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In the beginning there was the internet. Well, not at the very beginning. First came the light (or was it the chicken?). But in any case the World Wide Web existed long before IT security. IT security continues to live a neglected existence in the minds of most users, but is becoming more and more important in times when information exists almost exclusively in digital form.

For us at eguana, safety has top priority. That is why we work closely with SBA Research, a center for information security, and have them carry out hacker attacks and penetration tests on our system on a regular basis in order to identify and close possible gaps in good time.

We have spoken to Thomas Konrad, senior consultant for information security at SBA Research, about the past, present and future of IT security.

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eguana: Let’s start at the beginning: IT security. How long has the topic existed? Was it relevant from the start, or has the topic gained importance historically?

Thomas Konrad: The topic of IT security is almost as old as digital information processing itself, but it has changed a lot over time. While in the beginning computer networks were reserved for the military sector, computers and their networking are ubiquitous today. IT security used to be synonymous with firewalls and the isolation of networks, but nowadays that is by no means sufficient to guarantee the secure processing of information. The complexity of these systems is overwhelmingly high and there is no prospect of a reversal of this trend – or in other words: There is no longer a single person who can understand an IT system in its entirety and thus conclusively assess its security.

Let’s compare that with the construction industry: There has been a comparatively small increase in productivity here in the last few decades, which is partly due to the fact that extensive safety and environmental regulations are driving up production costs. But this has already proven itself for the population! The safety level of buildings in our part of the world is extremely high, accidents and disasters in this area are extremely rare.

In the IT world it is completely different: The loss of sensitive data is so frequent that messages about it can only elicit a short, „Oh, now it happened again“. In any case: The topic is gaining importance due to the rapidly increasing extent of digital information processing. Also because every company these days is an IT company. Some are aware of this, others are not.

What are the most fundamental changes that have emerged in the area of ​​IT security in recent years?

Politicians are slowly becoming aware that the legislation hast o demand certain minimum standards for the security of information in the public interest. This is exactly what the Datenschutzgrundverordnung (DSGVO) aims at. One can criticize details of this regulation, and rightly so – but by and large the direction is the right one: If organizations negligently handle sensitive information, they can be threatened with severe penalties. A positive consequence of this is that the issue of security is increasingly being considered right from the start. Until now, this was only looked at when IT systems had already been implemented and operational.

Imagine the construction industry: First you build a tunnel as quickly and cheaply as possible, let people use it, and only then you start to assess the statics. While writing these lines, I can literally feel the unease of my readers in the pit of my stomach.

What exactly is it SBA Research is doing?

On one hand, we conduct research in the area of ​​information security. On the other hand we advise organizations on their way to greater information security. One of our classic activities is the so-called penetration test, where we basically simulate a hacking attack and try to penetrate IT systems. If we succeed, we make constructive suggestions on how to make the system more secure.

But as mentioned before: At this point it is often late and profound changes in the system are difficult and expensive. It’s a bit like trying to replace the masonry in an existing building with poor statics. That ranges somewhere between complex and impossible, with a tendency towards the latter.

This is precisely why we are increasingly supporting companies in changing organization and environment in such a way that the issue of security plays a major role in the development of IT systems early on. It is time-consuming at first, but in the long run, organizations usually save costs because security can become a driver for quality in general.

We once got called to an emergency where a company was attacked; A six-digit euro amount was previously spent on attack analysis alone. In the end, it turned out that someone intruded through an application that no one was using anymore and which was therefore no longer updated. Simply switching off the website would probably have cost less.

A tip for our readers?

You mean, what can you do to ensure the security of your own information? The basic rule is very simple: information that is not there cannot be stolen. Reduce to what is absolutely necessary. Find platforms that handle your information well by asking specialists or doing your own research. Enable multi-factor authentication wherever you are registered. The provider doesn’t support that? Change the provider. Regularly delete accounts and online information that you no longer need. Use a unique password on each platform, preferably one that has been generated by a password manager. Use means of communication that transmit messages with end-to-end encryption. Stay informed and actively demand that your personal information be handled properly.

Back to the future – what will the situation look like five years from now?

Considering the fast pace, it is very difficult to say what the future of IT security will look like. What I can say is how I would like the future to look. On the one hand, I think and hope that there will be greater awareness in society in general, and thus also in politics, that our personal information is becoming an increasingly important asset that must be handled with care. Careless handling should not be tolerated. I also think two key buzzwords will be „simplicity“ and „hygiene“. Simplicity because the simpler a system is, the more sustainable it can be operated safely. Hygiene in the sense that IT systems and the information processed in them have to be cleaned regularly. Because the simplest rule of IT security still applies: What is not there cannot be attacked.

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To anyone wondering what security looks like at eguana: Together with SBA Research we ensure IT security, and with our customers we ensure tunneling security. In order to be able to guarantee the optimal protection of all data, we have involved SBA Research into the development of our systems from the beginning. We are in regular exchange with the researchers and let them attack our servers in a controlled manner. Multi-factor authentication has therefore been standard for us for years. But even the most sophisticated security system does not help if the passwords are unsafe – which is why we dedicated a separate blog post to password security some time ago, which you can read here.

