BARD Materials Unites Tech Solutions for Real-Time Quality Control

BARD Materials is engaging several leading technology providers in ready-mix concrete to realize the producer’s vision of end-to-end concrete quality monitoring. Eric Glendenning, Technical Services Director for the Iowa-based producer, is overseeing the project to harvest data from key systems that provide mix management, dispatch and truck signaling and in-transit sensors.

Glendenning presented BARD’s vision for “Revolutionizing Concrete Quality” at BCMI’s summer customer conference. He shared plans to 1) Hit mix design targets with optimized mix designs, 2) Track and record real-time concrete data in transit, 3) Evaluate live performance data and further optimize mixes to begin the cycle again.

With information flowing digitally each step of the way, BARD continuously captures valuable information that impacts concrete quality, such as amount of water added to a load any time after batching. A combination of hardware and software supports the NUW, or “No Unmetered Water” initiative. Anytime water is added at the plant or on a jobsite it’s noted and communicated to dispatchers, QC professionals and customers simultaneously.

Co-presenters joined Glendenning from partnering software providers: BCMI (dispatch), CiDRA SMARThatch (in-transit sensors), Digital Fleet (truck signaling & concrete data) and Giatec SmartMix (QC). Each explained how their specific technologies contribute and combine to allow for real-time quality monitoring of each load of concrete, from the time it’s batched throughout every step of the delivery cycle, until it’s placed at the jobsite.

BARD’s pursuit of continuous quality improvement exemplifies its position as a thought leader. The producer’s QC efforts are just one part of a larger initiative to improve processes for sharing and mastering business-critical information in our industry.

Mark Power, Director of Customer Success, CiDRA.

Chris Wurtz, Division President, Digital Fleet.

Sarah McGuire, AVP Business Development, Giatec.