Conject, a key supplier of SaaS solutions for BIM and the whole life management of built assets said it has deployed conjectMI, a fully mobile inspections and defects solution for a refurbishment project at the Novotel Hotel, a part of the Dubai World Trade Centre complex in the UAE.

The move was aimed at helping the project consultant Aecom significantly increase speed and accuracy with which they were able to control and manage defects.

Aecom had been selected to project manage the refit of a Novotel Hotel.

"Alongside the usual challenges around ensuring consistent high quality of work, the refit took place whilst the hotel remained open meaning that any delay would have significant knock on effects," remarked Aecom senior project manager Amer Abuzeineh.

Aecom's defect management method was one of manual inspections recorded on paper-based spreadsheets and forms which were used to track the process from identification to resolution.

Using this system, the defect resolution time had been around five days, and the resident Aecom project manager recognised that they needed a more efficient system for defect management.

Based on selection criteria of ease of use, reliability and monitoring/reporting functionality, conjectMI mobile inspections and defects software was chosen to support the project, stated Abuzeineh.

The conjectMI is a mobile enabled SaaS solution that enables project teams to undertake the snagging process using tablets that had been loaded with the relevant floorplans.

Locations, images and descriptions of defects (including the relevant trade) were marked up using the tablet.

Abuzeineh said data was then synchronised with the master version and notifications of rectification work sent to the relevant parties for action. Using this system average defect resolution time was reduced from five days to just two, he noted.

In the three month duration of the inspections and snagging phase of the project, the team recorded 6,654 defects across a project area of over 200,000 sq ft.

The total value of the defects inspection, resolution and quality assurance project was around Dh35 million ($9.5  million) taking into account the time savings made using conjectMI, he added.-TradeArabia News Service