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Where are the robotic bricklayers?

constructionphysics.substack.com

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Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#51

Post by Guest42 »

egh wrote: post #28

The great contempt that computer people have for the skills that every human brings to the jobs that the do is always on display here. We haven't automated driving; we haven't automated picking tomatoes; we haven't automated bricklaying; we can't automate cooking a fucking hamburger. But they are completely convinced that it's just around the corner, because they are full of contempt for the skill and intelligence of…

I see this pretty frequently in manufacturing. Oftentimes, larger products will have curves, design changes, layering complexities, and judgment calls that simply can’t be performed via machine, further, the parts will come in at different times and assembly lines themselves will have to be flexible and optimize for the given real estate.

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#52

Post by andrewmcwatters »

pvorb wrote: post #46
andrewmcwatters wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I don't have contempt for the skills; I have great respect for the skills. I have contempt for the prices of things. If construction costs are cheaper than ever (are they really?) why can't I buy a box to live in without spending $300,000? Why is the permits process nationally broken? And despite being skilled, that doesn't mean they're informed: why do contractors not know what they're supposed to do? Why do the peo…

Construction costs are cheaper than ever? The prices have skyrocketed in the past year. Is this something special to Germany? I would've expected that the pandemic shows equal effects elsewhere.

I'm just saying this because every but-actually poster says something like this, but I think homes come with more amenities now than they did in the 70s, so buying a home isn't really any cheaper adjusted for inflation.

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#53

Post by elhesuu »

andrewmcwatters wrote: post #34
egh wrote: post #28

The great contempt that computer people have for the skills that every human brings to the jobs that the do is always on display here. We haven't automated driving; we haven't automated picking tomatoes; we haven't automated bricklaying; we can't automate cooking a fucking hamburger. But they are completely convinced that it's just around the corner, because they are full of contempt for the skill and intelligence of…

I don't have contempt for the skills; I have great respect for the skills. I have contempt for the prices of things. If construction costs are cheaper than ever (are they really?) why can't I buy a box to live in without spending $300,000? Why is the permits process nationally broken? And despite being skilled, that doesn't mean they're informed: why do contractors not know what they're supposed to do? Why do the peo…

Why do you assume construction costs are the only factor that drives property value?

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#54

Post by avgDev »

andrewmcwatters wrote: post #34
egh wrote: post #28

The great contempt that computer people have for the skills that every human brings to the jobs that the do is always on display here. We haven't automated driving; we haven't automated picking tomatoes; we haven't automated bricklaying; we can't automate cooking a fucking hamburger. But they are completely convinced that it's just around the corner, because they are full of contempt for the skill and intelligence of…

I don't have contempt for the skills; I have great respect for the skills. I have contempt for the prices of things. If construction costs are cheaper than ever (are they really?) why can't I buy a box to live in without spending $300,000? Why is the permits process nationally broken? And despite being skilled, that doesn't mean they're informed: why do contractors not know what they're supposed to do? Why do the peo…

Cost of lumber, cost of land, cost of equipment, cost of permits, cost of inspections.

It really isn't a box for $300k. You can buy a mobile home for what $60k?

Permit process isn't broken.....this is a view often held by incompetent contractors. I have performed various jobs like building retaining walls, bathrooms, electrical, decks and never had an issue as long as my work was up to code.

Permits can protect a homeowner, when the contractor bails without finish the work.

But back to why a home can be $300k, it is a lot of work and materials. From an article, "According to NAHB, the average material cost to build a house is $296,652, with the average square footage of a house being 2,594. That means your cost per square foot is $114.36 ($296,652 / 2,594)."

You are underestimating how much it costs to get lumber, copper(can use pex), brick, concrete etc.

You sound like someone saying, I can have a wordpress site for $1000, but why does it cost $500k to build an ecommerce platform.

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#55

Post by chrisseaton »

dalbasal wrote: post #23

Great read. This kind of reminds me of auto manufacturing. It's almost unintuitive how difficult, expensive & error prone paneling is. Also painting. Stamping out panels, painting and installing them is a very hard job to do with robotics. Most of the space, treasure and expertise invested into an auto factory is panel related. The "possible, but perpetually difficult" space can be a deep valley for robotics, it seem…

> ...And bricklaying, while conspicuous and important, is still just one job in construction.

My understanding is that bricklaying is a bottleneck. You can do things before bricklaying, and things after, but not really at the same time.

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#56

Post by scotty79 »

aaron695 wrote: post #26
glasss wrote: post #6

I recall finding the below blog post on HN not long ago which I think pairs well with this. https://austinvernon.eth.link/blog/construction.html

This should be required reading for probably anyone who votes. This quote is my take away - "Almost every advancement in construction is small enough for a man to carry"

Not quite. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plattenbau

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#57

Post by coldacid »

mavhc wrote: post #44
spyckie2 wrote: post #31

The value of work is not in the work done; it's in the decisions being made. It's the ability to handle edge cases, to work your way through ambiguity, to "unstuck" a stuck situation, and to resolve tricky unforeseen issues. If you build a robot that only handles the main workflow and can't handle any of the exceptions, you're not automating anything; you're building a convenience tool. Basically, you're removing som…

Not destroying your body lifting heavy weights for 50 years seems like something people might like. We automated looking after the house after it's been built, no need for people scrubbing floors and clothes any more, freed up 40% of the workforce. My partially automated vacuum cleaner, clothes washer, dish washer, food cooker, water heater, all work well.

>Not destroying your body lifting heavy weights for 50 years seems like something people might like.

And that's why the exoskeleton system mentioned in passing in the article is more popular with construction labourers than any of these robots.

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#59

Post by pvorb »

version_five wrote: post #43
spyckie2 wrote: post #31

The value of work is not in the work done; it's in the decisions being made. It's the ability to handle edge cases, to work your way through ambiguity, to "unstuck" a stuck situation, and to resolve tricky unforeseen issues. If you build a robot that only handles the main workflow and can't handle any of the exceptions, you're not automating anything; you're building a convenience tool. Basically, you're removing som…

What you're saying resonates for so many new products. I find that most time or labor saving ideas save time on something that is not actually the problem, or address a charicature of the actual workflow. I dont think it means we should give up and stop trying, rather that its critical to test with real users IMO before trying to sign deals on a product that doesn't make sense.

And sometimes the things that are automated were the only thing that was pleasant. It's not true for laying bricks because the heavy lifting makes it unpleasant.

Re: Where are the robotic bricklayers?

#60

Post by orev »

andrewmcwatters wrote: post #34
egh wrote: post #28

The great contempt that computer people have for the skills that every human brings to the jobs that the do is always on display here. We haven't automated driving; we haven't automated picking tomatoes; we haven't automated bricklaying; we can't automate cooking a fucking hamburger. But they are completely convinced that it's just around the corner, because they are full of contempt for the skill and intelligence of…

I don't have contempt for the skills; I have great respect for the skills. I have contempt for the prices of things. If construction costs are cheaper than ever (are they really?) why can't I buy a box to live in without spending $300,000? Why is the permits process nationally broken? And despite being skilled, that doesn't mean they're informed: why do contractors not know what they're supposed to do? Why do the peo…

The price consumers pay for something has nothing to do with the cost of producing it. Not counting the cost of the land itself, an identical house built in the city costs the same in hours and materials as one in the country. Price is determined by one thing, and one thing only: how much other people are willing to pay for it (i.e. the market sets the prices).

The costs vs sale price are relevant to the builder in making the decision on whether to build and whether to sell, as they wouldn’t do it if they’re going to lose money.

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