February 11, 2013, Austin, TX - Fiatech is excited to announce the launch of six new projects and is seeking participants for them now. The six projects are: 

Advanced, Fully Integrated WorkFace Planning & Control

The Construction Industry Institute (CII) Research Team 272 on Advanced Work Packaging and the Construction Owners Association of Alberta (COAA) WorkFace Planning Committee have evaluated and refined work processes to increase workface planning and construction workflow effectiveness. Their identified best practices promise the benefit of up to 25 percent improvement in field productivity, lower total recordable incident rates, and a 4-10 percent reduction in total installed project costs. Fiatech wants to see rapid industry adoption. This project will augment the CII and COAA methodologies by developing a complete data model of existing industry systems information resources for accurate and timely automation. Those interested in participating should contact Fiatech Senior Program Director Reg Hunter at Email Contact.

Improving Project Management Efficiency

Even with the advent of advanced uses of information technology today, wide-ranging problems remain. A case in point is the inability of all parties in a construction project to share data effectively and efficiently across disciplines and between companies. This project is taking a two-track approach. Track One will focus on project management information exchange and scheduling and risk management inefficiencies and identify standards that end mismatched coding structures and methodologies. Track Two, to run in parallel with Track One, is zeroing in on integrated project awareness. The end-result will be to develop methods in which the next generation can maximize social media to reduce costs associated with schedule delays, cost overruns, and other wasted resources. A separate team is coordinating the two tracks over a concurrent two-year timeframe. Those interested in participating can register for a workshop on March 25 from 9:00-10:30 at  Fiatech2013 in San Antonio or contact Fiatech Senior Project Manager Bob Wible at Email Contact. 

U.S. Local Codes in the Cloud

Model building codes and standards, and the local amendments that are added to them when they are adopted, are disconnected and cause loss of time and money, in addition to creating liabilities for construction industry members. States and jurisdictions adopt the copyrighted model codes and then publish their amendments as separate documents. Currently, construction industry members need to coordinate model codes and local amendments manually as only a handful of large states print integrated model codes and amendments. Fiatech’s U.S. Local Codes in the Cloud project is addressing the above problem by creating a cloud-based library where model codes, state and local amendments, addendum, errata and executive orders are organized by jurisdiction. By creating a virtual custom library one will be able to find the complete construction requirements with a simple click. This project is assembling a project team to work with Fiatech member Compu-tecture and their  MADCAD.com platform, which currently contains more than 50,000 model building codes and standards as well as state-wide codes in a searchable and continuously updated cloud, to add the code provisions of over 5,000 local jurisdictions across the United States. U.S. Local Codes in the Cloud will save time, reduce errors, support life safety and support the Fiatech AutoCodes project. Those interested in participating can register for a workshop on March 25 from 10:45-12:30 at  Fiatech2013 in San Antonio or contact Fiatech Senior Project Manager Bob Wible at Email Contact.

Jurisdiction Guide to the Recognition and Use of Digital Seals

The Fiatech Regulatory Streamlining Committee and the American Institute of Architects (AIA) are working together on this project to develop a guide that state and local governments can use to overcome barriers to government recognition and use of digital seals on approved building plans and other construction documents. Over the past ten years, 42 U.S. state, and some overseas governments, have adopted administrative policies that recognize digital seals on legal and construction documents as opposed to the standard practice of wet seals. Less than half of the U.S. states allowing digital seals use, however, allow them for approved building plans. “The Jurisdiction Guide to the Recognition and Use of Digital Seals,” now being compiled by Fiatech and the AIA, is being designed to enable more state governments to increase the use of digital seals. The guide will describe the benefits of digital seals and the steps that can be taken to put such a system in place. Those desiring to participate or wanting more information should contact Fiatech Senior Project Manager Bob Wible at Email Contact.

Capturing Equipment Data Requirements Using ISO 15926 and Assessing Conformance (EDRC)

The EDRC project is establishing a common understanding across all Fiatech projects on how to use the ISO 15926 standard and assess software conformance to specified ISO 15926 standard data structures and capabilities. Collaboration with MIMOSA and the POSC Caesar Association (PCA) on the Oil and Gas Interoperability (OGI) Pilot is a cornerstone of this effort. The EDRC project is focusing on a narrow scope common with the OGI Pilot and  the Fiatech project, Harmonizing industry Standards to Exchange Equipment Data (HEED), while being consistent with the objectives of the  ISO 15926 Information Patterns (IIP) projects. Project participants include AVEVA, Bentley Systems, CH2MHILL, The Dow Chemical Company, MIMOSA, NIST, Tecgraf, and WorleyParsons. The EDRC kick-off meeting will be held March 5th. To participate or receive more information please contact Fiatech Project Manager Faith Junghans at Email Contact.

Piping ISO 15926 Modeling for Construction

This project represents the second-year follow up to the  ISO 15926 Project Information Flow (PIF) project. The project is defining major capital project information flow, exchange-related data using the ISO 15926 standard, and approximating the cost savings achieved. The project will define the requirements of piping data in construction, including addressing piping specifications, geometry standards, material standards, and drafting rules and symbols. Project scope includes developing a neutral file format compatible with the ISO 15926 standard for piping isometric data exchange. Project participants include AREVA, Atlas RFID Solutions, Bentley Systems, Consolidated Contractors Company (CCC), Coreworx, Emerson Process Management, Hatch, Noumenon, and the VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland. Those desiring to participate or wanting more information should contact Fiatech Project Manager Faith Junghans at Email Contact. 

Contact:
Melissa Franco, Fiatech 
(512) 232-9600 or
Email Contact