Murray Lodge, vice president of construction for Topcon Positioning Systems (TPS), is very pleased with the job site results of Topcon’s 3D-MC2, a one-of-a-kind dozer machine control technology. Some of the top construction companies are using Topcon Positioning Systems’ 3D-MC2 system and reporting productivity gains more than twice that of regular 3D machine control systems, according to the manufacturer.
“We’re talking about a unique technological innovation. Think of a countdown for a rocket launch,” he said: “4 — Four times faster than a standard dozer; 3 — three times smoother than any machine control; 2 — two times the speed of any 3D dozer system, and; 1 — one dozer doing the work equal to two 3D dozers,” Lodge said.
The technology driving 3D-MC2 combines hydraulic control software, inertial sensor technology and GNSS receivers to provide more than 100 blade position checks per second (about five times higher than the industry machine control average).
“Topcon was the first company offering contractors the option of going stakeless at every phase of the job with 3D GPS machine control systems. It now is the first company to combine the best science and engineering has to offer to break through the last barrier of construction productivity — speed.
“With Topcon’s GPS + GLONASS technology, productivity was dramatically increased due to precise positioning and accuracy. Now, with 3D-MC2, increasing the dozer speed and improving the accuracy and grade smoothness adds additional savings in time and money on every job,” he added.
More work in less time is what 3D-MC2 delivers, he said, “That means less wear and tear on the machine, less operating time on individual jobs, less fuel usage, and most importantly, more time to spend working in other areas to complete jobs ahead of schedule.”
The primary benefit of having the option of being able to grade twice as fast as normal gives contractors an “incredible competitive edge,” Lodge said. “If a contractor can use a single dozer on a job instead of two and do the same amount or more in less time… that is true savings that’s easy to measure.”
For more information, call 925/245-8300 or visit www.topconpositioning.com.
