While the providers have stepped back from their original claims of huge cost and time savings, they are confidently proclaiming that their systems will become the norm in the first half of this decade. BuildOnline's UK managing director, Mark Oliver, said recently: "Latest research shows that 10% of projects will use it this year. Next year you might see 30-50% of the industry taking it up."
The company is promoting the use of its collaborative software with the claim that it can save companies 0·4-0·7% of the value of the contract. It also says that its processes are managing an impressive combined total of £15 billion of construction.
The BuildOnline system – ProjectsOnline – is an Internet-based collaboration and workflow tool that allows project teams to work with up-to-date information. The theory goes that project teams save time and money through productivity gains in improved communication, reduction of costly errors and the maintenance of a complete and accurate audit trail.
A central document manager allows files to be organised and managed. Workflow tools including RFIs, change requests and submittals can be used to raise and answer questions, and an integrated viewer allows users to view and add comments to documents, drawings and CAD files created. An integrated messaging facility notifies team members of additions by e-mail, fax or mobile text message and has a customisable home area. A complete audit trail chronicles all project documentation and communication. Put another way, ProjectsOnline is a sort of online filing cabinet for project documents and drawings. Crucially, drawings can be reviewed (redlined) with an audit trail for each document.
The company scored a major coup when Metronet – the consortium set to manage the £7.5 billion contract to upgrade and maintain London Underground – selected ProjectsOnline as the strategic platform. It will provide a central location for documentation for major capital works contracts, which will amount to several hundred thousand documents and 350 GB of data.
Hilton Hotel, Gateshead
A major project for BuildOnline is underway at the Hilton Hotel, Gateshead, a project led by Balfour Beatty. As this was a pilot project, agreeing to use the system was not a precondition to tender and nobody was forced to sign up. However, only three specialist contractors opted not to trial the package – primarily because they did not have an IT system. The client, Collingwood Developments, also declined to take part.
This has had an impact on gaining the full benefits of the system reckons Haden Young's project managers, one of the collaborative team on site, who believe that full uptake makes a huge difference. The companies have learned over the duration of the project and there have been practical issues to address, for example, the time of day influences the speed of the system. Even with broadband, the team found it quicker to download documents in the morning – before the US goes online.
Tim Waldram at Haden Young says the project managers have reported that although the full value is probably not being achieved, uptake seems inevitable. "As a company we can certainly see the value of it," says Waldram. "There are definitely advantages."
The biggest of these is information exchange. The redline system allows instant updating of drawings and ensures that each party is working on the most up-to-date version. Indeed, such is the ease of exchanging details that the discipline has been ensuring that only those who need updates get them.
MoD Andover
At MoD Andover the BIW system has been implemented and Southern Electric Contracting project manager Andre Mooney says that his company has had similar experiences. "It has definitely speeded up the communication," he says. "Communication over drawings has been much more efficient. There have been a few downsides. When we started the project, BIW was very new to the market and we've all had to iron out a few problems along the way; that said, they have been ironed out."
A key lesson from the project is that if such a system is to be included all parties must know at tender stage. "I think it's imperative that all firms that bid for a project know that they are expected to go online. That way they can cost whatever software and hardware requirements they might have into the tender. It's no good a specialist contractor finding out after the event that the project is not a conventional paper-led one," he reflects.
Collocation initiatives
At Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, where ProjectsOnline is again being implemented, specialist contractors Emcor Drake & Scull and Haden Young are both on site. With a project value of £210 million, a 70-acre site and several clients to satisfy in this private finance initiative scheme, teamwork has been essential: "Something like this could not be built otherwise," says Mike Harris, deputy project director of partner Haden Young.
It was decided early in the design phase that the project had to be run from site if it were to be successful. "One of the reasons for setting up a team on site was the scale," explains Harris. "On a job like this you need to focus the whole team on the project and one of the best ways of doing that is by getting the team away from the pressures of their office."
Haden Young is also working in a collaborative environment for the Paddington central project, with the Bovis Lend Lease's software platform Hummingbird. "The fact that it's a site-based server makes it much quicker," says Waldram. The documentation was filed into the system at construction stage, but Haden Young reflects that it would have been even more useful if this had been carried out at the design stage of the project.
Horses for courses
James Dunnett at Emcor Drake & Scull reports that the company has worked on a variety of systems now, such as client schemes for the likes of BA. "The most important thing is that the ground rules are established straight away," says Dunnett, group IS manager. "You need to know what information goes where, there's no scope for ambiguity. You really need to think about the process not the software, and interface where it is required. Our experience is that 10% of the capability will give you 80% of the benefits. Keep it simple and robust and make sure that everyone knows what the end game is."
However, while the construction industry is patting itself on the back for turning old school site managers into techno-savvy Internet surfers, Dunnett points out that in reality businesses are playing catch-up. "We will see more and more of these systems but I think take-up will be slower than the providers are predicting," he reflects. "The industry is behind because the systems are a bit antiquated. They've been doing this sort of thing in the oil and gas industries for seven years. It's best for the big projects, where you can use the systems to keep a clear view on what is going on. Ultimately it's still client-led."
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Electrical and Mechanical Contractor
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