'Good information management is like cement between bricks'

This is only possible if reliable data is available, centrally stored and processed. thinkproject offers such platforms, which are entirely tailored to the project for which they are deployed.

Max Bögl & Partners is also making grateful use of the thinkproject Common Data Environment (tpCDE). Jules van der Weide, managing director at thinkproject, explains more. "Max Bögl and thinkproject are both German companies. For thinkproject Netherlands, Max Bögl is one of the oldest customers; we have known each other since our first project, the city bridge in Nijmegen. I myself then founded thinkproject in Utrecht and we concluded a framework agreement with Max Bögl."

A spirited project like The Entrance can't do without digital infrastructure

"When we started working together on project The Entrance, we knew it would be a complex work. All the more reason to have the digital infrastructure around the work in order," Van der Weide continued. "We have already set up standard processes for Max Bögl when it comes to information management. That means for a project like The Entrance, we only had to adapt those standard processes to the project's standards."

The quality of information stands or falls with how one works with the system, we learn. "That is why uniform working is more or less enforced by assigning access rights and working according to protocols. tpCDE is a 'Single source of thruth'. Everyone works with the same and always the most up-to-date information, within which each party has to realize its own part. This means task-oriented work. On the basis of the available plans and the master document register, one can quickly gain insight into what has or has not been delivered," Van der Weide outlines.

All parties are 'connected'

All parties working together on project The Entrance are connected to tpCDE. "Depending on the interest, each party has access, down to the individual level, to the parts of the system relevant to them. The software runs on desktop PCs as well as mobile devices. So you can work 'in the field' with your smartphone or tablet, if needed. Think of it as a customized project room, created by us for the customer."

The benefits at a glance

Asked to list the benefits of working with tpCDE, Van der Weide replied, "tpCDE provides quality assurance with regard to information management. All the info needed runs through the workflow. Information is structurally recorded in the system, with current information always displayed first, provided it has been released. You can easily check on site if you have the right information in front of you by scanning the QR code on the drawing."

"On the back end of the system is audited. Does a partial delivery take place? Then the corresponding data is transferred to the stakeholders. In this case that could be the municipality of Amsterdam itself, but also interested parties such as the GVB or Waternet. Projects and subprojects are completed and transferred 'as built'."

No limitations in terms of data format

Speaking of data transfer, in what data formats can tpCDE transfer the data? Van der Weide: "In any format needed. We process the data, the processes ensure that the quality of the data is optimal. Anyone who would like to view the data in a tpCDE environment can get a virtual tpCDE environment from us. In any case, data is structured in such a way that other systems can simply handle it. For example, the municipality of Amsterdam works with VISI; we have a conversion protocol for that too."

Actively working with the transferred data 

After the transfer of data, stakeholders can actively work with the data. "Think about using this data as a reference book, or using it for maintenance work. In the asset management system, the data is used to describe the entire asset," Van der Weide said.

In conclusion, "In all the complexity, tpCDE still allows you to keep an overview. Good information management is like cement between bricks. You may see thinkproject as 'the bookkeeper' of the project, with our application."