It Enabled Future Of Construction Field

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

Abstract— Information technology and Information system has widely applied across many industry sectors in order to increase their profit and competitiveness and to reduce unnecessary project cost. Use of IT and related IS have positive and negative effects, but there are more advantages than disadvantages, when it is applied to construction industry sectors. The advantage of using IS are to improve productivity and time efficiency in conjunction with cost savings. The question is how to develop suitable IS, how to apply on a specific project and how system operator can use it most efficiently.

During past decade, the use of IT for information management has been investigated and many researchers reported that it will deliver huge business benefits. Compared with other industry sectors, computerised current applications in construction are not very advanced because there are few reasons for the slow adoption of IS in construction companies.

This paper organised as follows. The first section focuses on what IT means within construction field and why it is difficult in field of construction. The second section describes technology mismatch between IT and construction field. And last section will discuss scope of IT in construction field.

Keywords—IT, IS, Information, construction, innovation, electronic data, EDMS, ROI.

I. Introduction

The construction industry is information intensive industry where huge amounts of documentation are generated and exchanged between the individual (often unique parties) contractually bound to the project. Remarkable advances in information management techniques and more importantly the use of IT on projects, allows the timely dissemination and transfer of project documentation and communication in a coordinated manner. Globalization and rapid technological change will drive the knowledge economic. In recent years globalization strategies have increasingly obtained an important role in strengthening the competitiveness of a country’s economy.

KEY DIRECTIONS

The following key directions have been identified to the successful take up of IT in the construction industry:

a) Maximizing access to shared learning across the construction industry and using knowledge from other industries requiring information from suppliers in electronic form

b) Expecting electronic procurement to be used in all phases of project procurement and facilities management

c) Using advanced tendering systems which provide real time accessible information to all interested parties thereby facilitating speedier interaction

d) Driving process re-engineering through structural changes in procurement processes of governments working with industry to integrate IT throughout the entire supply chain

e) Facilitating the use of project web sites

f) Capturing and sharing information to better understand life cycle costing

g)Adopting systems that share information in a useable form and resolving issues including design copyright, intellectual property rights, confidentiality and commercial advantage.

"Growth of country’s economy by integrating construction and IT"

We are at the dawn of an age of networked intelligence – an age that is giving birth to a new economy, a new politics, and a new society. Business will be transformed, governments will be renewed, and individuals will be able to reinvent themselves .To deliver the broad range of construction projects that meet the demands of a wide range of clients at today’s speed and exacting standards means that the players involved in a construction project must fully utilize all available resources-Information technology (IT) is one such resource. [10]In today’s business environment IT surrounds us and affects all that we do during normal day-to-day business operations and activities. With the consistency change in the underlying technology base and the ease of use of a plethora of applications, so the use of IT has expanded to encompass areas where previously they may been thought unsuitable due to complexity or operational reasons i.e. cost. This change in emphasis encourages us to establish a clear understanding of the nature and role of information technology and the part it plays in ensuring at the both the project and organization levels.

II. ROLE OF IT WITHIN CONSTRUCTION

The functional role of IT can best be considered from three standpoints: the part it plays in each of the various stages of a construction project i.e. pre-tender, post-tender and post-completion. Also, there is a need to consider how IT affects procurement and the eventual routes adopted for each project and organization. Finally, there is a need to consider the impact of IT has on the humans involved in the delivery of the construction project. Discussion on the implementation of IT in a construction project paradigm is necessary since the industry, by necessity, adopts approaches to problems that are different from those used in other industries: indeed the challenges faced by construction organizations differ from those encountered in other industries. Other industries predominantly deliver their product from static production base, with a constant workforce and a supply chain which is uniform over significant periods of time. [3]Construction does not benefit from these three key characteristics: its uniqueness stems in part from the nature of the industry, the flux in client types, the dynamism of the projects and the inherent nature of the organizations and the composite supply chain.

FIG 1:PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION PHASES IN IT

IT Systems and in particular Electronic Document Management Systems (EDMS) have for a long time been touted as the answer to many paper related problems primarily because they seem to offer an opportunity to exercise control over the primarily because they seem to offer an opportunity to exercise Before the implementation of IT and in order to maximize the benefits of adoption it is important to gain an understanding of current working processes and procedures and match these processes and procedures to that of the IT system. An IT system brings together the IT application, the appropriate processes and most importantly the people who will make it work.

FIG2: 4-DIMENSIONS FOR PROJECT IMPLEMENTATION

III. IMPLEMENTING IT WITHIN CONSTRUCTION ORGANISATION

The non-physical activities which take place within construction organizations to be focused around the creation and distribution of project based information and documentation.[2] When choosing and implementing IT, it is vital to understand the overall purpose of the exercise and examine what it is you are trying to solve. The key stages in preparing IT implementation can be described as follows

A)Setting goals and objectives

It is important to assess the needs of the organization and also the needs of the individuals who will be using the implemented system. An example of an objective may be that: ‘the system should be compatible with existing software and provide co-ordination of activities and processes between systems’.

B )Review current document and information management processes

In order to determine how actual IT system will fit within the business it is important to evaluate current working processes .This is an extremely important step in the implementation process as there is a danger that the implemented system will be of no core value should things be done in the same way as they always

have been. Process mapping is a tool which can be used to identify tasks that add value and support

the IT implementation whilst at the same time identifying bottleneck areas that require improvement.

C) Understanding the information and documentation exchanged

Construction organizations create and distribute many thousands of documents on a daily basis. When deciding to implement IT many questions require examination relating to current documentation practices. Great effort should be made to understand the whole process of document creation. After understanding of the whole process, it is then possible to match exiting processes to the working processes ofan IT system. An efficient IT system will bring together the processes and the people who use it.

