Semcon’s research project receives international attention

Semcon started the BiFi research project (Bärighetsinformation genom fordonsintelligens – Load bearing information through vehicle intelligence) in 2010, together with Klimator. In 2012 it became a demonstration project for the Swedish Transport Administration and in the spring of 2015 the Finnish Transport Agency decided to implement BiFi as a demonstration project.

The system generates dynamic bearing information for gravel roads during the spring thaw season, and shows great potential for streamlining transports in the lumber industry. Each year, the spring thaw causes serious problems for the transport sector and many gravel roads are subjected to restrictions due to decreased load bearing capacity. With better information, the time with restrictions can be reduced. The need to estimate load bearing on the gravel road network in real time is therefore great.

"The Swedish Transport Administration’s demo has shown successful results in Sweden since 2012 and it is fantastic to see that the Finnish Transport Agency also sees potential in the service," says Magnus Andersson, project leader at Semcon.

“BiFi has started to be commercialized. This is exactly how we want to work with R&D. Through research, we are sharper and offer cutting-edge skills to our customers,” says Anders Sundin, head of research and development at Semcon.

“BiFi has been a very interesting demonstration project in Finland. BiFi gives us more information about which roads we should prioritize for maintenance, which helps us save money and streamline our work. Real-time information to our drivers during the spring thaw facilitates their work and we have received very positive feedback,” says Tuomas Toivonen, Head of Unit - Asset Management at the Finnish Transport Agency.

Read more about the project:

Listen to Swedish Radio’s report about the project's benefits and success: http://sverigesradio.se/sida/artikel.aspx?programid=83&artikel=6150509

Article in Future by Semcon magazine http://bit.ly/1H3bxB2 (pdf)

BiFi project’s website http://bifi.se

Magnus Andersson, Project leader, Semcon, +46 736-840 983
Anders Sundin, Technical Director, Engineering Services Nordic, +46 733-989 635

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