The construction industry is currently struggling to find a standard for electronic data management among the frustrating plethora of systems available. CADWEB, C3, Hummingbird: the list is endless. These systems manage all forms of data, such as drawings and memos, and allow them to be accessed by authorised members of a project team or internally by authorised staff. As a result of the number of systems available, contractors and consultants often end up using a different one for each project, which is costly and time consuming.
Several firms have taken the bull by the horns. Ove Arup & Partners, for example, developed its own data-management system, Columbus, which it offers free to the construction industry. And HBG has completed the first stage in selecting a company-wide system that it hopes will become the industry standard.
Last October Graham Cash, HBG’s South-east regional director, decided that he needed a single system to manage his company’s project information and internal documents. He wanted the system to manage drawings and data for each project, no matter the size or complexity, and allow their transfer around the project team.
But the ideal system also had to link up with HBG’s existing internal network – in effect, managing all the firm’s knowledge. It had to be easy to use, compatible with Microsoft software and the CAD programs the firm uses, and attractive to other members of the project team, such as consultants and specialist contractors. “We were wary of the Betamax scenario and wanted to back the winning horse,” he says.
Cash created a project team to avoid the Betamax scenario. HBG’s size was a resource in itself, so Cash called on other divisions for help. The result was a “long list” of 12 programs from which the “VHS” model was to be selected.
The next step was to get detailed information on those 12 programs’ strengths. Cash drew up a questionnaire for each software company.
As well as questions about the company, its clients and users, Cash asked whether the software was designed for the Internet or just adapted for it.
The selection process
In keeping with the nature of the investigation and the companies involved, Cash sent out the questionnaire electronically – although he was somewhat disturbed when some of the forms were returned on paper, having been completed by hand. At this stage, he hoped to be left with a shortlist of three. But his job was harder than expected as there were five systems that stood out: Livelink, SER, V9 Creator by BSOFTB Technologies, Primavera and CADWEB. It was time for face-to-face meetings with the contenders.
The candidates were invited to HBG’s offices to give a two-hour presentation. In some cases, Cash visited their offices for extra insight. It was vital that he choose the right product. “Because we would be employing the systems at the workplace, it would be mission-critical. If the system fails, it is not long after that the projects fail,” he says.
From the shortlist of five, two programs came out on top: SER’s Electronic Data Management system and Open Text’s Livelink. Cash liked SER’s industry focus and that it already had a number of project-orientated users, such as Mowlem, Foster and Partners, Railtrack and Amey.
The winner, however, was Livelink. Although not fully geared up to handle the project data used in construction, it proved very easy to use. Cash was also impressed that international pharmaceutical giant GlaxoWellcome had installed it. Further investigation showed that Livelink could be tailored to suit individual construction projects. He was particularly impressed with a “ticker-tape” news feature that gives out instant project information.
Security was crucial. Cash wanted the information held on an external server and managed by a reliable independent outfit. Cash is now in talks with BT about an externally hosted service where BT is the only company with administrative rights.
Surprisingly, cost was not a defining consideration. Cash would not disclose how much HBG intended to spend across the company and felt there was little to choose between the two final contenders on a project basis. The cost benchmark was the Proteus
data management system, which was used on the £22m Scottish Mutual office project in Glasgow, which cost £100 000 over 18 months. Cash worked out that the benefit on a £50m scheme with an estimated 3000 drawings was £282 200: a manual system would cost £382 200 in printing and circulating drawings, whereas an electronic data management system would do the job for £100 000.
Putting theory into practice
But at the end of the day, Cash was won over because Livelink was designed for the web. “We felt this was the way things were going,” he says.
Now that Cash is nearly all set up, the next step is to complete the development work and use the enhanced Livelink on a project. Cash is looking for a project where the client and all the other parties welcome the full use of electronic data management. “On a lot of electronic data management sites they adopt it in part or [just in] principle. They might just use it as an internal system or as a sophisticated drawing register,” he says.
The implementation of a single electronic data management system is just a part of HBG‘s IT plans. There is the usual desire to communicate with specialists and suppliers electronically, but HBG also wants to develop its already sophisticated 3D modelling capability to link up with the new data management system.
Cash is hopeful that he has found his winning horse. And in the true spirit of Egan and the current trend for sharing information, he is happy to speak to other contractors about his findings if that will bring the prospect of an industry standard any nearer.
