Product category:
Building and Site Management
News Release from: Autodesk | Subject: Autodesk Buzzsaw
Edited by the Buildingtalk Editorial
Team on 17 January 2008
How the Oatlands regeneration saved
GBP212m
Autodesk case study about how their project management software was used in the Glasgow Oatlands regeneration project, streamlining operations and so saving time and costs.
Hard Hats, Boots and Laptops How Gladedale is bringing technology to the building site to manage an extensive Glasgow regeneration scheme Until recently the sight of a laptop computer amid the mud and mayhem of a building site was as unusual as spotting a hard hat at a wedding
This article was originally published on Buildingtalk on 29 May 2003 at 8.00am (UK)
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However, gradually housebuilders are recognising the benefits of extending their IT beyond the comforts of headquarters or regional offices and taking it right to heart of the operations - to the site offices.
This quiet revolution is being driven partly by the rise in the number of large, complex projects - often involving the regeneration of urban brownfield land.
In some ways, the GBP212 million regeneration of the Oatlands neighbourhood of Glasgow is typical of these schemes.
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Situated on the south bank of the River Clyde, about a mile south-east of the city centre, Oatlands is being reborn as a desirable new residential area with around 1,275 new houses surrounding the mature Richmond Park and overlooking Glasgow Green on the other side of the river.
The programme includes a range of local community facilities such as a family pub/restaurant, shops, public hall, allotments and improvements to an existing school.
But the unusual aspect of the Oatlands project is that currently, the entire development is mainly in the hands of just one housebuilder - Gladedale.
This means that administration and day-to-day overheads of running of the project is enormous.
Gerry Smith, Gladedale construction manager, estimates that until recently he had, "around 2,000 drawings and documents on my desk and in surrounding files".
Yet, by introducing PCs and laptops and Autodesk Buzzsaw collaborative project management software, especially tailored for the construction industry, the running of the project is now an exercise in best practice and his desk is clear.
In fact, Gladedale has become the first housebuilder in Scotland to invest in Buzzsaw and Oatlands is the first site to use the solution.
Now, from any of the three Oatlands site offices - as well as from Gladedale's regional office in Stirling - authorised personnel can access any drawing or any other project documentation at any time.
This makes drawings instantly available once they are finished or revised, it ensures everyone is working to latest versions and by turning the project to an almost paperless operation, it offers a greener and far more cost-effective alternative to the usual paper, printing and postage delivery requirements of disseminating construction information.
Busy site.
The Gladedale Group is a growing holding company with a range of subsidiaries - until recently these included Bett Homes, Furlong Homes and Furlong City to name a few, but these have now been all brought together under the Gladedale umbrella.
The Scottish arm of the company, formerly Bett Homes, began the Oatlands project more than two years ago and such is the magnitude of the development, expects to be on site for at least another six or seven years.
As Malcolm Crawford, Gladedale senior architectural technician, explains, the clearing of the land itself was a mammoth task: "We had to clear old warehouses and tenements, but much of the problems lay below the ground".
"Following extensive surveys we were aware of old mine workings and shafts which needed to be grouted, we completely upgraded the sewer system and spend around GBP4 million on the renewal of other subterranean infrastructure".
""We also re-contoured some of the land to counter any risk of flooding from the river and re-routed a busy thoroughfare to create a main boulevard at the heart of the site"".
"There was also the need to consult and negotiate with local tenants who are being allocated new accommodation within the site".
"Oatlands aims to be a completely mixed community and will include around 200 units of social housing - all constructed to the same high specification as the rest of the buildings".
"In this task, Gladedale is working in partnership with the Link Housing Association and Glasgow Housing Association and Glasgow City Council".
"But now, the second phase of the project is well underway with some homes finished and occupied".
"But this doesn't make life any less hectic".
""We have around 40 subcontractors, with approximately 15 utilising Buzzsaw," explains Gerry.
"And a steady flow of articulated lorries delivering a variety of materials every week as well as around 200 men working on site at any time"".
