We use an electronic submittal process for a large International project with a very high volume of submittals and an aggressive construction schedule. In no particular order, here are some of my observations, and questions you'll need to answer for yourself before committing to this process:
- We definitely recommend Bluebeam. It's more user friendly and flexible than Acrobat or anything else we've seen.
- There is a learning curve (couple weeks at least) for staff to get used to digitally marking up submittals.
- Will other consultants on the project mark up shops digitally too? If you hold their contracts, you can probably make them do so according to whatever protocol you set up. If the owner holds their contracts expect less cooperation - which will mean extra work for you to figure out how to get their comments and yours in one place for the contractor (if you're responsible for that, as we are).
- If you're using a web based document control software to exchange information, insist that whoever hosts the software (owner, contractor, associate architect, etc.) train your staff and establish communication protocols from the beginning. If you're the host, you should do this for others. In my case, the owner hosts the system and it's the first time they've used it. They did not make much effort to train consultants or the contractor on the system's use or set up useful protocols. This caused a rough start of construction; we and others had to figure out everything for ourselves.
- How will you handle submittals that require reviews by multiple consultants? It's ideal if you can set up a sequence, where one consultant does mark-ups, then sends to the next who adds theirs, and so on until it gets to you the architect, and you add your comments and stamp and return. My project schedule rarely allows this much time, so reviews are usually done concurrently, sent to us, and we consolidate others comments with ours and return. This is extra work, but not too much if consultants send "unflattened" pdf's where you can copy and paste. If other consultants send scanned pdf's, or flatten/secure their pdf's, it's a problem (and more work). There is also some extra risk here - you have to be careful about manipulating others' comments. Occasionally, if schedule is tight we make multi-page pdf's, i.e., we mark our comments on one page, then insert the other consultant's marked-up copy of the same drawings as a 2nd page behind ours. Again, this takes work too, and is probably not convenient for the contractor.
- Keeping track of your copies of digital files can be difficult. You need to establish a clear naming system and folder structure. We recommend naming by spec section numbers first, then item and revision numbers, and a brief description. For my project, the owner and contractor didn't follow our recommendation, so it's difficult to keep track of files. We've had to set up our own system to manage our copies on our server. Avoid very long file names (something our contractor tends to do), which cause problems with Windows.
- We do about 85% of reviews digitally without using a scratch hard copy. But some of the more involved submittal packages are nearly impossible to review digitally. Curtainwall, elevators, structural layout plans, etc., are good examples. The workspace on computer monitors is just too small, even if you have large dual-monitors as most of us do. Sometimes nothing beats spreading out your shop drawings, contract drawings and specs on a table in the conference room. In these cases, we sometimes mark-up a hard copy by hand and scan it rather than using Bluebeam. File size gets large with scans though, or else you risk losing image quality.
- Who is the host for the electronic document control software? If it's the contractor or owner, you'll need to set up a system to keep archive copies of your submittals whether in hard copy or electronic form. If you don't, you could lose your shop drawing record at the end of the job when the owner or contractor shuts down the host site.
- Download and upload times for submittals is not insignificant, especially if files are large. It's not necessarily quicker than unpacking a FedExed roll of drawings from the contractor, then when you return making copies and packing up your own roll to send back.
- The web based document control software occasionally goes down, and sometimes general internet and computer problems both inside your office and out hinder timely return of submittals. Suggest having a back-up plan for these situations like another ftp site when information transfers are critical.
- Check your contract - are you required to maintain hard copies of submittals for record? We happen to have this requirement, so we still have to print. Your insurer and lawyer may have opinions about this too.
- How will you handle sample review? Photos or scans are usually needed to go onto the digital document control system for the record.
- Consider hiring an administrative person to help manage this process for you. This needs to be a sharp, tech savvy person who can quickly learn how architectural documents are set up and understand how the submittal process is supposed to work.
To sum up, we've been successful so far but it has taken a lot of time and discipline to manage the electronic process. You need a very organized and diligent staff, consultants, and contractor. It's a more administratively intense process than paper submittals. We're much more efficient with it now, 8 months into construction, than we were the first couple months when we had to invent our review and document control process from scratch. Still, we think it's a more expensive process in that the increased labor offsets any savings you may realize by avoiding prints. With more practice, i.e., several projects, and improvements by document control software vendors to their products, the cost of an electronic process may eventually be the same or less than a paper process, but I think we're a few years away from that.
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James Hakes AIA
Project Manager
Handel Architects
San Francisco CA
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James Hakes AIA
Project Manager
Handel Architects
Mill Valley CA
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Original Message:
Sent: 09-13-2010 08:53
From: Thomas Gragnano
Subject: Electronic Submittal and Review
We are considering the option of going to electronic submittal and reviews for shop drawing and similar construction submittals. Currently we're using Bluebeam as our PDF editing software and have only done this on a very limited basis. Aside from the paper savings, it is our hope that by going all electronic it will reduce the amount time spent making redlines on multiple copies and thus reduce the potential for errors, improve tracking and comment coordination among consultants, and improve review time. Has anyone successfully used an electronic submittal exchange service for large scale projects, such as a new K-12 school? What are the liability concerns? Additional costs for the A/E and or Owner?
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Thomas Gragnano AIA
Architect
Morris-Berg Architects, Inc.
Charlotte NC
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