About guest author Thomas Konrad

Thomas Konrad has been working at SBA Research for more than ten years and is by now an authority in the field of IT security. Born in Gnas, he has been working with penetration tests as well as architectural and design tests ever since completing his master’s degree in information security at the St. Pölten University of Applied Sciences. He is among other things doing research on secure web and mobile applications, and is a lecturer at the FH Campus Wien. You can often find him on stage at various conferences, where the founder of the sec4dev security conference lectures on the subject of software security.

Florida hat zurzeit mit einer biblisch anmutenden Plage zu kämpfen. Statt Fröschen, die die Ägypter heimsuchten, sind es Leguane, die auf den Florida Keys ihr Unwesen treiben. Längst ist bekannt, dass Haie zu Unrecht in Kinofilmen als Monster dargestellt werden. Und obwohl der New Smyrna Beach in Florida weltweit jener Ort ist, wo die Wahrscheinlichkeit, von einem Hai gebissen zu werden, am höchsten ist, droht dort das größte Unheil nicht aus der Tiefe, sondern von Oben. Und zwar in Form von Leguanen.

Alles GuteGrüne kommt von oben

Die bis zu 40 Zentimeter langen Tiere schlafen in Bäumen. Wenn nachts die Temperaturen fallen, werden die Leguane träge und fallen mit. Vergleichbar mit einem Sack Zement, der auf den Köpfen von nichtsahnenden Spaziergängern landet, haben sie so schon einige Spitalsbetten gefüllt.

Erst vor ungefähr drei Wochen geriet ein Leguan so zwischen die Speichen eines Fahrrades, was den Fahrer aus dem Sattel und ins Spital beförderte. Für den Leguan ging die Sache allerdings schlimmer aus. Während es dem menschlichen Opfer dieser Tragödie wieder gut geht, schien die Kondition des Tieres einem Sprecher des örtlichen Sheriff-Büros zufolge „nicht so stabil.“ Wir ersparen dem Leser an dieser Stelle ein Foto des Tatorts und verbleiben mit einer Minute des Schweigens für unseren (vom Baum) gefallenen Kameraden.

Am 8. September wird jedes Jahr der Tag des Leguans begangen. Wir möchten den letzten Rest der Sommerpause nutzen, um auf die Gefahr für unsere Namensvettern hinzuweisen – bevor die Wintermonate die Wahrscheinlichkeit für Kälteeinbrüche und somit Baumstürze erhöhen.

Winterwende, Thomas-Ende

Nicht nur der Sommer neigt sich dem Ende zu, bei eguana geht noch etwas Anderes zu Ende – und zwar verlässt uns mit Monatswende Thomas, um sich neuen Herausforderungen zu widmen, und wechselt ins Supply Chain Management bei einem Online-Lebensmittelhändler. Wir haben uns mit unserem kurzhosigen eguana unterhalten und ihn einen Blick auf die vergangenen zwei Jahre werfen lassen.

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Thomas, beschreibe deine Tätigkeiten bei eguana in zehn Worten.

Administration, Marketing, Buchhaltung, Controlling – egal was, ich geh es an.

Es war fast jeden Tag was anderes, spannendes zu tun. Daher ist es schwer, meine Tätigkeit in nur 10 Worten unterzubringen. Aber eben genau das hat mir gefallen, dass die Arbeit abwechslungsreich und interessant bleibt; auch über längere Zeit hinweg.

Mit welchem Zitat/Titel würdest du deine Zeit bei eguana beschreiben?

„Das Leben ist zu kurz für unbequeme Hosen. Und Menschen.“ – mir ist der Verfasser allerdings nicht bekannt.

Einerseits passt das Zitat sehr gut, da ich sehr gerne kurze Hosen trage und es geschätzt habe, dass bei eguana die Unternehmenskultur entsprechend entspannt ist, dass es nicht gestört hat. Andererseits passt es, da ich das Team lieben und schätzen gelernt habe und es wirklich Spaß gemacht hat, mit ihnen zwei Jahre gemeinsam zu arbeiten.

Was waren Höhepunkte in deiner Zeit bei uns? Was hast du am liebsten gemacht, besonders geschätzt, und was wirst du am meisten vermissen?

Höhepunkte waren definitiv die zahlreichen Team Events und Firmenfeiern. Ich habe es immer genossen, mit den Kollegen außerhalb der Arbeit etwas zu unternehmen. Vor allem werde ich die Pub Quiz Runden vermissen. Auch die sportlichen Ausflüge werde ich vermissen, wie z.B. die Vorbereitung für das Spartan Race (Anna wird dazu sicher einen eigenen Blog verfassen – sofern sie ihre Hände danach noch bewegen kann). Auf dieses freue ich mich natürlich schon, sofern es hoffentlich Ende Oktober stattfinden wird. Kleiner Bonus ist, dass ich dort alle eguanas wiedersehen werde!

