The IPWEA will unveil the new ‘Buildings.PLUS’ online buildings asset management tool at the two-day Asset Management for Buildings Workshops in October and November.
Buildings.PLUS is web-based cloud application that allows asset managers to identify and assess the condition of buildings and their individual components with ease. It will be available as an IPWEA subscription service and can be accessed on tablet devices like iPads and Android, meaning assessments and reporting can take place on site.
IPWEA CEO Chris Champion said the tool is a “paradigm shift” in way surveys are carried out, without fundamentally changing the principles of buildings management.
“It’s a huge step for the industry” he said. “This will get asset managers away from separate spreadsheets, access databases and pieces of paper to keep track of their building inventory.
“Rather than identifying a bunch of defects, they’re actually identifying, describing and assessing all of the components that make up a building.
“But it is aligned with the traditional way of doing a survey, there is nothing out of left field.”
Champion said the application is a scaled-down version of similar tools that are used by some of the largest government organisations in Australasia.
“Buildings.PLUS guides users through the correct level of detail they must record, how to store the data in the right place, and how to analyse, interrogate and report it,” he said.
“One of the key features is a library of 230 building components for reference.”
Although the system has an intuitive design, Champion said it is important that new users are properly trained.
“You need to set it up for your individual organisation to a certain degree,” he said. “You need to load up your properties and identify their components so you can assess their condition grades and count things like square metres of flooring, roofing and painting.
“There is some different thinking involved and that is why it is important whoever takes on Buildings.PLUS also attends the IPWEA workshops, because they will provide a good hands-on learning process.
“Attending the workshops is going to make their lives a lot more easier.”
The IPWEA Asset Management for Buildings workshops will be held in Sydney, Darwin, Perth, Adelaide, Brisbane, Hobart and Melbourne.
For more information or to register, please visit
www.ipwea.org.au/Buildings2013