Announcing its strategic partnership with USG Corp., the creator of plasterboard and many other construction materials that have changed the industry, including Sheetrock brand All Purpose, Plus 3®, and other surface finishing products, Canvas, the construction robotics company that empowers people to build in bold new ways, today. The collaboration makes use of two significant technological advancements: onsite robotics from Canvas and knowledge of innovative building materials from USG. 

 

These businesses teamed up to solve the persistent labour shortages, schedule and budget overruns, inconsistent quality, and productivity and safety challenges that have plagued the plasterboard industry for years.

 

Over the past 122 years, USG has invented ground-breaking products and technologies for the building materials industry and holds more than 2,600 active patents. “In partnering with Canvas, we are expanding our ability to use breakthrough technology to advance how our customers are able to finish projects,” said Chris Griffin, President and CEO, USG Corporation. “Combining our sought-after materials and our R&D capabilities with Canvas’s robotics expertise offers great potential for solutions that can revolutionize the drywall industry.”

 

One of the construction processes that requires the greatest labour is plasterboard finishing, but canvas offers productivity levels never before seen. The collaborative robot machines from Canvas, which will be made available to plasterboard contractors in 2022, use AI and machine learning to sense, comprehend, and carry out each project precisely as specified. The machine's arm is made to reduce overuse injuries, which plasterboard finishers frequently suffer from, hence extending the careers of tradespeople.

 

“As an early adopter of the Canvas machine, we see three clear benefits of the system: 1) it makes work safer for our tapers by eliminating dangerous dust, minimizing repetitive motion injuries and reducing accidental falls; 2) the finish is amazing and consistent; and 3) the machine makes the work much faster, improving our productivity metrics and making us much more competitive,” said Jonathan Hughes, Vice President.