ANALYSIS / Business

The license to construct

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With the mega and not-so-mega projects being announced daily in the Middle East, the use of construction software from conceptualising and designing to budgeting costs has become essential.

There are numerous benefits to using construction software, as it brings in speed and accuracy to the construction process.

As the construction industry in the Middle East matures, Leigh Jasper, CEO of Aconex, says that developers and contractors in the Middle East are turning to software technology for all their project needs.

“Over the past five years, projects in the UAE have been quick to adopt our system and we’re now seeing mega projects of a similar scale being undertaken in Bahrain, Oman, Qatar and Saudi Arabia. Villamar and Reef Island in Bahrain, for example, are developments that are using our software. We also recently signed a deal to support the construction of 30 universities across Saudi Arabia – there are very few markets in the world where construction like this is going on,” Jasper says.

“Over the next 12 months, we’re expecting to see more joint ventures, as firms look to pool resources and spread their risk. This will be good news for us, as our system is often used as a central collaborative platform between parties.” 

 According to Jasper, in some cases, IT construction software can be used to defend claims during a construction-related dispute.

“Whereas initially clients tend to use online information management systems to cut down on the time and cost associated with using paper documents, more and more clients are telling us that, particularly in large-scale projects, the greatest benefit to them is that these systems reduce their exposure to risk,” says Jasper. 

“In this area, the value of systems like Aconex is really two-fold: they can prevent disputes in the first place and, if the case escalates, they can be used to categorically support claims.

  “For example, because our system keeps an audit trail that tracks ‘who did what and when’ on a project, clients are able to prove when they sent drawings, whether the documents were received and what actions were taken. With all parties using a single system to manage their information, you get a single version of the truth. It is surprising how quickly disputes can be diffused when that is the case.

“If the issue escalates, the system contains a complete archive of all documents and correspondence items that have been accumulated during the project, so files can be easily retrieved and used to support claims.” 

 With the construction industry growing phenomenally over the past few years in terms of projects size, companies are looking at implementing technologies that can service their needs and cut down on paper-work and time.

According to Venkat Raghavan, general manager, Al-Futtaim Technologies, “most companies in the industry have outgrown their existing systems or currently use systems that cannot address current business requirements.”