【建設DX】AIが変えるアメリカのセメント・コンクリート製造の最前線

米国産のセメントやコンクリート産業において、AI（人工知能）の導入が大きな注目を集めています。製造プロセスの最適化から品質管理、さらには脱炭素化に向けた配合の改良まで、伝統的な資材メーカーがテクノロジーによってどのようにアップデートされているのか、その動向が示唆されています。

Meta’s AI for concrete model can help suppliers more quickly incorporate U.S. materials into their mixes through an approach called adaptive experimentation.

Proposes high-potential candidates: The AI suggests new mixes most likely to meet target specifications and can compare performance between U.S.-made and foreign materials

US imports 22% of its cement

In 2024, Portland and blended cement were produced in 99 plants in 34 U.S. states, led by Texas, Missouri, California, and Florida. Nevertheless, there was significant import reliance. Net imports were 22% of total consumption, with the major source countries being Turkey (32%), Canada (22%), and Vietnam (10%). U.S. exports of cement last year were negligible.

https://www.constructconnect.com/construction-economic-news/... (https://www.constructconnect.com/construction-economic-news/key-material-inputs-to-construction-materials-is-the-u.s.-dependent-on-imports).

I'm assuming this isn't for national security reasons, probably more to help the domestic industry deal with tariffs. I hope Meta used their extensive connections to the government.

Awesome. People take concrete for granted. Even at small scales (e.g. your patio) with formulas provided on the cement bag, concrete can go wrong (crazing, scaling, cracks). There's a lot of unappreciated craft in the work, not only in the composition and mixing, which is what this research seems dedicated to, but also in the placing, leveling, curing, finishing.

They sure are stretching to find a way to make this have something to do with being pro-America.

As a result, producers need a way to rapidly explore and validate new formulations without spending months in the lab.

How do you bypass the normal process of pouring test articles and testing them months and years after cure? This is fundamentally a research activity that needs to conduct verifiable science. Not something you can guess at with an LLM.

Tangentially related, but there is a new generation of trucks that mix the concrete on-site. They can output small batches and change the mix on the fly. They solve a lot of headaches!

https://cementech.com/volumetric-technology/ (https://cementech.com/volumetric-technology/)

Wet cement is kind of sloppy, so this makes some sense.

Hand-held devices for testing concrete properties would be more useful. Most concrete problems come from a bad mix - too much water, not enough cement, etc. Concrete testing usually involves cutting a core out of the poured slab and sending it to a lab. Something where you stick a probe in the mix and can reject it before pouring would help. Here are some on-site concrete testers.[1] They're heavy and a pain to use.

There should be an app for this. But that's so last-decade.

[1] https://store.forneyonline.com/concrete-testing-equipment/fr... (https://store.forneyonline.com/concrete-testing-equipment/fresh-concrete-test-sets)

Wrong day to release this. I had to read halfway through the release before realizing it’s legitimate.

Only (April) fools would trust Facebook's technology with anything as safety critical as construction work.

I love this concept but the introduction is very odd. It feels like the first, third and 4th paragraphs make the same point (1/4 of cement is imported). It gets better as it gets technical.