Case Studies
The following case summaries will give an indication of the type
of problems we particularly like to tackle.
1. Heery International / Sun Microsystems UK
Headquarters, Camberley; £200M
On this project C3 Systems set up and ran one of the earliest
project extranets in the UK. We developed and negotiated the
implementation of a complete set of document control procedures and
protocols with Heery, the consulting team and the principal
contractors. These included all technical document format standards,
document numbering and file naming conventions, distribution and
approval procedures and storage and distribution processes.
All of the technical documents on the project were issued,
reviewed and approved, and distributed using the C3
TDM system. All e-mail and most correspondence
distribution and storage were carried out using the extranet. This
included the need to accommodate both Sun Unix - Solaris - and
Microsoft technology standards.
The extranet was regarded as a resounding success by all of the
firms involved in the project.
2. Ardmore Construction
We carried out an IT review and survey for this up and coming
contractor and provided a strategic plan for the development and use
of IT in the company.
3. Mace / GlaxoSmithkline UK Headquarters,
Brentford; £300M
As with the Sun Microsystems project, we set up and ran a
comprehensive project extranet. We developed a complete,
project-specific set of IT and CAD standards for use by all
consultants and contractors on the project, including firms in a
number of overseas locations. We connected all these firms to the
network, trained their staff and managed the service for them on an
ongoing basis. We also managed the handover of the system and the
180,000 documents it contained to GSK facilities management
personnel at the end of the project.
"It
was a very good decision to utilise an electronic document control
system for GSK house and C3 Systems was an excellent choice for a
systems partner. The C3 TDM
system made a significant contribution to the successful management
of the GSK House project."
Mr Richard Thorpe, Mace Construction Director, GSK House.
4. CPC / Lion Plaza, City of London; £180M
In addition to the other extranet services as provided to Heery
and Mace, we set up and hosted the TDM
and e-mail services for this complicated project in the City. Many
operational and logistical problems were overcome to deliver the
service to this project.
5. Costain Limited
We conducted a detailed critical study of the project management
systems and methods used by the oil and gas subsidiary of this major
construction firm.
6. HM Prison Service / National Offender Management
Service
HMPS / NOMS operates over a hundred and twenty prisons in England
and Wales and spends upwards of £400M on a wide variety of
construction projects at these establishments every year. NOMS
needed to bring up to date its methods for dealing with the huge
volumes of technical documentation relating to these buildings. It
was important to consider the entire life cycle of the various types
of documents, both during the active project phases and over the
longer term as built or archive records.
C3 helped the NOMS team to analyse their requirements, to specify
the services necessary to meet these requirements, and to procure
and mobilise an external, web based, application service provider to
deliver the comprehensive project document control and archive
service required. To complement this initiative we also helped NOMS
to develop a full suite of up to date standards and procedures for
the creation and management of their CAD and other forms of
technical documentation.
7. The Building Centre Trust
C3 have worked with the Building Centre Trust in investigating
the requirements of teams seeking to promote collaborative
approaches and technologies on construction projects. Our Framework
for Design Management (Enclosed here at Paper 2) was used by the
Trust as the operational basis of their Project Information Exchange
(PIX) Protocol.
8. BT Global Services
C3 have worked with BT Global Services in the development of
marketing strategies for their Construction and Property division.
Our general contribution was based on our expertise at the interface
between Construction and Information Systems. A specific challenge
was to identify how construction will take advantage of Service
Oriented Architectures and related technologies over the next four
to six years. A very interesting issue both for users and
supplier companies.