Natürlich werde ich auch die tolle Arbeit und die angenehme Arbeitsatmosphäre bei eguana vermissen und vor allem das ganze Team! Ich bin nur ein bisschen froh, dass mir dieses Jahr das ganze Tamtam um die Weihnachtsgeschenke erspart bleibt. 😉

Was hast du in deiner Zeit bei uns gelernt?

Eine Menge natürlich, da der Job bei eguana mein erster langfristiger Job überhaupt war. Wichtig waren natürlich immer Organisation und das Einhalten jeglicher Fristen. Somit war es essenziell zu lernen, wie ich effizient und effektiv arbeite. Aber auch die Kommunikation und Abstimmung mit Kollegen war wichtig für die Arbeit. Ansonsten habe ich jeden Tag etwas Neues gelernt, da die Arbeit sehr abwechslungsreich und spannend war.

Irgendwelche letzten Worte?

Eigentlich will ich nur DANKE sagen. Danke für die zwei tollen Jahre bei eguana. Danke an das tolle Team und meine Kollegen und danke für die lehrreiche und auch lustige Zeit. Ich finde es daher traurig, die Arbeit und das Team zu verlassen. Aber es ist nun mal an der Zeit, eine neue berufliche Herausforderung anzugehen.

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Damit wir im Winter nicht vom Baum kippen, haben wir schon im Sommer an unserer Fitness gearbeitet und uns durch diverse Teamevents in Form gebracht (bei uns purzeln also nur die Kilos). Beispielsweise haben wir uns bei Sport im Park ausgetobt, bei Tischtennis die Bälle fliegen lassen, bei Hula Hoop die Hüften geschwungen und beim Rudern an unserer Armmuskulatur gearbeitet. Wir sind also mehr als bereit, der kommenden Kälte die muskelbepackte Stirn zu bieten. Hier ein kleiner Ausschnitt von uns beim Rudern:

 

In diesem Sinne wünschen wir unseren eifrigen Lesern noch einen schönen Sommer und einen sicheren Start in den drohenden Herbst.

Kleiner Tipp: Unter der Erde gibt es keine Bäume. Man ist also zumindest in dieser Hinsicht im Tiefbau relativ sicher.

 

Credit Titelbild: PublicDomainPictures auf Pixabay

Once again our well-known archenemy is trying to thwart our plans: water. We have already dedicated several blogs to this topic, for example to enlighten our readers about sealing measures in anhydrite-bearing mountains, or to get insight into dewatering methods from the Bronze Age to the present. Today’s blog entry we dedicate to a current innovation in injection technology, namely hybrid injections. These combine the advantages of two well-known injection methods to effectively combat water ingress. To quote Miley Cyrus (who would have thought it would ever come to that): “You get the best of both worlds!”

Andreas Heizmann, CEO of Renesco – Marti Geotechnik, knows that anyone who tries to fill in crevices is in dire straits with the ingress of water. If a pure cement suspension was used, it is simply washed out by running water. A seal with polyurethane resin is quite expensive on the other side. For this reason, Renesco has developed a new process with which cement suspensions can be combined with polyurethane resin (PU) injections as required. This way, water ingress can be stopped effectively and economically.

The problem

„In the past, you usually had to decide which injection agent to use before starting the injection process“, Heizmann explains. Depending on what conditions you then encounter, two types of problems can arise:

If you have chosen PU-material with a fast reaction time and then only encounter a small crevice with low water ingress, the injection agent cannot penetrate the crevice. “In this case, only the drill hole is filled”, says Heizmann.

Or if you chose a pure cement suspension or PU-material with slow reaction time and encounter a large crevice with high water ingress – in this case the material will simply be washed out.

The solution

In a new process, however, the two injection agents can now be mixed and their properties adjusted during the ongoing process. In two separate mixing processes both PU-components are mixed at first, followed by the mixing of the PU and the cement suspension. The properties of the mixture vary flexibly from “very fluid” to “very stiff”. The decision no longer has to be made in advance.

In practice the whole thing works as follows:
„By starting with a pure cement suspension, we first check whether there are only small gaps”, Heizmann explains. “If there is already an increase in pressure with this injection agent, an addition of PU would lead straight to a blockage and an immediate stop of the injection process. This would prevent the injection material from penetrating into the vicinity of the borehole. PU is therefore not added in this case. However, if there is a pressure increase with pure cement suspension, the PU will be added until a pressure decrease can be observed. The task is, in cooperation with the planner, to determine the applicable quantity specifications in order to achieve the desired spread of the injection material. If the addition is increased too quickly, it can happen that the spread stops too early.” Escapes of the injection material can be stopped by a short, strong increase in the PU resin, so that the injection process is possible without interruption.

For those how want to know what the exact process looks like, just click here for a short explanation video.

The addition of the PU resin can (but doesn’t have to) be done automatically. A “flow limit” of the cement suspension is defined for this, and PU is automatically added if the flow rate is higher. If the flow rate is lower, the addition of PU is automatically stopped in order to remain below the limit pressure specified by the planner. The flow of the two PU components is measured separately in order to monitor the correct mixture in a ratio of 1: 1. In the event of a deviation from this ratio, the pump operator is alerted.

