Abax Contracting Pty Ltd has reaffirmed its leadership in the provision of state of the art construction services, being the first company in Australia with Trimble Stratus drone technology.
The team from SITECH Solutions were onsite to assist them with their first flyover, which was set at 35 metres altitude.
A relatively small job for Abax, the 5-acre site at Kellyville will be subdivided into 45 lots for housing to be constructed by Clarendon Homes.
“Contractually, civil contractors are required to provide progress surveys on their projects and Trimble Stratus will produce these for Abax,” said Jack Widdowson, Abax Project Engineer, about the company’s latest purchase.
“We can also easily provide project update photos to clients who can log in to view month by month progress,” he said.
“Stratus will save us a lot of time on site surveying. It will be used in confirming natural surface models and stockpiles, and allows for fast and accurate progress claims.
“In addition there is the safety aspect,” he added. “You don’t need to have a surveyor walking about on site if you have machinery around.”
Trimble Stratus is so easy to use.
“Ten Aeropoints – ground control points – are included in the pack with Stratus,” says Rhys Geerligs, Survey and Software Sales, SITECH Solutions.
“The Aeropoints are strategically placed around the site and you fly the site with the drone on a preset flight path. Collect the Aeropoints and upload the Aeropoint data and drone images to Trimble Stratus. The dataset is processed and returned within hours, allowing you to analyse and share site maps and models quickly and easily.”
ABOUT ABAX
Abax Contracting is a civil contracting-based company that services the needs of a multitude of clients adventures in and around the greater Sydney Metropolitan Area.
With a broad business focus, from civil contracting to land acquisition and development, Abax has an extensive range of earthmoving equipment and resources allowing them to undertake a large range of residential, commercial and industrial civil projects.
Established in 1968 by John Baxter as a compressor hire company, Abax soon grew to offer a vast range of plant and equipment hire, general contracting and trenching services to Sydney’s ever-growing suburban fringe.
Abax introduced an impressive fleet of Hydraulic Excavators into the market place in the early 1980s. Toward the end of that decade, Abax expanded operations to include extensive quarrying and landfill operations in Sydney’s West.
The early 1990s saw the company move into demolition work, undertaking impressive works such as Harbourside shopping complex redevelopment at Darling Harbour.
CONSTRUCTION TECHNOLOGY PIONEER
To this day a modern fleet of earthmoving plant remains the centrepiece of Abax Contracting and under the direction of Matt Baxter, the company prides itself on its leadership in construction technology.
Abax has enjoyed a great partnership with SITECH Solutions over the past 12 years which has contributed to the company’s pioneering position within the civil contracting industry in Australia.
Not only Australia’s first with Trimble Stratus, Abax was also the first in the nation with the Trimble Connected Community (TCC) upon its release.
TRIMBLE STRATUS – THE LOGICAL SOLUTION
When looking for drone technology, the obvious choice for Abax was Trimble’s Stratus.
The solution is seamless for Abax as it integrates with all of the Trimble technology that they currently have in place, such as their Trimble Business Centre – HCE. The data created through Stratus can then be used for their Trimble 3D GPS Systems for excavators and graders, Trimble Site Rovers and Trimble Connected Community; allowing information sharing in real-time using the Internet and making efficient, integrated data management a reality.
“Trimble Stratus is relatively inexpensive compared to the alternatives and more efficient as well. While the dataset is being processed autonomously you can work on other projects, saving you time and money,” said Rhys Geerligs.
“Once the images are uploaded, the dataset can usually be processed within a few hours whilst other solutions take all night to process before the data is available.”
The system has three filters – one standard no change filter, one that removes trees, cars and machines; and a third filter that flattens to the bare ground.
ABOUT TRIMBLE STRATUS
Trimble Stratus software helps civil contractors use drones to map, measure and share accurate information about their worksites and assets. With Stratus, you can make quicker decisions, avoid mistakes and grow profits by always having the right information on hand.
With Trimble Stratus you can:-
Confidently Plan and Estimate
Know what you’re quoting: conduct your own site surveys before the job begins and whenever changes occur
Survey Frequently and Faster
Get accurate, up-to-date topographic surveys whenever you need without having to bring in a survey crew
Communicate Effectively
A visual timeline keeps everyone on the same page
Track site changes, avoid crossed wires and resolve disputes quickly
Take Control
Save on consultants and avoid information bottlenecks; get answers to questions yourself with an intuitive, web-based tool
Calculate Site Volumes
Calculate overall material volumes added or removed from pits, stockpiles, cells, drainage channels etc.
Conduct Design Checks
Upload design files to compare actual surface to design surface and track progress
Easily measure distances, slopes and heights to compare with site measurements.
You can learn more about Trimble Stratus here or call Sitech Solutions on 02 6788 2155.
LINKS AND RECOMMENDED READING
You can also find this article on sitechsolutions.com.au HERE and read more about Trimble Stratus Drone Technology on Trimble.com HERE