D) Cost justification of IT

The issue of IT implementation cost and ROI can be a major barrier in the adoption of any IT technology. A decision to implement is often made on a partial cost benefit analysis although at best this analysis is based upon qualitative benefits and not hard quantitative facts. The situation is also exaggerated because IT providers often make greater claims for their products. Indicates that the costs of EDMS in particular are easy to identify but it is the benefits of the systems that are difficult to measure. The cost driven culture of the industry and the inherently small profit margins realized have a profound effect on the uptake of IT resulting in limited resources available for IT implementation projects.

E) Formulating specific requirements (specification)

When a decision to implement IT is undertaken, the choice of system becomes an extremely important factor because this will depend upon the organizations particular needs. After an analysis such as user interface, requirements, system resources needed and the platform for end user collaboration. These are extremely important factors which could affect not only end user usage but also potential favorable increases in collaboration with members of the construction supply chain.

F) IT infrastructure required

After an examination of the IT infrastructure required, enough information will exist that will allow

for the formulation of a system specification.[2] In writing a specification it is a standard practice to list all of the features and functions that the system should have identifies 4 common areas to focus the specification upon

a)Performance requirement

This area focuses upon user volume data, number of users, geographical nature of users, volume of data, document types, and access to documents.

b)Implementation requirements

This area focuses upon system accessibility, roll-out options, pilot stages, training, data take on (does the system incorporate all existing data or does it start from new slate).

c) Operational requirements

The focus within this particular area is based around system availability, roles and responsibilities of the IT team within the organization, back-up requirements, support requirements and system operating procedures.

d) Quality requirements

Quality and security are the main focus within this area with specific emphasis on who is responsible for the security, are there external security issues and what are the system validation requirements?

G) Implementation options

After the specification has been finalized and all options and processes have been examined, the actual suppliers can be short listed and selected through the relevant tendering agreements. How to implement IT will however depend upon the type of system needed. The preferred option for majority of the construction organizations is the selection of a system that meets the majority of their requirements and is a system which can be implemented relatively easily within the organization. Project extranets and EDMS are systems which fit this purpose and are commonly used within

construction organizations although the use and adoption of mobile IT tends to be focused around customized systems given its unique ways of working. The issue of inter-operability between the many IT systems available is a major challenge facing the construction industry and this may well explain the growth in using web-based applications.

FIG3: PREPARING FOR IT IMPLEMENTATION

IV. INTEGRATION OF IT AND CONSTRUCTION

The paper proposes that the use of existing information technologies within the construction industry be extended. It also seeks to encourage participants to adopt innovative technology as it develops.[3]

A)project databases:

A project database contains all the information about a project such as project models and physical attributes, as well as financial and project management data. The project database provides a central pool of information which can be accessed by any project participant, at any time, from any place, and in a form most suited to the participant. Tools such as design and scheduling software can be integrated with the database providing increased functionality as well as saving time and eliminating data re-entry. Where the project database is object oriented, the information describes real objects such as walls, doors or windows, and abstract objects such as decisions. The real objects have attributes or properties including dimensional information, material requirements, fire, thermal or noise ratings and authorship. Abstract objects have attributes including date of creation, authorship and dependence on related objects.

FIG4: DATABASE STRUCTURE AND USER

B)communication networks

Communication networks allow access to a single project database, rather than multiple data sets held by each project participant. These networks may be the Internet or dedicated networks (Intranets and Extranets). The increasing use of the Internet and web browser technology provides access for project participants to a range of databases including the project database, client databases with generic information about their requirements and historic data, and product databases for manufacturers and suppliers.

C)electronic commerce and electronic procurement

Electronic commerce processes can be used for procurement activities including internal and external communication, business transactions and management of supply chains and alliances. With the aim of promoting the wider use of such technologies within the industry, It has been identified two primary areas of action: knowledge development across the industry as a whole improved project delivery through the use of IT tools within individual projects. It acknowledges that the transition from current paper based project delivery processes to an IT enabled delivery process will take time. The journey will involve both incremental changes and major changes involving process re-engineering.[7]This transition can be assisted by Clients and large contractors initially providing their smaller suppliers and subcontractors with access to information through simple technology such as web browsers, with applications provided by the Client or contractor on a web site. Routine communication can occur through electronic mail or facsimile, with the Client or contractor

V. DIRECTIONS FOR IT IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY

For converting the facsimile to an electronic document for communication to others in the supply chain. This process will allow for understanding the potential of IT and how it might best suit their business needs. The cost of purchasing hardware and software, running both paper based and electronic systems, the training of people and adapting business processes can be matched to business outcomes which improve efficiency and viability of the enterprise.

VI. ADVANTAGES AND BENEFITS OF DIRECTIONS FOR IT

The paper provides directions for fundamental change that will contribute to greater integration in the building and construction industry. Reliable benefits are likely to be accured only after relatively long periods. While some industry participants are well advanced in their use of IT, many are not. The achievement of widespread change will take time but provide incremental benefits as it is implemented. For long term gains to be achieved there will be some short term pain in implementing IT such as double handling of information (paper to electronic) and time to learn new systems. This short term pain can be minimized through information and knowledge sharing. The benefits flowing from the wide take up of IT are difficult to quantify.

VII.CONCLUSION

Information technologies have most significant impact on construction industry. First mobile computing device with high-speed wireless network will significantly improves communication between fieldworkers between on-site and off-site collaboration in building design and construction.

Second, automated construction analysis will improves efficiency of constructability review process by reducing significant amount of time that has been required through manual process.

Third, currently developed interoperability system will provide ability to exchange document and share construction data among all the participants in project life cycle.

Lastly, web based operating system that integrates between organization will increase the efficiency of systems and allows better managerial and client oversight. These all systems will continue to integrate management and marketing functions.