AEC Firms Abandon Document Management Software for Newforma Project Information Management Solution

Users say Newforma Project Center’s content-based search and project context for information management fits better with architecture, engineering and construction workflows.

Manchester — Newforma®, a software company addressing the project information management (PIM) needs of architecture, engineering and construction firms, today announced that three new customers have cited the superiority of Newforma® Project Center over document management software they had either been using or considered purchasing. The three firms – WHR Architects, NAC Architecture and Harris Consulting Engineers – said the Newforma PIM solution outperforms document management systems in terms of the ease with which users can file email, find information, respond to requests and manage other key project execution work processes.

WHR Architects is a full service architecture, interior design and technology planning firm. With over 170 people located in Houston, Dallas and New Jersey, the 30-year-old firm is working on projects throughout the US for top-tier public and private education and medical institutions. Principal and Chief Information Officer Jorge Aguirre had tried document management software as a way to file email with other project documents, but it required too many steps to be practical. “Everyone said it was ten times easier to use email management with Newforma,” Aguirre said. “Our users are taking to it naturally. They’ve dropped their mailbox sizes by a minimum of 40 percent, and are pleased to be able to find emails quickly and easily. And because our files can continue to reside on our network drives instead of a SQL server, we don’t have to keep a database expert on hand. Newforma Project Center is a home run for us.”

NAC Architecture is a 150-person West Coast-based firm with offices in Washington, California and Colorado. Information Technology Director Trish Buzan said her technology group abandoned the idea of managing project information with document management systems because they could not meet usability, security or manageability requirements. “None appeared to be as cost-effective, easily managed or beneficial as Newforma Project Center,” Buzan said. “Newforma software solves problems with non-compliance in filing. It adds searchability for misfiled items. It will replace our FTP site with Newforma® Info Exchange as a more secure, less time-consuming information sharing solution. We expect it to provide a more standardized and repeatable process for handling contract administration, and at every step save us valuable time.”

The 30 professionals of Las Vegas-based Harris Consulting Engineers provide services for HVAC, electrical, plumbing, architectural lighting and technology design. President Tom Harris, PE, LEED AP, said the firm abandoned its document management software because it required too many steps. “People didn’t use it,” Harris said. “Instead, I was attracted to Newforma Project Center’s ability to save time spent looking for information, logging and responding to RFIs, and sending transmittals. We’ll have more time to take care of our clients. By not having to devote extra staff to non-billable administrative work, more of our fee drops to the bottom line, the quality of our work improves and errors are avoided because not as many hands touch the information.”

Newforma Chief Executive Officer Ian Howell said, “Design and construction firms have told us loud and clear that they do not want to add extra steps to their workflows. Among other things, they have asked us to help them manage email, share large files, track action items, compare and mark up documents, and search project information no matter where it resides on their network. Equally important, they do not want to reconfigure their network, relocate files or suffer the burden of adding metadata to their files. The Newforma team has invested extra time and effort into developing a PIM solution that meets the requirements set by our customers to streamline project execution without disrupting the lives of the project team or the information technology group.”