What does content mean for construction?
Businesses in the sector work with a whole host of information that is essential to the daily working practices of any construction company. This includes documents such as contracts, letters, invoices and quotations as well as job sheets and information pertaining to the original bid processes. On top of these are the drawings and plans relating to a vast number of projects as well as databases of customer information.
All of this content is captured within a variety of different applications, from Microsoft Office tools and drawing/CAD systems, to email/telephone devices and third party applications. On top of all of this, consider who in your organisation produces and requires access to this information daily..?
Everyone! From bid teams, designers, architects and surveyors to project managers, site staff and facilities managers, all have as much input into project information and an equal demand to access and use this information.
Despite the complex structures of both project staff and the associated information, many construction companies fail to appreciate the role that technology could play in the battle to manage ever-increasing volumes of information. These companies need to act quickly if they are to stay ahead of the competition, keep up with the changing compliance landscape and achieve excellence in overall corporate governance.
Compliance
Like many industries today, compliance is a key driver behind effective information management and construction companies are no exception.
In fact, The Construction Division was created as part of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) in April 2002 to enable it to better focus activities on achieving the ultimate objective: a significant reduction in accidents and the causes of ill health within the construction industry.
As one of Britain's largest industries, the construction sector is required to take an active role in addressing Health and Safety regulations, not least by providing support, advice and guidance at a national level to the HSE operational inspectors.
To achieve this, construction companies need to develop strategies that enable them to meet the Government's ever-changing Health and Safety targets for the sector, as well as being aware of new targets and requirements.
They must be able to demonstrate at any given time the processes and procedures that are in place to reach Health and Safety standards, and all project staff need to be aware of these. But if information is kept under lock and key at head office, how can these staff access the records from anywhere and at any time, let alone present their case to the HSE?
Freedom of information
The recently introduced Freedom of Information (FOI) Act has had a significant impact on the sector, although many construction companies are not fully aware of the implications.
The FOI Act was introduced on 1 January 2005 and gives individuals or companies the right to request information held by public bodies, promoting openness and transparency. These bodies must deliver this information within 20 days.
A construction company working on behalf of a public body is required to retain and provide information on demand in exactly the same way as public bodies themselves. For instance, a company working on the construction of a school or hospital will be accountable and responsible for documenting and retaining the appropriate information that could, at any time, be requested by a member of the public. Failure to acknowledge this could leave the construction company - not the public body - liable for penalties and fines due to non-compliance.
Although only recently introduced, requests have already been made under the FOI Act for information relating to the planning and construction of Heathrow's Terminal 5. Correct and accurate records kept by all parties involved in the project have enabled the Department of Transport to present the results in the defined 20-day period, but how many other construction companies working on behalf of public bodies could boast the same efficiency in information management?
Improving efficiencies
Project staff based on and off site, as well as third party suppliers operating from other locations, all have an equal right and requirement to access content relating to current, past or planned projects. Recognising this, construction companies need to create a collaborative working environment. This will enable project teams to create, share and manage information and knowledge from anywhere and at any time, ultimately delivering better construction projects to correct timescales, higher quality and without going over budget.
Collaboration is an essential tool for businesses and although collaborative working means different things to different people, essentially it is a way of improving business processes by bringing disparate workgroups and external parties together, enabling them to use the same information and resources and improve communication.
Collaboration has been described by Gartner as "the ability of groups of self selected users to participate in discussions and document sharing". Gartner also stated that "by 2005, enterprises will be collaborative in nature or they won't exist at all." This is all the more reason for the many construction companies who haven't yet pushed content management to the top of business agendas to do so - and quickly.
Turning to technology
The technology exists to manage information across any given construction company, allowing users to retrieve all documents pertaining to a specific project and guaranteeing that none are missing. This information management is possible irrespective of how the information is saved and whether users are office based, remote or third party suppliers operating on completely different networks.
Content management solutions offer intelligent support for storing relevant construction content and recognising the role that this technology can play will not only allow the company to manage information in accordance with compliance demands, but it will also improve efficiencies throughout the organisation to deliver improved projects and service to customers.
The result is one that every construction company strives for - a significant boost to the bottom line. Surely that is enough incentive for anyone.