Fun at work

The idea for this process is not exactly new, says Heizmann, but the machine and control technology, through which the addition can be set precisely and all essential values ​​of the injection process can be recorded, is. The analysis and evaluation of the injection is done in eguana SCALES.

“The first experiences have been excellent”, says Heizmann, pleased about the success of the hybrid injections. „The machinery operators in particular enjoy how they can control the injection by adding PU. In the past, the injection process had to be aborted when injected material escaped, now the addition of PU is temporarily increased. The leakage usually quickly comes to a standstill. The addition of PU is then reduced back to the previous value and the injection process continues.“

Due to the increased injection success and the low dropout rate, costs can be reduced. Another advantage, so Heizmann, is the possibility to use local cement and imported PU for abroad injections. Because of the use of local construction materials, costs are kept low. “We believe that this is the ideal method to seal larger waterways and highly permeable layers of soil”, is Heizmann thinking about the future.

To close the loop, we end with a motivating citation:

There´s always gonna be another mountain, you´ll always gonna wanna make it move – Miley Cyrus, mining expert (The Climb)

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About Andreas Heizmann:

Just as water travels long distances, Heizmann has also travelled to the furthest corners of the world. For example when his work led him to Peru for two years, where he was in charge of a small irrigation project for those affected by a dam in the coastal desert. On the side he helped digging wells with his bare hands to a depth of 30 metres for small villages (As a result of this contact, over 25 wells with water storage and extraction have been created in Peru to date: “Here the water was not our enemy, instead the joy was great when we finally found it after weeks or months of work.”).

Or when he was project leader in 2006 in Vancouver and part of the erection of the Golden Ears Bridge with piles of 2.5 metres in diameter and lengths of up to 100 metres on land and in the river.

The civil engineer started his career with a degree in civil engineering at the technical university of Karlsruhe, where he decided to specialise at the institute of soil and rock mechanics. Since 2012 he is CEO at Renesco, department Marti Geotechnik.

Picture credits: Renesco/Marti Geotechnik

Distance learning, Zoom-conferences, theatre visits via the own laptop. Due to the corona-related social distancing and the associated home office, digitisation has been boosted in Austria which finally brought us into the 21^st century. The construction industry too is realising slowly but steady that digitisation can simplify many processes – and thus safe money.

Leopold Winkler from the institute for interdisciplinary construction process management at the TU Wien (research area construction operations and process engineering) can only agree with this. He wrote his dissertation on “Digital Data Management for Injections” and found out: digitising construction process management saves time – and thus a whole lot of money.

Collecting data with SCALES

In a project supported by the Austrian “Forschungsförderungsgesellschaft FFG” (“Automatic quality management for the construction and environmental technology”), the eguanas worked together from 2016 to 2018 with the research area construction operations and process engineering to develop a wireless monitoring system. This should record the entire work- and production process of injection construction sites, adaptable to the individual users‘ demands. The measured values ​​should not only be collected and presented, but also allow statements about the construction progress.

“We have scientifically accompanied the construction data monitoring project from eguana SCALES”, explains Winkler. “My dissertation resulted from this. On the one hand, I scientifically recorded the development of the work. On the other hand, I evaluated the added value for the construction site and the documentation process.” In the course of the research “it has emerged that digital data management on a construction site provides clarity about construction site processes and that they can also be optimized in daily construction operations”, Winkler continues.

More confidence in digital documentation is required

A survey he conducted with decision-makers revealed a divergence in the assessment of digitised data management. While developers expect a resource reduction by the usage, the saving time is priority number one for construction companies. Even though 87% of the respondents stand positive towards digitised data management, at the same time only 9% of the respondents have more confidence in this rather than manual documentation.

A closer look at the two pilot projects that were investigated in the course of the work shows that the hoped-for time savings in particular would benefit from more trust in the digitised construction data management. “Based on the two different projects, I determined which advantages can be derived compared to the old traditional process”, says Winkler: “The resulting time savings of the non-commercial staff in this study, which was supervised in a comparative period of 23 months, accumulates to about 122 hours per month.” In addition, the effort of the daily documentation processes could be reduced by 68%, that of the monthly measurement even by 83%. The prerequisite for this, however, is that the systems are accepted by everyone involved. This is the only way to achieve their full effect.

From the collected data sets of more than 120,000 injections which were recorded in the investigation period, Winkler could develop a real time construction time forecast model which can predict how long a construction procedure will take and how stable the construction process will be. The model can be implemented in digital data management systems and is suitable for other procedures in addition to injection processes.

Sounds great – but how to continue?

What is clearly demonstrated not only by the scientific work and the associated field studies: Digitisation is literally paying off. For all involved. But with so many things, it is important to think and plan ahead which changes will (or should) arise due to digital construction data management.

Here, Winkler sees two main points which should be considered at future projects.

Measuring and automatically evaluating KPIs

An important factor are KPIs (key performance indicators), which are generally used as a measuring unit to achieve the goals of a wide variety of projects. However, in order to know how far the achievement of a goal has already been achieved, the associated KPIs must not only be defined in advance, but above all must actually be measured and automatically evaluated.

