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PRIMAVERA SURETRAK USER REVIEW: MBTA

When it comes to new or retrofitting construction projects at its stations, the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA) must consider the needs of the millions of commuters who ride its rails each day. In order to meet these needs, the organization uses Primavera SureTrak to manage its complex construction scheduling requirements.

Jack Donovan, an employee of the Boston-based transit system, which is the fourth-largest in the United States, explained how Primavera software helps accommodate Boston area travelers.

"Right now we're doing accessibility at our train stations -- adding escalators and elevators -- but we can't take the stations out of service. Primavera helps us fit construction schedules into the train schedule and about when tracks are not workable," he said. "People rely on us to tell them when the station is going to fully open up. Sometimes the news is bleak but, even if there's a delay, people want to know. We try to keep our passengers happy."

In addition to helping MBTA officials notify passengers of delays, Primavera has saved MBTA several weeks per project, Donovan added. If a construction job does fall behind, employees can use Primavera to quickly rework construction schedules so simultaneous jobs are not affected, he noted.

Donovan rated Primavera SureTrak a 9 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?
The Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority (MBTA) began in the Boston area in 1931. The Hub's transit system is the oldest and fourth largest in the nation. Specifically, I work in the railroad industry. Our typical projects are $40 million to $50 million.

I have been using Primavera for 10 years.

I do not know because the company bought it.

I do not know, because I was not the purchaser.

I have used Primavera for construction project scheduling. In my previous job I used to do the scheduling, and I've taught construction scheduling in college, all using Primavera.

Most of our contractors were using Primavera software. Primavera got its name out there a while ago. It's kind of like Johnson & Johnson: It has a lot to do with name recognition.

Not really. This is the one I'm most familiar with.

Before I had Primavera, I did a lot of construction scheduling work manually; when you do critical-path construction scheduling, you need to spend a lot of time checking things in order to determine where and when to accelerate to complete projects on time.

Primavera helps me meet my deadlines without all the extra work generated with doing things by hand. The beauty of Primavera SureTrak is that it does all the early starts and late starts and early finishes and late finishes for you -- you don't have to check the scheduling if the information you put in is correct.

It helps anywhere you need to keep the work progress organized. Right now we're doing accessibility at our train stations -- adding escalators and elevators -- but we can't take the stations out of service. Primavera helps us fit construction schedules into the train schedule and when tracks are not workable. People rely on us to tell them when the station is going to be fully open. Sometimes the news is bleak, but, even if there's a delay, people want to know. We try to keep our passengers happy.

It can save a few weeks per project. Right now, for example, we have 20 different construction projects going on within our transit system and each of those has a schedule. Once we know we've fallen behind, based on the information provided by Primavera, our upper management will decide whether to create a change-order -- and pay the contractor extra money. It can be worth it to us to pay the premium to avoid negative passenger feedback.

We have field workers, glaziers, tile people, stone people, and so on. Primavera SureTrak allows us to put them all together so they're not bumping into each other, and so they're working efficiently and correctly.

Yes.

Not much.

No.

Primavera SureTrak is ideal for contractors, engineers and architects.

How much computer experience do you think someone needs to use this tool effectively?

You need to know the basics of critical-path scheduling, plus be a little computer proficient.

Did it take much training (or studying) to learn to use this tool?
No.

No, I haven't called.

How would you rate the user documentation? Is it helpful?
It was good. I thought it was well-written.

Probably.

Overall, on a scale of 1 to 10, how would you rate this tool?
9.