Wiki: Digitisation in construction

Introduction

Digitasition in construction: where do I start?

Digitisation is a widely used term. But what exactly does digitisation mean and how does it work in the construction industry? In this introduction, we explain what digitisation and related topics mean. We also focus on digitisation in the construction sector. We help you on your way with the articles below.

1. What is the difference between digitisation, digitalisation and digital transformation? (Blog, 2022)

The construction industry has become much more digital over the years. Yet digitisation is a hot topic for construction companies right now. Every self-respecting builder is working on digitalisation or on the way to digital transformation. And they have to, because without digitisation, they will lose out to their competitors.

The terms digitisation, digitalisation and digital transformation are very similar and therefore have a lot in common. In fact, there is a lot of overlap between the three concepts. Yet, there are differences, especially concerning the phase you use them in. In the article above, we’ll tell you more about these differences.

2. What is project management (Blog, 2022)

Project-based work requires good planning and excellent project management. Who has what role? How do you share and discuss important project data and results? And how do you coordinate activities so that each project member gets the most out of his or her work? The answer to these questions is good project management. In the article above, we tell you what project management is, what is involved and how to apply it.

3. What is intranet? (Blog, 2022)

An intranet is a closed communication system that is only accessible to authorised users. Usually these are the employees of a certain organisation, possibly supplemented by a select number of external users such as freelancers or employees of partner organisations. You can see an intranet as a private network within an organisation. In the article above, we will elaborate on what an intranet is, what you can do with it and how you set it up.

4. What is CDE (Common Data Environment)? (Blog, 2022)

A common data environment (CDE) is a virtual environment, for example a combination of a DMS and CMS, in which all data relating to a project (graphic models and documents, but also non-graphical information) is collected, maintained, managed and distributed. In the article above, we discuss this in more detail, we look at what a CDE looks like, how secure a CDE is and what the advantages of a CDE are.

5. What is BIM? (Blog, 2022)

BIM originally is the abbreviation for Building Information Modelling, but sometimes the term building information model is used as well. Both names mean the same thing and already give away a little of what BIM is: a digital model that forms a virtual representation of a building. The model consists of objects to which information is linked. In the above article, we further discuss BIM, the benefits of BIM and BIM viewers.

Application

Digitisation in construction: getting started

It is clear that the construction industry has started to make a move towards digitisation. But we still have a long way to go. What about your organisation? Below, we help you on your way. In the ‘Application’ category, you will find articles that will help you implement and improve digitisation within your organisation.

1. Digitise your building process in four simple steps (Blog, 2021)

Successful construction companies digitise their building process. It provides overview, works faster and ensures less failure costs. These are all interesting advantages. But how do you digitise the working method of your construction company? In this article, we explain.

2. Improve cooperation throughout the construction organisation with the right software (Blog, 2022)

With the right software and a good adoption project, you create order in your digital landscape, you get all the people in your construction company on board, and you create an unambiguous documentation standard that everyone adheres to. We’ll cover this in more detail in the article above.

3. 3 essential apps and software for the construction industry (Blog, 2022)

Construction software and construction apps enable us to build faster, better and with fewer mistakes. In the article above, we tell you which digital tools you really can’t do without as a construction company today.

4. 8 ways to save time on the construction site (Blog, 2022)

Construction companies work with small profit margins. To increase profits, you can reduce failure costs or get more done in a shorter time. Without compromising on quality, of course. In the above article, we show the following ways to work more efficiently and save time on the building site:

• Use blueprints with QR code
• Save time with Snagging
• Preview large files
• Use checklists
• Avoid failure costs
• Use data for optimisation
• Quality assurance process to save time
• One central overview

5. Save time in construction by eliminating failure costs (Blog, 2022)

Failure costs and delays are inextricably linked. By preventing failure costs, you save time in construction and increase your margin. There are various ways of achieving this. In the article above, we discuss the following ways:

• Better preparation
• Standardise the construction process
• Communicate via a central system
• Modern tools for repairs
• Continuous quality assurance
• Guarantee the latest version
• Learn from previous projects

Experience

Digitisation in construction: how do others do it?

If you are going to start digitising processes within your construction company, it is nice to see how someone else does it. How does it work? How do fellow builders notice the real difference that digitising makes? You can read it in the following case studies.

1. How Heylen Warehouses ensures flawless projects with a document management system (Case study, 2022)

In the twenty years that we have been making software for the construction industry, a lot of interesting parties have come forward to work with Prostream (or its predecessors Docstream and Snagstream). We are not only proud of this, we can also learn a lot from them. That is why we talked to Dries Claes of Heylen Warehouses (Belgium) to find out what smart digital collaboration looks like for them.

2. The version number adds up, so you can be sure you always have the latest version (Case study, 2022)

During a project, a lot of documents come by. Or perhaps files is a better word, because what you need to achieve a result can really be anything. Think of word-files, blueprints, audio and video recordings, 3D models and much more. It is then of vital importance that your document management system is digital and in order. We talked about this with Simon James of Giesbers Rotterdam.

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Related articles

Would you like to know more about digitising in the construction sector? Or are you curious about what else we have published on this subject? Below, you will find all additional blogs that have been written on the subject of digitisation.

1. Digitisation: three common bottlenecks (Blog, 2021)

2. Why a cloud solution is THE solution for construction in 2022 (Blog, 2022)

3. How can construction companies be more successful? (Blog, 2021)

4. Do free BIM viewers exist? (Blog, 2022)

5. Why a construction file is indispensable in progressive projects (Blog, 2021)

6. What does digitisation in construction look like in 2022? (Blog, 2021)