge transfer

The data from the Sika Sand App can be further evaluated in the Sika Concrete Mix Design App for concrete. Melissa Fisogni, Corporate Digital Product Manager at Sika, explains how this app makes good use of the information collected. “The mix design app makes it easier for customers to integrate all available data, including the aggregate analysis from the Sand App, when designing the right concrete mix for their requirements. Because the app allows the user to enter the performance data and carbon emissions, along with the variable costs, the different mixes can also be compared.” 

The digital tool ultimately allows users to compare the advantages of different mixes and get a neutral, visual assessment. The results – which show the performance requirements, such as durability and workability, and the projected environmental impact – can also be instantly shared across the organization. Two add-on features are available. The life cycle assessment (LCA) add-on calculates the long-term environmental impacts of each mix. The shotcrete app helps the user organize, monitor, and assess the early-strength trials of the concrete sprayed onto test slabs. The measurements, which are taken with a special penetrometer, are seamlessly transferred with the app’s Bluetooth connection. This ensures the reliable collection and recording of data in the dark and dusty spaces that are typical in tunneling and mining projects. 

Predictive maintenance

Digital technologies are also accelerating the shift from reactive to predictive maintenance, which is essential to a structure’s life-cycle management and longevity. The early detection and remedy of potential malfunctions can prevent bigger, more disruptive repair works in the future. 

One such early-warning system is the SikaRoof® Monitoring System, which relies on sensor technology to provide real-time surveillance of roof conditions. The modular system alerts building managers of potential leaks by monitoring water on the vapor control layer, the temperature, and the relative humidity. The system enables more informed decision-making and targeted repairs to minimize costs and prevent damage of the building itself or goods stored inside the building.

The DuraMon concrete corrosion monitoring system represents another significant innovation. This standalone system combines data sensors, transmission technologies, and data interpretation services to monitor reinforced concrete. It is designed for highly exposed structures and infrastructure, such as parking garages, bridges, and tunnels. All relevant parameters, from electrical resistance and pH value to free chloride concentration, are tracked. The output is not only the detection of corrosion, but also a predictive timeline for deterioration and recommendations for action. 

The value of monitoring technology also lies in its application. Insight into the performance of construction materials in real-life conditions can be fed back into R&D to design new Sika solutions tailored to the needs of the customer.

More transparency and innovation

Leo Scheiwiller, Corporate Head Sustainable Portfolio at Sika, is convinced that the focus on sustainability will accelerate digitalization efforts both inside and outside the company. “In our supply chain and across the value chain, we need increased transparency. This means collecting data from our factories as well as our suppliers, which is best done digitally.” 

He adds, “A big part of sustainability documentation is also about comparability. Digital solutions make it much easier to compare sustainability-related activities, actions, efforts, and results.” Sika is already a few steps ahead with its fully digital Sustainability Portfolio Management (SPM) system. All data, from environmental product declarations (EPD) to life-cycle assessments, can now be accessed internally. This makes it easier to provide customers with detailed information about the sustainability profiles of Sika products and solutions. 

Meanwhile, Sika is aiming to scale up customer-facing digital solutions that contribute to improving structural durability in a smarter, more sustainable way. The overall goal for Sika remains the same: to solve the most pressing challenges across the industry. Digitalization will continue to be instrumental in leveraging the data and insight needed to unlock innovation and new opportunities to serve the customer.