Holcim Invests in UK's Cloud Cycle, Deploying AI on Over 150 Mixer Trucks

en.Wedoany.com Reported - On September 9, Swiss building materials company Holcim announced an investment in UK technology company Cloud Cycle and plans to further deploy its real-time concrete quality monitoring technology across its global fleet. The system has already been installed on more than 150 ready-mix concrete mixer trucks operated by Holcim in the UK, Italy, and Switzerland, continuously monitoring and optimizing concrete quality and mix proportion control during concrete transport and delivery through onboard sensors, edge computing, and machine learning.

The Cloud Cycle system extends the scope of concrete quality monitoring from the production plant to transport vehicles and the final delivery site. During vehicle operation, onboard sensors continuously collect concrete status data, which is processed by edge computing systems and machine learning models to track quality changes and mix proportion status during transport. Holcim stated that the system has already been used in its ready-mix concrete transport operations and will be rolled out to more vehicles with this investment.

The system is also integrated into Holcim's existing digital quality management system. Holcim currently also deploys Q-Predict, a real-time cement performance prediction tool. With the introduction of Cloud Cycle, the quality monitoring nodes will further cover a continuous process from production to transport and delivery. The Cloud Cycle system is also used for quality management in the transport of Holcim's ECOCycle and other circular materials and low-carbon concrete products.

Founded in 2019, Cloud Cycle's core technology targets the ready-mix concrete transport process. Unlike the traditional model in which quality testing is completed at the batching plant before transport, this system is deployed directly on mixer trucks, continuously acquiring data during transit so that a continuous quality record can still be formed before the concrete reaches the construction site. Holcim's investment will be used to accelerate the rollout of this solution across the company's global fleet, but a complete deployment timeline has not yet been announced.