“Across many industry sectors, teams and enterprises often seek to automate standard business processes,” says BIW chief executive Colin Smith. “Traditional ‘workflow’ approaches are fine so long as everyone adopts the same, often sequential, approach. But in the architectural, engineering and construction (AEC) sector, for example, common processes such as requests for information (RFIs), technical queries (TQs), instructions and transmittals often vary between different companies and projects, and inputs will usually be required from across an ever-changing network of individuals and organisations.
“Rather than pushing people into adopting processes that might be too complex or rigid, the CPM toolset allows teams to configure BIW Information Channel so that it manages core processes in ways which every team member will find consistent, efficient, flexible and familiar.”
BIW Information Channel is currently used by hundreds of project teams divided across over 2600 organisations. It was not feasible to develop bespoke software to support individual teams, so BIW decided to remodel its core application so that it could accurately match existing business procedures and enable the rapid introduction of new processes. The new CPM functionality retains the ability to handle RFIs, TQs and other common procedures, but expands the range of project, programme and enterprise processes that can now be managed via the Channel.
Already the CPM toolset has been used to create discussion forums, support bid management processes and provide a ‘team mail’ facility. In collaboration with BIW consultants, users are already considering the system for many other procedures, including tender processes, change orders, document and drawing issue and approval, points for clarification, and management of snagging lists.
“BIW can now accommodate a diverse - and potentially unlimited - range of client- and user-defined process requirements from within its core application,” says Smith. “No other AEC collaboration system offers this degree of flexibility and sophistication. Moreover, BIW Information Channel is now perfectly equipped to support organisations beyond AEC project delivery processes; we are already discussing several opportunities where the system might be used as an internal management platform, for example.”
Making BIW Information Channel simpler and more efficient to use, BIW has enhanced its batch processes. Version 3.4 includes a new batch upload facility designed to automate the often laborious task of publishing hundreds of drawings or other documents. Working offline, users can write all the required information on each drawing or document to an Excel file or similar. Once this information is published to the Channel, its batch processor matches each entry with the relevant documents – which could be stored in an internal document management system or in a defined folder on the user’s PC - and publishes them automatically.
Underlining the importance of batch processes, BIW Information Channel also now features a basket icon on the toolbar so that the user can quickly navigate to and activate batch processing. Other version 3.4 enhancements include a facility that, for easy and fast reference, numbers the comments users make on drawings and documents, and a new version of the BIW Viewer application that allows users to apply an online status mark-up ‘stamp’.
Note to editors
- Project collaboration services from BIW Technologies were first employed in 1999 on UK construction projects for Sainsbury. BIW believes it is the European leader in web-based collaboration systems for the construction and property industry, measured by both number of projects and number of users.
- At 23 February 2003, the total number of registered users had reached 22,296, from 2623 different companies. The total number of projects was 1120, with a total capital value conservatively estimated at around £10 billion. The total number of drawings hosted was 327,925; the total number of documents stood at 183,180.
- BIW Information Channel is a sophisticated web-based supply chain integration technology, designed specifically for construction projects or programmes. Each client is provided with a unique, project-specific website created around a knowledge database. Using this, all data can be made available to every project team member – from the earliest concepts and specification, through detailed design, buildability studies, pre-fabrication, construction, maintenance, operation and improvement to the eventual demolition or dismantling of the facility.
- Workflow is defined (www.e-workflow.com) as: “The automation of a business process, in whole or part, during which documents, information or tasks are passed from one participant to another for action, according to a set of procedural rules.”
- BIW, BIW Information Channel and BIW Information Channel: Collaborative Process Management are registered trademarks or trademarks of BIW Technologies Ltd