In the course of the research work and the development of eguana SCALES, KPIs were integrated from the beginning. The progress of each single indicator can be tracked in the system. For Winkler, further research is resulting from this because “in the specific case of injection technology, the possibilities of alternative remuneration based on the KPI concept presented should therefore be fully examined.”

In the case of clearly defined elementary key figures, one should also consider adapting the ground laying contracts for projects so that these key figures are the basis for fair and transparent remuneration for all parties.

It would be conceivable that personnel and equipment deployment planning as well as key performance indicators are determined in partnership at the start of the execution and a bonus-malus system was then implemented in the implementation.

Documenting tunnelling process

According to Winkler, the second promising field of action for future development lies in the documentation of the conventional tunnelling. Herein, it would be possible to apply the “sequenced process suggestion”, described in the thesis, to the so called cycle diagrams and to integrate the already available process times into the model.

The work processes of the jacking team are currently documented manually, to then be manually transferred into digital systems – including all from this process resulting errors and redundancies. If the data is recorded digitally, this gives you the opportunity to determine the actual situation of the construction and compare it with the target construction.

For a meaningful implementation, in addition to extensive field tests, the interfaces of different device manufacturers must be released in order to be able to directly digitally record and process data.

In order to continue in the corresponding direction, more trust in the digitisation of systems and the willingness of the developers to invest in this will be required in the future. Winkler wishes that companies do not have to think through projects hierarchically in organizational structures, but in processes. “A successful construction execution is based on the intensive exchange of data and communication between all stakeholders. Digitisation gives us the opportunity to improve and automate these interfaces. However, this is only possible if companies are willing to work transparently.”

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About Leopold Winkler:

Dipl.-Ing. Dr.techn. Leopold Winkler studied civil engineering at the TU Wien as well as at the Politécnica de Madrid. He worked for various construction firms before graduating at the institute for interdisciplinary construction process management. In his research as a post-doc at the TU Wien he deals with digital data management at construction sites and the related process changes. For companies and start-ups, he supervises the evaluation of digitisation potentials and the implementation of digital construction tools. Expert work on construction and claim management complete his experience. Off the beaten track, he is a musician in the orchestra “Klangvereinigung” and enjoys various sport activities.

It was almost exactly three months ago that the corona-related emergency was declared in Austria. The world held its breath in March, April and May, and most of the work on the construction sites was stopped. Nevertheless, we at eguana used this time productively. In the meantime, the situation has calmed down and even though the virus is still present and will be for some time, the construction sites picked up their work again and with this, made a huge step back to normal conditions.

I myself, spent the last weeks working from my dining table and reduced the contact to colleagues and friends since Zoom, Skype, and Houseparty are just not the real thing. Therefore, I am highly interested about what has happened in our office since March 15. Luckily, our CEO Philipp Maroschek kindly took some time to answer some questions.

Philipp, you are an absolute pro in multitasking. Besides working at eguana you collected a range of academic titles, started a family, are fit as a fiddle and, it seems you still have a lot of spare time (to learn more about Philipp, just click here). My first question for you is also the trickiest one: do you manage to describe your job in only 10 words?

Innovative, demanding, creative, flexible, gruelling, exhaustive, inspiring, perfect – Rock ‘n’ Roll!

Well done, really just 10 words! Back to the real topic, Corona. What was first on your mind when you heard about the actions announced on March 15? How did the work change for eguana (in the office and at the construction sites)?

My first though was: f§%! Hopefully this won´t be as bad is sounds in the media. Since we have a strong connection to the construction sites which needed to pull the emergency break due to the actions, we stepped back as well and had time to calm down and focus. Since SCALES and our services are mainly digital we changed to home office for all employees. I especially don’t want to miss the time at home with my family. We all really enjoyed it.

Any other news at eguana?

A lot! We have received commitments to some research projects, including those with international research partners, and we have some exciting projects in the pipeline. Regarding the measures related to COVID-19, many new and old ideas popped up about work-life balance which we will evaluate in the upcoming weeks.

How do you continue the rest of the year regarding work? What´s on your to-do-list, what do you wish for?

I hope well. With regard to our R&D activities, we are very busy and we also hope for some large projects in Germany and abroad that could possibly start this year. Also, I hope that everyone stays healthy and that we can continue to implement exciting projects together with our customers and partners.

If you would need to describe your work at eguana with a book or film title, which one would you take?

Definitely Rocky!

With which quote would you describe yourself?

“The greatest pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do” – Walter Bagehot. If someone tells me “that´s not possible”, “that won´t work” or “you can´t do it”, that gives me an incredible motivation and drive. If I have something in my head, I’ll do it. Sometimes maybe a bit too much… at least that´s what my wife says – haha.

The most important question in the end: how do you celebrate June 10^th? Do you rather celebrate the ice-tea-day, the day of the pen, or do you wait until the 11^th to celebrate the day of the German chocolate cake? (It has nothing to do with Germany actually, but with the American Samuel German who invented the chocolate bar for the Baker´s Chocolate Company in the middle of the 19^th century)

Of course I celebrate Michi 😉 It´s his birthday!

