Integrated IT systems could provide enormous benefits. But does any company really offer them?
Having IT programs that talk to each other is every construction company's dream. Imagine: an accounts system that can talk to an estimating system, which can link up with a subcontractor bid-analysis package to provide you with reports on where money is spent and how.

Even the time saved by entering data just once makes the prospect of integration very exciting. This is probably why software manufacturers are so quick to claim that they offer an integrated product. But how many genuinely do?

The Construction Industry Computing Association (CICA) is going to find out.

Contractors have been complaining that their back office applications don't link to each other, and this prompted the CICA to start a £120,000 research project on the subject, partially funded by the DTI.

The CICA began work this month, and although it won't report until 2003, it will publish seven phases on its website in the interim. Feedback is welcome.

Ian Hamilton, managing director of the CICA, describes an integrated system as the "holy grail" for contractors but says he doesn't know any general contractor using one. Erik Winterkorn, a CICA director leading the research project, puts his finger on the problem. "Software houses are not keen to rewrite their code so it will integrate with other systems, as this is costly and difficult to do," he says.

What the users say
Winterkorn's first step will be to hear the users' story. He'll consult with major contractors and about 500 smaller firms to learn what integration means to them.

"We want to try to get a picture across the board of what degree of integration is reasonable and maintainable and find out what the options are. Is outsourcing your IT functions to another company a possibility, for example?"

After getting a feel for the problem from the users' side, the CICA will go to the major software houses and ask some detailed questions about the products they claim to offer. Those firms will include SAP, JD Edwards, Deltec, Ramesys, and CBS.

The problem is that contractors need help being better software consumers. They hate exchanging a system that more or less works. And they don't have time to become experts on the whole problem of Enterprise Application Integration (EAI), which has dogged the software industry for years.

"Most companies don't think rationally about procuring software," Winterkorn claims. "With this study we hope to give them a basis to do that, to make them aware of what choices there are. There will also be a set of case studies on software firms and what products they offer, and also on construction companies, so you can see how it has worked for other firms.

"The whole report is geared towards providing guidance and to teach people how to think properly about what solutions are available. Most companies don't have the money to invest to find out the answer to these questions, so we aim to do that for them."

So what of some of the companies that claim to offer an integrated product? Alan Windley is the sales manager for Wessex Software and claims the company offers the first truly integrated suite of back office applications for construction.

"We spent nearly two years researching what it was the industry was crying out for in this area before we began writing the system, and potential customers tell us that they cannot find this approach anywhere else," he says.

Companies don’t think rationally about procuring software. With this study, we hope to give them a basis to do that

Erik Winterkorn, CICA director

Windley explains that rather than having a set of modules linked together, usually through messaging, to provide integration, the Wessex on Windows system works from a core database, with modules such as accounts, document management and estimating sitting on top of it. All modules use the same data, which has to be entered only once.

Massive filing cabinet
Windley says: "Traditionally, back office systems would offer some integration, so you could feed the results of reports through to different modules, but the raw data such as contact details and subcontractor and supplier details would have to be re-entered into each system. We have developed one database, so it's like having one massive filing cabinet that each module, such as accounts, estimating or job costing, can take details from."

Another benefit of the Wessex approach, according to Windley, is that extra modules can easily be added to the core database. "One of our customers wanted a marketing module. Because all the core data that a marketing system needs is already in the database, it was simple for us to build it."

Windley claims that the Wessex system is the only one that has been written from scratch as a seamless, integrated system. "It has taken us about four to five years to get where we are, but we will end up with a totally consistent system. Instead of only being able to open up one module and go into the tree, such as in a browser, you will be able to have a CAD drawing open at the same time as a bill of quantities, for example."

Windley says that companies of all sizes can use the system, and it is available to buy or rent. Buying it means paying an extra annual support charge, while rental is cheaper and includes support. Cost depends on how many modules you choose and how many users there are. Upgrades are supplied free of charge. "A small contractor with only a couple of users could rent the system for about £950 per year," says Windley.

Availability
Implementation time again varies, but Windley says someone used to operating Windows could pick up the basics of the system on a three-day training course. "Implementation takes weeks rather than months," he says.

The core database and modules such as estimating and subcontractor bid analysis are available now. Wessex aims to launch the accounts modules in mid-2002.

Construction software specialist Building Technologies launched a similar product last month. Hyperwise, which took 18 months to write from scratch, claims to offer full integration of applications, from project management to purchasing and payroll.

Lee Murphy, commercial director at Building Technologies, says Hyperwise uses a central database so, as with the Wessex system, the data only has to be entered once. It too is Windows-based.

Murphy's experience of working for a construction company inspired him to develop the system. "The frustration I experienced using other systems led me to think there should be a better way. The construction industry deserves better than the rubbish it has had to put up with until now." He adds that Building Technologies is ready to launch its whole package, including accounts, now. It will add other applications if customers request them.

At about £2500 per user plus a support charge of roughly 10%, Hyperwise is more expensive than Wessex. Murphy says it is aimed at larger companies, from about £2m turnover, and he recommends at least five users for each system. He says that rental is a possibility.

"It is possible to buy bits of the system, but we recommend using the whole package to get the full benefit out of it," Murphy says. "We offer free migration of data from other systems, which only takes a few minutes."

Options for integration

Big Contractors: ERP (enterprise resource planning) systems from, say, SAP and JD Edwards, claim to provide an integrated package, but they can take years to implement and can cost millions. IT consultant Oliver Dennison advises SAP implementation for companies with a turnover of £150m plus. Smaller contractors: It is possible to link systems without going down the ERP route, but it’s a complex process. “Companies have to realise that integration is an ongoing cost. If one application in the integrated system changes then any technology built on that application will have to change too,” says Erik Winterkorn of the Construction Industry Computing Association.

Integration means ...

  • You only have to enter data once
  • You can open documents from different modules at the same time
  • The system will produce reports pulling together information from several different modules
  • Your software company doesn’t complain vigorously about adding modules to your system
  • The communication between the modules is through one database, rather than messaging or links