In the post pandemic era, we in the EPC and construction sector are seeing many changes rippling across our verticals, not least among them the enthusiastic acceptance of new technologies that were previously deemed low-priority – or a good-to-have not a must-have. What caused this shift in attitudes about construction project management software?

One could say it was triggered by lockdowns and work-from-home, but the truth is that digital technology was already slowly becoming the norm and during the lockdowns the change was accelerated. Companies had no choice but to fully embrace technologies that would allow them to function under the new conditions. In other words, it became a case of “adapt or shut down”. We saw the overnight acceptance of virtual meetings, zoom calls, MSteams, WhatsApp, etc. Occur as these tools became survival tactics that could keep work going. At the same time everyone began learning how to conduct business in a virtual environment and everyone started getting comfortable with digital data and digital workplaces.

Construction was no exception. Construction companies started holding design review meetings online and interacting with clients online. Site visits and their results also began to be shared online  or through drones, electronic signatures on documents began to be acceptable. Various emerging technologies began to be adapted to fill the new policies and requirements. And construction project management software became a ‘hot’ topic almost overnight. Along with all these changes, the fundamental approach to information sharing and data-storing also had to change. The drive to explore EDMS, collaboration, and other project-related software solutions took off with a vengeance. Today there is no dearth of online platforms, applications, tools, solutions, and services with more springing up every week and one of the most powerful of the crop is Project Management Information Systems (PMIS).

A Project Management Information System (PMIS) is a software application (or collection of software tools) used in construction projects with the purpose of defining a systematic methodology for capturing, verifying, storing, updating, sharing, and handing over project data/documents. As the name suggests, it is a system of multiple connected processes and not just a series of tools working in isolation.  Rather, a Project Management Information System integrates the various workflows along the project lifecycle and digitizes the documents and data generated along that lifecycle. So the value of PMIS in construction in today’s business landscapes would be hard to overstate.

If used correctly, the modern PMIS can help project teams manage huge amounts of data without huge mounts of spend in manhours. A PMIS gives project teams access to real-time project progress information, making it an invaluable monitoring and tracking mechanism for project stakeholders and it also gives managers the data they need to manage risk effectively. In fact without a PMIS, managers become overly reliant on the skills and experience of individual workers and this can become a bottleneck especially in large complex capital projects or in situations where full-time manpower is being supplemented with gig workers, offshore workers, and WFH workers. With non-traditional workforces becoming the norm across the world, construction companies find themselves having to invest in project management information systems for practical reasons as well as financial.

Adopting a PMIS means that managers no longer have to juggle hundreds (even thousands) of complicated worksheets and excel sheets. A digital project management information system (PMIS) eases the burden of manipulating and updating in all those worksheets at a fraction of the cost/time.

Collaboration between stakeholders is another aspect of project management that has seen tangible improvements when a PMIS is adopted, as stakeholders are able to track project progress in real time, and the risk of misunderstanding and miscommunications gets more or less eradicated.

Given these obvious benefits some wonder why it took the industry so long to adopt digital systems. The answer may lie in the industry itself; in how it is structured and how it evolved over the decades. Any industry that has evolved its processes over the course of many years is unlikely to let go of them lightly, especially when the cost of change is so high. Also, people in the industry build careers around specific skillsets and knowledge bases and re-aligning to the digital methodologies can be challenging on the personal level. On the whole, a change will be adopted in the industry only when benefit clearly outweighs the cost, as was the case with the lockdowns, or when it becomes necessary to stay competitive in one’s market, as is happening right now in every geography.

To conclude, the past few years have seen our industry do a 360 degree in terms of adopting digital technology, to the point where it’s difficult to visualise a project without a PMIS or some other underlying digital system at work. As PMIS in construction continues to revolutionise the way EPC companies manage their projects, we can be sure this is just the beginning of a new ‘way of life’ for construction projects.