Ops, completely forgot about this. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MICHI!

We have already demonstrated in several projects that at eguana we are not only familiar with software, but also hardware. We want to present one of these solutions today: the eguana.Flowmeter.

In injection technology, it is essential to record the current flow rate, because on the one hand this is an important quality parameter (mixing ratios, reaction of the subsoil, etc.) and on the other hand it can also be used for billing.

For example, think of toothpaste with stripes: the white stripe contains the cleaning solution, the blue stripe creates foam and a pleasant freshness aroma. In our example, the toothpaste does not come from a tube – it is automatically sprayed into strips from two tubes on the toothbrush. Ideally, the same pressure is exerted on both tubes and we have the perfect toothpaste strip. But what if one tube is pressed harder than the other? And suddenly our stripe is almost only blue, and the excess of freshness almost freezes our mouths – without really cleaning.

We face similar quality problems in injection technology, only that a different mixing ratio can mean that the desired sealing success is no longer given. Various flow sensors are used to monitor the flows, but none of them is right.

Good…

For example, the relatively simple stroke counter: Each stroke of the pump delivers a certain volume; The total volume delivered, and the respective flow rate can then be calculated from the number of strokes. All good, but too imprecise, especially with small quantities, since even the smallest deviations can influence the properties of the pressed material (e.g. with 2-component systems) and billing quantities.

Or the ultrasonic flow meter (ultrasonic waves are emitted into the flowing medium; the transit time, phase shift and frequency difference between the transmitted and the received wave determine the flow velocity and the volume flow is calculated from this) or the Coriolis mass flow meter (this method is based on the Coriolis principle, information for everyone who would like to know more about it can be found here). Both devices allow very precise measurements and in the case of the Coriolis, the measurement of other parameters. Due to the high acquisition costs and the limited suitability for use in harsh environments, they are not necessarily suitable for the construction site.

… better …

That’s why magnetic-inductive flow meters (MID) are generally used, which are available in very robust designs and are therefore ideally suited to the conditions on the construction sites. A magnetic field induces voltage in the flow and converts it into flow velocity. MID do not need any moving parts, which is why they do not wear out. Sounds pretty good so far, right? MID, however, also have disadvantages – in fact they rely on the fact that the material flowing through has a minimum conductivity. This is the case with cement (roughly a mixture of concrete balls and water), but not with all chemical injectables. Furthermore, there is a build-up, which can lead to a reduction in the measurement cross-section and thus incorrect measurement results. I.e. the MID must also be regularly serviced accordingly.

In the case of polyurethanes, for example, which consist of two components and are combined at the mouth of the borehole using a mixing head, the monitoring of the flow rates of both components is crucial. Deviations of the speeds from one another, for whatever reason, lead to a change in the mixing ratio and thus to different properties, such as viscosity, curing time, or others.

With such chemical two-component systems, paddle wheel sensors are usually used, which are constructed similar to a water wheel. The volume flow drives the wheel via blades. Magnetic scanning generates electrical impulses (to put it simply: how often does the impeller or its fins pass the measuring point?). The frequency of the pulses changes in proportion to the rotational speed and thus to the flow speed (more flow -> faster rotational speed -> more pulses). The quantity delivered per pulse can be determined based on the design of the sensors. They follow the same principle as the piston stroke count, but with a much better measurement resolution, which can be accurate to 2 ml / pulse.

… FLOWMETER!

Since not all controls are able to record the flow rate via pulse inputs and only specially developed controls also take the deviations of the two components into account, we have developed the eguana.Flowmeter, which extends the paddlewheel sensors by exactly this point.

The tasks are simply summarized:

• Measuring of the impulses
• Calculate the current flow rate of both components and the total flow rate
• Calculate the deviation of the quantities delivered between the two components
• Generation of a constant current which is proportional to the total flow rate and which is read by the controller via a current loop
• Generation of specific impulses which are used by the control for quantity acquisition
• Optical output of the current status via a signal light (pumping process active / inactive, deviation OK / problem)
• Output of the flow rates, the pumped quantity and the deviation on a display

Since every paddle wheel sensor is subject to manufacturing tolerances, there is a calibration mode to determine and save the quantity per pulse.

In addition, the device must be able to withstand the harsh conditions of construction sites and be compatible with different controls. Compatibility could be ensured by orienting ourselves on the output signals of common MID. These measuring devices also generate 100 ml pulses to encode the total quantity and transmit the current flow rate via a 4-20 mA current loop. This means that the device generates a constant current which is proportional to the flow rate. Current loops are used because the influence of the signal lines is irrelevant. Line breaks can be easily identified. Since even a measuring signal of 0 l / min is coded with 4mA, a signal always arrives at the receiver. If this is not the case, there must be a technical problem with the sensor, the power supply or the connection.

