Document Distribution and Access for EPC and Construction Projects
We totally get it. We live in the global supply chain era, just like you. In this new paradigm, engineers are working in India, Romania, etc., project management is in Calgary, and the client is in Mexico. Situations like this are incredibly common and aren’t going away anytime soon. The smartest managers and executives understand that global projects need the right technology and processes to integrate global players.
For global or regional project teams, having access to the right documents can mean the difference between sitting on your ass until the India team gets back into the office and then staying late – all because someone forgot to attach the drawing to an email that simply says “See drawing attached.”
These situations happen all the time and they are super frustrating for engineers, partners, suppliers, document control, and clients. On top of that when one interaction or process gets out of control, everybody loses. Clients lose money, document controllers lose credibility, engineers lose sleep, and eventually someone starts to lose business.
Rule number one in managing a global project team is to keep teams informed. The changing project landscape if not communicated or improperly communicated will leave remote teams frustrated, confused, disinterested and ultimately producing sub-optimal work. The remedy is to keep remote teams engaged which requires transparency, over-communication, and on-demand access to the latest project information.
Since transparency and over-communication are organizational commitments that have no gold standard for execution, it makes sense to focus on on-demand access to the latest project information. Access to project data is a concrete, measurable objective that can be fixed in a matter of days or weeks.
On-demand access to documents and project data seems like a tall order. It is. Engineers need access to the latest drawings and specs. Procurement teams need the latest drawings, specs, and equipment lists. Cost control teams need the latest progress and status from engineering, procurement, and completions. PO inspectors need access to check sheets and technical data. Document controllers need access to engineering and supplier files. Project managers need access to all of the aforementioned data in the form of reports.
Providing access to each of these teams is difficult and exponentially more difficult if you are using bad technology to do it. In fact, the wrong technology can doom this effort completely, so be sure to choose technology that is:
- Cloud-based systems offer out-of-the-box global access. Security, reliability and cost savings have come a long way in the last 20 years, so cloud based is probably more economical and secure than something your IT department can cook up.
- Multi-discipline is a must. There are many applications (like ProjecTools) that incorporate document management, cost, procurement, logistics, and completion into a single system. These multi-discipline systems are generally more affordable and more integrated than others.
- Proven industry expertise. Don’t ask a software company that only has experience with residential construction to manage an oil & gas or mining project.
- Role-based permissions. Most technology partners will have role-based permissions that allow remote teams to see what they need and only what they need.
- Multi-project licensing. Don’t fall for the old-school money grabbing licensing scheme. Each project is important and you shouldn’t be penalized for having more or bigger projects.
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