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Elsewhere in this issue I have stated that a primary use of the Cloud is for sharing information, either documentary information relating to the administration of a project or business, or design information for architects and contractors to facilitate construction efficiencies, and to accede to Government BIM strategies.

Asite's Adoddle falls firmly within the first category, but covers all elements of construction save the design itself. Document management is just a small part of Adoddle, as it also handles Project Management, Sourcing, Procurement, handles plug-ins, and gets involved in collaborative BIM.

DOCUMENT MANAGEMENT
Adoddle provides a customisable, secure repository for documents, which can be accessed at any level - project, file or folder - with highly controlled access. It offers a powerful search facility that can drill right down to text within documents, and also allows files to be tagged with an unlimited number of attributes for searching and sorting. It also provides document naming rules and custom search views for collaborative viewing.

Add in version control and audit tracking, which shows every time a document has been accessed, and you have most of the boxes ticked for a comprehensive document management system. You can also view over 300 different types of documents online in Adoddle, including Office documents, PDFs, image files and 3D models, including CAD/CAM files. From view to review, not only can you mark up and annotate documents, but Adoddle allows users to set up workflows that go through the document approvals, status changes, publishing events and so on. It's not all digital either, as the 'Paper People' feature keeps an eye on paper documents received from outside the organisation.

PROJECT MANAGEMENT
Project Management takes things to another level. Rather than documents, actions are centered around tasks, which are assigned deadlines and milestones which can be viewed on a real-time dashboard to see completed, upcoming and overdue tasks. Project members are allocated to tasks, and are kept up-to-date with instant notifications of any change of status, and everything is recorded, so that you can see who did what, when.

Discussion boards provide a means of email-based project wide discussions between team members. There is also an interesting use of Proxy Access rights, so that others can be allowed to log in on your behalf. It’s all auditable, of course, and helps to ensure that sickness and holidays don't impinge on progress.

WORKFLOW AUTOMATION
Workflow Automation focuses on back-office functions - a rather derogatory term, I suppose, for those functions that improve working processes, manage contracts, keep an eye on risk factors and mitigate against them, and provide an element of financial control. There is a long list of such functions, which start even prior to the commencement of a project by compiling and qualifying suitable contractors, and establishing and defining workflows.

Workflow Automation and Custom Form Design lay the groundwork of how a project is to proceed, creating workflow groups and providing the means to assign actions, and creating the forms to follow them through. Forms can be created using Adoddle's integral graphic design tools or replicated from MS Office forms, and can even be linked to workflows to trigger further automated actions. Contractor and Supplier Directories Directories of suppliers and contractors can be set up or imported from earlier projects and classified by category, using standard or custom classification schemes, and, in the case of contractors, prequalifying them, either singly or inviting multiple contractors to be pre-qualified. It then tracks their progress on a contract, generating scoring reports.

The list can then be used to compile an approved bidders list, which can be added to through supplier searches or public adverts. They can then be sent packages of work to bid on, according to public sector bidding regulations or private sector best practice. Adoddle contractors are invited to submit bids using an online bid room, via an approved bid document set.

Adoddle subsequently handles communications with bidders, and manages bid coverage, reports and reminders with a powerful bid evaluation tool and scoring reports, customising the response forms to suit a company's individual style and requirements. Adoddle can even be used to award the contract.

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