IT is the way to construct

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VIRTUAL CONSTRUCTION: The Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority's Convention Centre was designed with the help of 3D software.

From micro project management to designing, the entire construction process can take place virtually thanks to the number of advanced IT software programmes that are now available to architects and contractors in the market.

Short of hammering in a nail, IT software can do everything else on a construction site.

From designing, budgeting, to estimating and accounting, analysing date to forecasting future trends, every process can be done with construction-related software.

Contractors who integrate construction software into their daily work flows save time and money on everyday tasks such as bidding and contracting, gain better insight into their company's cash flow and in general, stay ahead of their competition.

In the future, experts feel that the construction industry, like so many others, will be dominated by wireless networks, allowing contractors to work from multiple locations.

The wants of the consumer will change and ultimately shape the market for new products, such as the current high demand for "green" products.

A majority of construction projects use management systems such as Aconex, a web-based service that manages information and work processes; Conject, an infrastructure lifecycle management system or Ez Business System, an end to end solution for construction companies.

Davis Langdon, a Bahrain-based project management firm, has used Aconex on the Reef Island scheme in Bahrain since mid-2006, and the programme now have more than 30 organisations and 300 users.

"All construction sites need to use some kind of IT software as a project of a small size can generate up to 500,000 documents and close to a million emails in its life cycle. An IT management software is crucial for the mega projects which the Middle East has become famous for. It basically replaces paper documentation," says Aconex marketing manager Will Turbet.

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