"Malcolm Crawford takes up the story: "Prior to the introduction of Buzzsaw, copy costs from our standard drawing issue and tender packages were very high.
Now with Buzzsaw's online collaboration systems paper copies are only produced when needed, which minimises printing expenditure and saves time issuing drawings".
""Printing costs are an uncalculated overhead - it's a basic task which is rarely investigated".
"Nobody likes to admit how much it is costing".
"On a project this size, with thousands of drawings being sent out, we were sometimes paying around GBP15 a package in postage alone and hundreds in printing costs so it soon intensifies overheads".
It is clear that the whole Oatlands team is proud and enthusiastic about the project and, from the beginning, has been prepared to be as proactive as it needs in order to deliver its goals.
A timely call from one of the Buzzsaw sales team proved to be the turning point".
""I'd heard about Buzzsaw and after some analytical research, realised it could satisfy our requirements".
"When Autodesk learnt we were interested, they offered us a short pilot scheme".
"It was a win-win scenario in the circumstances," says Malcolm.
He quickly saw that this straightforward Windows-based solution could meet their challenges".
""And it wasn't too difficult to build up the business case for investing in the solution having explored the printing costs we could save," he says.
Having made the decision to invest, Malcolm then took time to consider the best way he could get total buy-in, not just from the Gladedale team, but also from consultants".
""We recognised that the success of the investment would stand or fall on how people used the system".
"We needed everyone - consultants, sub-contractors and even suppliers - to get on board".
"This was a huge undertaking, however, educating the construction team and raising awareness of the system has resulted in a positive response and a large adoption - success depends not just on the software but on the people too"".
"In Malcolm's words he, "examined the possibilities", working with Autodesk Consulting to ensure processes and workflow were right from the beginning: "A logical file structure was critical to ensure we could keep control of everything that was on our Buzzsaw web site".
"I also had regular consultation sessions with our external and internal construction team to check they understood the system"".
""Groundwork such as reviewing processes surrounding the implementation of any new solution is the cornerstone of best practice," says Nick Burton of Autodesk Consulting".
""With Buzzsaw, establishing a standard file structure and discussing workflow with users early on certainly pays off and ensures everyone is working to the same system".
Now Buzzsaw is used to hold every single drawing and piece of documentation about Oatlands; sales information, health and safety files, completion certificates, approval documents are all scanned and put onto the system".
""Consequently, we are never off it - we access it more than our emails," says Gerry".
""If a contractor asks for a drawing - it's a case of 'look on Buzzsaw'".
"It saves printing costs because they then print only what they want and then even just the part of the drawing that's relevant".
"Malcolm explains one of Buzzsaw's biggest advantages, "It's multifaceted - it helps us deal with questions from the directors seeking copies of approvals - or from the plumbers looking for technical details.
We can almost instantly download the documents needed - and there's always a copy kept electronically, so if more than one person needs it, it's not missing in the file"".
"Importantly it also means that once a change is made on a drawing, work can begin immediately".
"Gerry gives a recent example: "Some dimensions were missing on the elevations and I had bricklayers arriving the next day.
Normally this would have created hold-ups with expensive labour sitting around waiting for updated information".
""However, the architect made the changes and the revised drawings were available immediately"".
""The next morning I just printed and laminated the drawings for the bricklayers with no delay".
Paul Fleming of Autodesk says he is seeing a growing enthusiasm for IT in general and Buzzsaw in particular from housebuilders across the country"".
"""The whole market is waking up," he says"".
"""There's a growing recognition of the need to embrace new technology and of its benefits"".
"Malcolm adds, "Following the success of Buzzsaw at our Oatlands site we have now expanded its use to three other major Gladedale developments encompassing some 2150 properties, all within our first year of implementation".
And if there was still any doubt of Gladedale's commitment to Buzzsaw, the last word belongs to Malcolm Crawford"".
"""The biggest test of faith was recycling thousands of drawings after we had scanned them into Buzzsaw".
"Now we can actually see Gerry's desk," he adds. Request a free brochure from Autodesk ...
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