DCP (Dynamic Cone Penetrometer) testing is a highly portable, lightweight soil testing method. It is ideal for shallow tests and can be carried by hand from one location to the next, making it a good choice for applications such as road bed construction and maintenance. However, traditional DCP testing has drawbacks: though the equipment is lightweight, the test requires two people—one to operate the hammer and the other to measure the displacement with each blow. This manual process makes the test quite labor-intensive, and human errors in measurement and recording can make it difficult to obtain consistent results.

The Vertek Smart DCP system takes this portable, low-cost testing method into the 21st century with laser measurement and real-time data acquisition.

Rather than relying on by-hand measurement to track the displacement of the cone, our laser measurement system makes this process both instantaneous and accurate, eliminating the need for a two-person test. Displacement data is transmitted wirelessly and collected via our convenient smartphone app. Where a traditional DCP system would require two people, Smart DCP requires only one person and a phone–yet it allows the test to be completed much faster.

Time and labor savings don’t stop when the in-situ test is completed: rather than having to manually enter and plot your data on your laptop or computer, our smartphone app lets you log data in real-time and gives you access to powerful presentation and analysis capabilities in the field. The raw and processed data can be transmitted by text or email in multiple formats. Like any other app, it can simply be downloaded from the app store on your phone and is available for iOS and Android operating systems.

See the Smart DCP system in action in the video below, and check out our website for more information about this exciting new tech.