EADOC Blog

Archive for June, 2011

Trusting your collaborative project management application is crucial to your teams success

Wednesday, June 15th, 2011

When you are implementing a collaborative project management application that will be used by Engineers, Consultants, and Contractors it is important that every participant trust the chosen application. Collaborative project management application not only deliver cost savings but also the benefits of being a trusted 3rd party for managing your projects information.

Data Integrity- When the application is hosted by one of the project participants there is always the possibility that a participant could disable access to other project team members or worse yet alter project records by changing data stored in the database. To prevent this issue from arising the application should be hosted by either the software vendor (SAAS) or a 3rd party hosting provider (ASP).

Application Availability- The application needs to be highly available (24X7). Wether you host the application your self or select a third party like EADOC you should verify that they have redundant data centers and redundant equipment to ensure the application is available 99.99% of the time. The vendor should also provide a Service Level Agreement stipulating when they perform maintenance and when they notify you of this maintenance. Make sure you review maintenance windows as not all vendors conduct maintenance on the weekend or during off hours.

Data Ownership- Before you teams starting using the collaborative project management application your team needs to have established data ownership within their respective contracts. The Data stored in the application should belong to the project participants not the software vendor. With collaborative teams it is important to spell out data ownership at the beginning of the project.

Project Completion- When the project is complete all the project participants will need copies of their respective project data for their records. The vendor should provide a minimum of one copy of the projects data in a format that can be read without having to purchase proprietary software. Adobe pdf is excellent for documents like RFIs, Submittals and Pay Estimates that were stored in the vendors database. Pictures, drawings and other files that have been uploaded should be delivered in their native file format.

Selecting a trusted 3rd party for delivering your collaborative construction project management application increases the use of the application resulting in greater cost savings and improved project control to you.

Eric Law, Founder & CEO of EADOC

Posted in Words from the Founder | No Comments »

6 Ways Your Team Will Benefit from EADOC’s Construction Management Software

Monday, June 13th, 2011

Online Collaboration Software & Construction Project Management Systems are a Necessity, Not a Luxury

In a recent white paper, Alison Way of Think Big Partners (a non-profit group dedicated to the success of entrepreneurs and their businesses) extolled the benefits and growing necessity of on-line collaboration software in the construction business.
The ultimate goal of online collaboration and project management technology, according to Way, is “to facilitate transparent and continuous communication among an entire project team (owners, general contractors, subcontractors, architects, engineers, consultants, suppliers, and the internal staff)”. Secondary goals support this end by enabling project team members to:

Facilitate construction project workflow
Create standards, procedures, and policies
Create a historical archive of information
Enable information availability and control
Improve project control and change management
Improve efficiency in the areas of time and budget

The white paper analysis of an over 1 billion dollar loss that occurred on a 2008 Las Vegas construction project highlights the need for construction project management software programs that are up to the task of today’s project and detail loads.

Let’s take a look at how EADOC is uniquely qualified to aid all 6 of these goals that ultimately lead to money-saving and error-reducing management:

1.EADOC project management software will help you facilitate construction workflow.

Ensuring that vital information is passed to the right people, at the right time, is very important to the construction project management process. At EADOC, our software can help you eliminate long meetings and phone conferences discussing submittals, change orders, and the status of RFIs.

2.Using the EADOC construction project management software will help to streamline procedures and policies followed by all team members.

Construction project management software can make sure that right processes are in place to help eliminate errors. For instance, any file format can be uploaded to the application, with a link to the document right in the notification email.

3.EADOC web based construction management software creates an automatic ‘paperless trail” as you work!

With completely searchable and time stamped document storage available to all the project participants it is easy to keep everyone on the same page. You can access your files from any computer connected to the internet 24 hours a day.

4. Keeping every construction project member in the loop means increased efficiency with EADOC’s software.

Because EADOC’S user permissions are set by you, you can simply add or subtract the names and addresses for those who need to receive notifications on any part of the project. You can easily view a report that will tell you who has received and opened the files, and whose input is still pending. You’ll keep every member of the project in the loop and avoid slowdowns thanks to the vast amount of information flow and control possible with EADOC.

5. Less time and money wasted while searching for new Drawings, RFIs, or Submittals with construction project management software.

EADOC knows that project details can change in a moment and that the more time spent waiting for Drawings, Approved Submittals, or RFI responses, the more money and time is lost. With EADOC’s collaborative benefits, you can be sure that change management happens efficiently and that everyone who needs to know is made aware of the changes.

6.Up to 30% more time saving and significant cost reductions by reducing the need for office supplies and meeting requests.

Find significant cost reductions by greatly reducing the need for paper, face-to-face meeting times, administrative help, and shipping expenses.

Industry watchers know the importance of online collaborative project management for the future of the industry and profitability. View the EADOC demo today to see how EADOC can benefit you!