Our FLOWMETER is already being used successfully. We are making another important contribution to quality assurance and digitisation of construction sites. For the first time, injections of this type can be optimally monitored, and the quality can be demonstrated during execution. Our little box is pretty powerful. And once again, the iguana proves that with will and adaptability a “That´s not possible” is followed by a “Very well with us!”.

 

 

Credit Titelbild: Bru-nO auf Pixabay

“Now, here, you see, it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place.”

The sentence said from the Red Queen to Alice in Lewis Carrol´s “Through the Looking-Glass” stands today for a ground laying assumption of the evolution biology. It says that animal and plant species are in a constant race to evolve in order to maintain their ecological niche. Thus, evolution is a must – just like at eguana.

Evolution is our foundation; its most famous representative, Charles Darwin, basically our godfather. Just like him, we know of the importance of constant evolving and therefore, we have a reason to celebrate on February 12!

While Darwin is celebrating his 211th birthday, we are celebrating our fifth anniversary – and we are celebrating this with a very special gift to ourselves:

Make two from one – eguana und groundfynk

Once there was an i(e)guana that felt very lonely.
Then he met a groundfynk, from then on, they were together.

Somewhat like that, only with less rhythm and lyrical perfection, but biological accuracy, actually happened when the Galapagos iguana, once described by Darwin, went into a symbiosis with the ground finch. Also, our own eguanas get support by quick birds and therefore, full with pride, we present you our newest family member in form of our new sister groundfynk.

We live evolution

In our five-year history so far, we have made a big step with eguana SCALES (more about our greatest innovation here) in the construction industry. For all stakeholders we provide a tool that collects and visualises all data in real-time. But what we also learned is the fact that the shoe doesn’t just squeeze at this point. In addition, problem-specific, individual software, hardware and firmware solutions are required, which is exactly why we founded groundfynk.

Groundfynk is dedicated to the development of electronic solutions, precisely tailored to the wishes and needs of customers. We are not only expanding our company, but also our perspective. With well-known, competent talents and new, helping hands, we are expanding our portfolio and daring to venture out of the world of civil engineering like a finch, ready to leave our mark on the rest of the world.

Just like Darwin we share our knowledge – for example, our managing director Philipp Maroschek gave a lecture at the VÖBU (Association of Austrian drilling, well construction and special civil engineering companies) drilling master’s course at the end of February. The aim and motivation behind it were to familiarise the prospective drilling masters and pump drivers with the topic of digitisation, so Philipp tried to „relieve the fear of dealing with digital systems, discuss problems and support them, to implement digitisation accordingly as well.“

A dynamic, young team, full of drive and ideas – we don´t just throw these words around, no, we live them and let the wheel of evolution spin! What can go wrong?

If you would like to join us on this exciting new phase of your life, if you are enthusiastic about programming or can provide useful information about potential groundfynks, or if you just want to know more, please send us an email to office@groundfynk.at

Titelbild von Momentmal, Clker-Free-Vector-Images und Annalise Batista auf Pixabay

March 11 is all about the work. At least if you believe in the calendar of curious holidays. This day pays tribute to office work (on the one hand with the day of the nap at the workplace, on the other hand with the refill-your-stapler-day) and the manual work (with the world piping day and the adore-your-tool-day).

That´s something we can relate to here at eguana. Because even though we absolutely treasure our free time, we luckily can say that we have turned our passion into a profession by working at eguana.

We have already done the yearly spring cleaning on our desks (many thanks to our cleaning lady!) and can use our perfectly cleaned and disinfected, corona-free desks for new work – project manager and civil engineer Michael will tell us more about that.

*****

Michael, your job in 10 words:

Project management, acquisition, planning, sales, marketing, support – I’m on site!

What´s new at eguana? What has happened so far in 2020?

It is fun to do so many different tasks (in addition to my core area of project management)! I’ve always been the changeable guy who quickly gets bored with monotony. In order to substantiate the whole thing with technical knowledge, I have been studying part-time again since autumn, doing an MBA in General Management. The most exciting development for me is the increasing internationalisation of eguana! In the past few years we have made a name for ourselves in German-speaking countries and are sniffing the first successes across borders. Being part of this growth and being able to be a little driving force is great!

What´s on for the rest of the year regarding work? What´s still to come, what would you wish for?

I think 2020 will be a very exciting year for us! The relevance of ConTech (digitisation of the construction industry) is becoming more and more noticeable – and now also in Central Europe. We have an innovation and information advantage over the competition and want to continue to optimise processes together with our customers and create higher quality on the construction site (both in terms of construction and work technology).

If you had to describe your work at eguana with a book or film title, what would you choose?

Ocean´s 12 – my name is not Danny Ocean (but Michael Ouschan) but it´s close. I also have 11 great colleagues with whom nothing is impossible. And the number 12 in my private life is also a Julia (and luckily not Roberts, all the publicity would be too much for me!).

Which quote would you use to describe yourself?

“You can´t stop the waves, but you can learn to surf.” – Jon Kabat-Zinn

It often feels like requests are literally falling over me. It wasn’t easy at first, but I learned how to deal with it. It’s like kitesurfing, you must adapt to changing conditions and not fight them, then you will enjoy what you do.

