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e-projects
E-Projects or Project Extranets or Project Hosting Projects on the Web ? An information Article by Andrew McLeman FRICS Whole projects on the web? - Haven't you noticed that drawings are nearly all CAD anyway? The same with reports and specs they are mostly either PDF's Word or Excel! or other systems that can be converted. The interchange initially between Professionals and then Contractors and then later sub contractors is more often now by electronic means - why just not take it a little further? - Imagine not having to print out all drawings for all persons? If consultants, contractors and sub contractors (some of whom only need initial access for pricing) could get the info direct from the web would that not be easier? Just think how many trees are needed to create the average NBS spec! Think of the savings in paper, ink, postage, packaging and storage alone! The industry standard is to 'push' out all the information, these systems allow people to 'pull' only what they need! Take it a stage further and make all reports, minutes, progress photos, cost reports , Bills of Quants, Variations, even web cams etc. all being available or restricted depending on project hierarchy to separately password restricted levels? Think how much 'bumf' is 'shoveled out' to all parties when they only want their bit! Just think of the meetings that could be saved with an efficient and private intercommunication tool! You can ensure that all members of the team have at all times access to the most up to date information. In practice only the Major Projects use this sort of system at present, and its probably true that it falls down mainly at sub-contractor site level as they are mainly not equipped yet to deal with information this way. The fault perhaps lies with Main Contractors trying to impose systems, but not helping sub-contractors with the implementation. While it seems to be a good idea, it is just too much trouble to change the systems even if it is more efficient. Some Questions I hear you ask? Q. But do QS's Contractors, Sub-contractors have CAD? A. They don't need it! - Free AutoCAD
viewers (e.g. for DWF files 'AutoDesk
DWF Viewer' or even better Autodesk
Design Review 2007 - which even allows measurement) of for DWG's
"Autodesk DWG True View") which allow anyone with
a computer to view or print out drawings, are already easily available for
free download.
(e.g.- quite often while you will still need drawings for your part of the
job - you just need a quick look at say a services drawing, but you don't
require a paper copy. Print companies such as Service
Point provide a service where they are linked to project
extranets and will print and deliver drawings the same day. A -Well that must be very few by now - It is the fairly recent spread of broadband that has made project extranets now more viable- Q. What about Security? A. The project Extranet is a closed network
only available to those involved in the project and invited to participate.
The Project Manager would determine the levels of access and passwords.
(e.g. a specialist sub contractor could have access to the relevant drawings
and spec, but not any financial info.) Someone 'surfing' the internet and
landing on the site 'by accident or even on purpose ' would still not be
able to access any information. A. Why not !- they can go out in 'read only' fashion or as spreadsheets Q. But what if 'Someone' refuses to play ball? A. No big deal - just revert to paper for him!! Paper will always still be needed for certain things anyway! - (For example you'll still need drawings for those site 'promotional' photos where a chap, or perhaps often a girl, and a colleague (both wearing hard hats of course!) point to the drawings while looking into the middle distance!!) Q. Where do I get the drawings 'viewers'? A. From our list of viewer software below:-
Adobe Acrobat Viewer- Free
Download allows viewing of original
documents ".pdf" files. (PDF = Public Document Format. ) Any document can* be
converted to "pdf" and viewed 'just as' the original fonts,
colours, pictures and layouts. Some More Questions and Answers Q. Where do I find Project Hosts, what services do they provide and how much does it cost? A. See our listing below of various PROJECT HOSTS (discovered to date). Note there are others - these are some of the ones I have come across so far- they all offer different services, and it may depend on the size of the project, security issues, and the like. Why not try out one of the free ones to start with - you have nothing to lose? The cost is not that easy to determine until you use it. Most companies charge based on the storage used, and determining that in advance is not all that easy. (e.g. If you assume an average drawing is about 0.5Mb - you would get 200 drawings to 100MB.) Your usage might depend also if you kept or archived earlier revisions, and a whole host of other factors including what info was held. (Our 'guide' costs use the estimated cost for a £5m project lasting one year.- Prices can change - these are approx prices always check the current rates at the websites + you could negotiate special deals?)
INTERNET HARD DRIVES ?
Q. How much space will a project need? A. Well how long is apiece of string! ("Twice half its length" - for those that didn't know!) Of course it depends on the project size and duration, although unless you needed to track every revision and document by date, much of the redundant info could be cleared off from time to time and so even 100MB could probably be 'workable' for a small project. As for any cost - while benefits would be gained by design teams it is very doubtful that they would be keen to pay the fees! It is more likely that this will be Client driven (and paid for), though they may expect' keener fees! - Management Contractors will also drive this forward due to the efficiencies gained, expecting the client to pay of course! Conclusion Despite the still very slow take up, this 'revolution'
is coming whether you like it or not - You
had better be prepared to go with the flow rather than against it! - Why not
pick a small project in your organisation and try it yourself with one of
the free services? Please also feel free to Comment - Provide New Information/corrections
and your experience - All feedback much appreciated + some will be published Andrew McLeman FRICS
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