60 | THE CLOUD WORDS | Paul Wilkinson


OPP DIGITAL


www.opp.org.uk | APRIL 2011


ometimes accused of being techno-phobic, the construction and property industries’ geographical spread and mobility helped drive the take-up of mobile telephones from the mid-1980s onwards. Blackberrys, iPhones and other smartphones, laptops, netbooks, iPads and tablets have become increasingly common sights, helping communications between the different team members typically involved in project delivery and management. The parallel expansion of wireless internet access means more information is accessed electronically. In just three decades we have switched from post, telex and fax, through to email, and then, from the late-1990s, to secure web-based collaboration platforms (sometimes called ‘project extranets’) to manage construction drawings, specifi cations, correspondence, etc. And this information can also be re-used by facility owners and operators to manage repair and maintenance, support wider facilities management or enable owner/ tenant communications activities within the fi nished assets.


Managing in the cloud S


to manage key workfl ows, from requests for information to issue of formal contract notices. Gone are the days when professionals lived on separate ‘islands of information’. There is now a single version of the truth, with the latest, most accurate information available to the whole team, dramatically reducing errors (and resulting rework and additional costs) caused by reliance on outdated information or a missing email.


Supporting asset delivery For property professionals, such technologies mean stakeholders can


keep a close eye on every stage of the property investment cycle, from the initial conceptual stages, through detailed design and appointment of key contractors and suppliers, to management of construction, ‘snagging’ and, after hand-over, operation and maintenance of the fi nished asset. This becomes particularly important when multiple fi rms are engaged on projects in remote locations.


For example, in late 2008, The Resort Group PLC - a Derby, UK- based developer of luxury resort developments – appointed SaaS specialist BIW Technologies to


This article was written by Paul Wilkinson who worked for BIW from 2000 to 2009. He now runs a tech- nology, PR and marketing consul- tancy, pwcom.co.uk Ltd, focusing on construction and property-related technologies. www.pwcom.co.uk


support the €100m (£82m) design and construction of two beachfront schemes in the Cape Verde Islands, in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of west Africa. More recently, through its association with the Mace Group, BIW was also appointed to support the delivery of a fi ve-star, 180-key hotel resort and spa set on the Amburan Beach on the north shore of the Absheron peninsula, about 35km from Azerbaijan’s capital Baku. Mace is providing project and cost management services on this beach development, which will also include a spa and wellness therapy centre, indoor and outdoor sports and leisure facilities including bowling alleys, a yacht club and restaurants.


Software-as-a-Service Most construction collaboration platforms are offered on a software- as-a-service (SaaS) basis, with the application deployed in a matter of hours, hosted in ‘the cloud’ in a secure facility, with associated project data available 24/7. Authorised users get a login and password and, via a standard web-browser, can then publish, view, and even comment upon and mark-up information relevant to their project role and responsibilities. All system access is time and date stamped, so who did what and when is clear to everyone, reducing the scope for disputes. As well as managing the issue of drawings and documents, etc, these platforms can also be used


Blueprints | and construction information can be stored online for easy access


Another SaaS collaboration vendor, Aconex, supported one of the world’s biggest developments: the US$40 billion, 25 km² development of Yas Island, off the city of Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates. This development included the Yas Marina Circuit, which hosts the Abu Dhabi Formula One Grand Prix, plus hotels, theme parks, golf courses, shopping malls, marinas, apartments and villas. Around 95% of the project team working for developer, ALDAR, had their head offi ce outside the Middle East; in the fi rst three years, over 5,700 people from 380 companies, located in 29 countries, used the system to manage more than eight million documents and correspondence items. ALDAR director Steve Worrell said:


From construction collaboration to tenant communication, cloud-based technologies are changing how we manage our property projects, says Paul Wilkinson.


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