The most important question comes in the end: how do you celebrate the 11^th of March? With a powernap on your desk? Do you refill your stapler? Or do you erect a shrine for your tool with your tool?

I definitely go for the powernap – what else? You have to enjoy the brakes you get. There is always a next wave.

*****

We are pleased (especially Julia) to announce our new team member. Since January we have new support in accounting and controlling: Alena put an emphasis on economics early on and after her graduation at a high school for economic professions she did her bachelor’s degree at Johannes Kepler University Linz with a focus on corporate finance, international management, production and logistics management. Fortunately, in addition to her master’s degree at the Vienna University of Economics and Business, there is enough time to help us a little. With her in the office, we feel doubly safe – on the one hand against mistakes in the accounting, on the other hand also against injuries. Because in her free time, Alena trains to be a paramedic.

After all, safe is safe – on the construction site, but also in the office.

For us it is now time to go back to work. “Work, work, my life for the horde,” as said in the computer game Warcraft 3.

 

Credit Titelbild: Larisa Koshkina auf Pixabay

What do a specialist foundation engineer and a secret agent have in common?

More than one might think. Equipped with many technical gadgets, both primarily work in the dark and you rarely see them doing their work. What the grenade launcher is for James Bond is the power drill for the specialist foundation engineer. Instead of a Walter PPK he fights with the drilling equipment for justice on construction sites. What makes his job more difficult is not nemesis Ernst Stavro Blofeld, but the fact that he does a lot of the work in the dark.

For example, when performing jet grouting to solidify the subsurface. These are injected into the ground almost blindly. Just as 007 only achieves mediocre results on the shooting range with closed eyes, the drill master is also reluctant to work with one sense less. For this reason, today’s expert sheds light on the dark. We present: Fuchs. Stefan Fuchs.

The site manager of PORR Bau GmbH has many years of experience in jet grouting. “The necessary construction parameter for jet grouting are based on long-term experience of the executing team. In order to evaluate these construction parameters, tests were made on the construction site in the past and sometimes still today, and these were subsequently exposed.” This was not only associated with considerable additional effort, but also with costs, since the tests could usually not be used for the actual measure. An improvement was needed. The TempJet idea was born.

License to measure

The TempJet system can be used to determine the diameter and cement content of the jet grouting. It enables measurements to be carried out in great depth directly on each jet grouting arranged by the project planner. The measurement is carried out by a probe, which can be installed over the drill pipe without special equipment or the use of additional equipment. The measuring chain was designed so that the diameter and the cement content along the column can be determined every 30 centimetres – regardless of the soil conditions and groundwater situation”, Fuchs explains. In addition, the process identifies inequalities in soil conditions, such as inclusions in the column produced or rinsing through groundwater flows – which is extremely important for quality.

The measuring chain itself only measures the maturing heat in the centre of the jet grouting. Using a cement sample in combination with the maturing heat, an algorithm can then deduce the diameter and cement content, because: the higher the maturing heat, the higher the cement content. The higher the diameter of the jet grouting, the longer it takes to cool down. The thermal conductivity and heat storage capacity of the surrounding soil have a significant impact on the result. Decades of research flowed into our calculation system to physically describe the soil”, Fuchs explains.

“Besides monetary savings of more than 70% compared to standard methods, the main advantage is clearly the measuring accuracy of +/- 10% and the possibility of evaluation in great depths”, says Fuchs. The evaluation of the measuring results takes usually between one and half to two and a half days, he explains. “In most cases however, the probes can be set before the well-deserved weekend so that the results are already at the table right on time for the start of the week.”

From Vienna with Love

The process has been on the engineering market since 2008 and has already been used on several hundred local construction sites and abroad. “TempJet measurements have been primarily been used in Austria, Germany, and France on our own construction sites, as well as by our licensing partners. However, also requests and projects from outside the EU reach us, for example from a project at the Ivory Coast.” For 2020, another 100 measurements are planned.

A small disadvantage of the system: it is single use only. In order to save resources and reduce costs, work is already underway to optimise the measuring arrangement so that multi use is possible by reusable probes.

As Q stands by 007, we at eguana support special engineers in your work with all kinds of technical gadgets. Where James Bond has a secret weapon with his OMEGA Seamaster, we also ensure that our construction heroes have more than just an ace up their sleeve. With our digital secret weapons, we do not defeat super villains, but we collect all measurement data of a construction site on a platform, where they can be graphically displayed, evaluated and analysed.

And unlike the premiere of the latest James Bond film, we don’t have to postpone anything (even in times of crisis).

About James Bond Stefan Fuchs:

To keep it short: There is nothing he can´t do.

After attending a secondary school, he continued with high school focusing on building constructions. Afterwards he graduated with a master´s degree in civil engineering and water management as well as training as a constructor. In his free time the hobby cook does not really enjoy a Vodka Martini (neither stirred or shaken), but rather a nice glass of wine while firing up the flame thrower grill for friends and family. If there is any time left next to all the secret work, he tries to get into programming to decode the foreign language of the eguanas.

Bildcredits: Porr