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AUTODESK CONSTRUCTWARE REVIEW

With lead personnel scattered around the country working on two sites, Heery International Inc. knew it needed an on-demand, online collaboration solution to keep the dual sites on track, on budget and on time. Before beginning work on this project, Heery had investigated its options, and finally selected Constructware, which was acquired by Autodesk in 2006.

"At the time it was the only online application service provider (ASP) available. We wanted an ASP because of all the locations everyone was situated in for different projects," said Don Green, executive associate at Atlanta-based Heery. "We looked at Prolog, eBuilder and Primavera Expedition. Prolog and Expedition were not Web-based applications at the time, and eBuilder did not provide a robust menu of modules."

Although the return on the investment was difficult for him to quantify, Green credited Constructware's online depository for project documentation, paper-free processing and accountability capabilities for simplifying and speeding up the building process.

"Theoretically, if you can process paperwork without physically producing paper -- through printing, mailing, faxing and so on -- and keep it in a central depository for all team members to access, it would have to save you time and money, and increase accuracy," he noted.

Green rated Constructware a perfect 10 out of 10.

What kinds of construction projects do you mostly work on?
 
How long have you been using this tool?
 
Where did you obtain it?
 
How much did you pay?
 
How are you using this product?
 
Why did you pick this product?
 
Did you look at other tools on the market before picking this one? What was it you didn't like about them (or made    this product better)?
 
Comparing the way you work now with the way you worked before you bought this tool, what has changed?
 
Can you give us an example of a job where this tool really made a difference?
 
Can you estimate how much time or money you saved or other measurable benefits your firm realized using this    tool?
 
What are the best features (for your business) in this tool?
 
Do you think it's a fair value for the price you paid?
 
What would you change about the product if you could?
 
Are there features that you don't use? Why not?
 
Who would you recommend use this tool?
 
How much computer experience do you think someone needs to use this tool effectively?
 
Did it take much training (or studying) to learn to use this tool?
 
Have you ever called the company's support lines and asked for help? What was your experience like?
 
How would you rate the user documentation? Is it helpful?
 
When the next version of this software comes out, will you upgrade to it?
 
Overall, on a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate this tool?

What kinds of construction projects do you mostly work on?
Heery International is a 50-year-old full-service architecture, interior design, engineering, facility planning and management, construction management and program management firm that serves commercial, government and institutional clients.

How long have you been using this tool?
We bought Constructware in June 1999.

Where did you obtain it?
We bought it directly from Constructware. Autodesk acquired Constructware in 2006.

How much did you pay?
We have an enterprise agreement. I believe that we charge our clients $795 per user per year for licenses.

How are you using this product?
We use Constructware to help us manage the paperwork generated by the projects we manage for our clients.

Why did you pick this product?
At the time it was the only online application service provider (ASP) available. We wanted an ASP because of all the locations everyone was situated in for different projects.

Did you look at other tools on the market before picking this one? What was it you didn't like about them (or made this product better)?
Yes. We looked at Prolog, eBuilder and Primavera Expedition. Prolog and Expedition were not Web-based applications at the time, and eBuilder did not provide a robust menu of modules. Over the years, we continued to use Constructware on a limited basis, along with Prolog, but last year, a decision was made to use Constructware as the default Project Management Documentation Control tool for our group because of its features.

Comparing the way you work now with the way you worked before you bought this tool, what has changed?
There is an online depository for all project documentation that is accessible 24/7 for all project team members that have permission to access the information. Everyone has the same information and there is an improved sense of collaboration as a result of this.

Can you give us an example of a job where this tool really made a difference?
The first program where we used Constructware involved two projects -- one in Brunswick, Ga., and the other in Artesia, N.M. The owner's representative was located in Fort Worth and Atlanta. The program manager was in Atlanta, and so were the architect and contractor for the Brunswick project. The architect and contractor for the Artesia Project were located in Albuquerque. With all the main players scattered across the country, we used Constructware to help keep the team all on the same page.

If we hadn't used Constructware, we would have probably gone with something like Prolog or just done things with Excel spreadsheets and Word documents. Then you don't have all the data in one location so it takes longer to search for items and there's no accountability. With Constructware there's a date stamp whenever you go in and view any documents, so you can see when and at what time someone looked at a document.

Can you estimate how much time or money you have saved or other measurable benefits your firm has realized using this tool?
This is tough to quantify. Theoretically, if you can process paperwork without physically producing paper -- through printing, mailing, faxing, and so on -- and keep it in a central depository for all team members to access, it would have to save you time and money, and increase accuracy.

What are the best features (for your business) in this tool?
I believe the team collaboration, accountability, access and a useful menu of pre-designed modules created specifically for how the construction industry manages project documentation are the best Constructware features for us.

Do you think it's a fair value for the price you paid?
For a power user, yes. For an occasional user, no.

What would you change about the product if you could?
I would introduce pricing based on the type of user that will access the system. For small projects this product is too costly to use for more than three or four users.

Are there features that you don't use? Why not?
Absolutely, but they are there in case we want to use them. For example, I use Microsoft Excel every day, and I would venture to guess that I only use 5% to 10% of the features available in the application, but I know that if I want to use the rest of them I can.  

Who would you recommend use this tool?                
I would recommend Constructware to anyone who manages construction programs or projects.

How much computer experience do you think someone needs to use this tool effectively?
The user needs to be familiar with how to use a computer, such as how to save and attach files.

Did it take much training (or studying) to learn to use this tool?
No. I consider myself to be an experienced user.

Have you ever called the company's support lines and asked for help? What was your experience like?
I contacted Autodesk many times when I first started using the application and found the response time to be excellent.

How would you rate the user documentation? Is it helpful?
I have used it occasionally, but I prefer to contact the help desk for a quicker response.

When the next version of this software comes out, will you upgrade to it?
There is no need to upgrade. Any upgrade is done automatically and seamlessly.

Overall, on a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate this tool?
10