5 ways to mitigate risk in building and infrastructure projects

How can technology reduce and resolve disputes in design and construction projects? We provide the normal way and a few more:

1. Cover your rear. It’s not a pretty attitude, but when it comes to risk mitigation, some people still work in this model. Our enterprise software logs transactions automatically and indexes your network for Google-like searches, with the added capability to sort and filter results. And our cloud software maintains a project record that no one can argue with.

2. Prevent conflicts from arising in the first place. As BergerABAM President and Chief Executive Officer Arnie Rusten put it, “Often we can resolve a dispute simply by showing an email that documents our instructions. Newforma Project Center makes it easy, even if that email was generated by someone who’s no longer with the firm.”

3. Make sure everyone is working from current documents. Our software offers a few ways to make sure people are working with up-to-date files. The Newforma Project Cloud collaboration platform is one. Newforma-to-Newforma connectivity is another. Newforma Info Exchange Shared Folders is a third.

4. Work transparently. When everyone knows what everyone else is accountable for, what information they have, and when they got that information, it’s hard to shirk duties or point fingers. The technologies cited above all support transparent workflows.

5. Make more-informed decisions. Our financial and resource planning software enables project managers and senior executives to head off prospective problems by forecasting needs months into the future, instead of just weeks. And our soon-to-be released ability to publish 3D models in the cloud, where they can be viewed and navigated by non-Revit-using team members, will facilitate more-informed decision making, too.

 

BIM is a subset of PIM

The industry’s emphasis on building information modeling might lead us to believe that the model could or should contain all information about a project.

In truth, critical data is being created and exchanged for weeks, perhaps months before a model reaches its first draft.

All of the emails, meeting minutes, Office files, sketches, markups and other documentation leading up to the creation of the model are valuable project information that needs to be captured and searchable for later reference.

And that information continues to develop throughout the design and construction phases of the project.

Yes, the model reflects these discussions. But it cannot manage them. Emails, specifications, RFIs and other forms of project information will never be model elements.

When we at Newforma talk about “project information,” we mean all of the technical information that goes into a successful project.

That’s why we have been expanding the reach of our project information management solution to include BIM, financial and resource data, and other forms of information that executives and PMs must manage if they are to please their clients and run successful business.

RTC North America June 28-30

We’re looking forward to seeing you at the Second North American Revit Technology Conference. It runs from Thursday, June 28, to Saturday the 30th, in Stone Mountain, Georgia. Register here.

You may ask, “What is a company that makes software for project information management doing at a conference focused on building information modeling?” The common element is the word “information.”

There’s a lot of project information in a Revit model that may be more easily managed in some other application. Space planning spreadsheets, for one. Lots of Newforma customers tell us they would rather manage space planning spreadsheets using Excel and Newforma Project Center, then import the data into the model.

Or there may be project information that pertains to the model without being part of it. Think of all those emails documenting design decisions: Wouldn’t it be great to tie those emails to that part of the model?

For all these uses and more, Newforma created its add-in for Autodesk Revit. It facilitates the management of the “I” in BIM.

For a step-by-step tutorial on one aspect of the integration between Newforma PIM software and Revit BIM software, see an AECbytes “Tips and Tricks” column by Matt Tosto of Affiliated Engineers, Inc.

In “Managing Revit Drawing Revisions in Newforma Project Center,” Matt describes how AEI’s Newforma-driven process eliminates tedious manual spreadsheet updates and provides easy access to every current and previous revision of a drawing in a project.

For more demonstrations and conversations, visit the Newforma booth at RTC North America June 28 – 30!