Work Packages Introduction

X4D Work Packaging Process

Work packaging is an extensive process which involves both the Engineering and Construction teams in a project. Work packages are used to group certain tags together which produce an easier way to use and manage the operations associated with the project. Currently, this is a long and tedious process X4D will use a three-step process which would properly incorporate the entire work packaging process. The three steps will be Work Package Creation, Work Package Management, and Work Package Usage. Through these steps, X4D will be able to properly meet stakeholder needs. This process is shown in the figure below.

Features

The proposed design contains two modules: a Work Package Administration (which will work as both Work Package creation as well as Issuing for Construction), as well as a separate Work Package Reviewing module. Complementing this is the 3D model support which is currently present in X4D already. Furthermore, a revamped system for Document Management is included to better archive various documents. The following will list the ideal procedure for work packaging.

Also, the team must assume that full engineering data is provided in the project for the proposed system to be highly effective.

3D Model Support

X4D will have 3D model support complementing the three work package modules. This is important as it provides the user with a visual of where each tag is placed in relation with the project and therefore can aid the user identifying certain objects. This will assist the user in ensuring that all tags have properly been added to a work package.

Furthermore, when a certain work package is being managed, the user will have the ability to isolate and grey scale the model so that they can view the tags in the work package exclusively.

Improved Document Management Feature

A new method for document management will be added to X4D. This will improve the storing and allocating of different versions of a document.

There will be a master document which will not be copy-able, but editable. If copied, the copied document will be modifiable (until is saved) as well as copy-able. Once a document is saved however, it can no longer be modified or deleted similar to the master document. This way, new versions will be able to be created and since deleting or modifying the previous versions is not possible, there will be a better archive of the documents. This is also important as the same document might be used for more than one work package, and it is better to preserve the master document versus editing it which might not make it applicable to the other work packages. X4D will also be able to detect when a new version of the document has been created and will notify the user off all the work packages that the document is associated with. This is further clarified in Section 1.3.2.A Clash Identification.

Work Package Administration Module

The Work Package Creation module will provide all the tools for the user to create a work package. This will be used by the work package creation group to create, document and modify a work packages. The module will contain two main features: Work Package Creation (Section 1.2.1) and Work Package Updating (Section 1.2.2). Work Package Updating will also have a sub-feature which is related with Clash Identification (Section 1.2.2.A). Through these features, X4D should properly accommodate all work package administration processes.

Work Package Creation

This module will contain all the information regarding tags which the user can add to the new work package. These tags will be added from the nested tag filtering system found in the other modules such as Work Progressing. This will be beneficial to the user as they will be able to locate tags more quickly while also being provided the drag-and-drop functionality for easier use. Through integration with the 3D model, the user can also select parts in the model which would also add to the new Work Package. Furthermore, the user will also be able to add materials associated with the work package’s procedures as well as creating viewpoints for the work package. Additionally, the user will have the ability to add and annotate any documents related with the specific tags. There will be various comment boxes each next to a certain aspect of the work package (the tags, material list, viewpoints, documents) through which the reviewer can precisely comment on that aspect. This will make it easier for the reviewer and the creator to view and associate the comments with the parts of the work package.

Once they have completed these steps, they will be able to send the created work package for review (further outlined in Section 1.3 Work Package Reviewing Module). The creator will have the ability to choose which individuals or groups need to review the work package, and then complete the creation process. Then, this will automatically send a virtual copy of the work package for review to the users who have been listed by the creator.

Work Package Updating

After the work package has been reviewed, the reviewers will resend the work package to the creators if any changes need to be made (as outlined in section 1.3 Work Package Reviewing Module). This feature will be similar to the work package creation feature (Section 1.3.1). A notification will appear in the creator’s dashboard to signify that the reviewing has been completed and there are further actions that the user must take. The user will view the changes in the virtual copy(s) of the work package and then have the ability to modify the tag list, material list, documents and viewpoints contained in the real work package. The user can then resend the work package for review or issue it directly for construction (Section 1.4 IFC) if the work package does not need to be reviewed again.

This feature will also allow for the options to freeze any progress being completed in the IFC module (see section 1.4) which is associated with the Clash Identification feature (Section 1.3.2.A)

A- Clash Identification

One troubleshooting aspect which has arisen is the updating of the master documents which are associated with the work package. As this may affect a specific work package, the creator must review the changes and modify the work package if necessary. The process will occur by X4D realizing that a new revision to a specific document has been made (see Section 1.2 Document Revision Management) and will notify the user through the dashboard along with which work packages it might affect. The user will then be able to review the updated documents and see if changes need to be made. The user will be redirected from the dashboard to the Work Package Creation module (see Section 1.3) and can update the work package (see Section 1.3.2). They have the ability to add the new updated document while also updating the tag list, material list and viewpoints. Furthermore, they have the ability to resend the work package for review as well as freeze any progress being completed in the IFC process as this must be updated. The benefit of freezing the Work Progress for this Work Package is to ensure that the construction team does not continue progressing the older process. If the revised document does not affect the work package, no action is required. This system is shown in the figure below.

Work Package Reviewing Module

This module will outline the “issue for reviewing” step. This module will be restricted to only certain individuals or groups as decided by the administrator. Once a work package has been created in the Work Package Creation Module (see Section 1.3), the creator will select which individuals or groups that need to review it. The selected reviewers will then get a notification of a pending work package in the Dashboard and will be redirected to this module. A virtual copy of the work package will be created and accessible to the reviewer. Each reviewer will have to see the same virtual copy and will be able to modify the tag list, material list, viewpoints as well as annotate documents. This way they will be able to see the comments made by other reviewers as it is in the same document which should help limit repeating the same change through various virtual copies. Once a reviewer has completed their review, they will be able to send it to the creator for updating.

Issue for Construction

This will be the last step in the Work Packaging process. Once a work package has been completed and issued for construction, the construction team will be able to view it in the Work Package Administration Module. The work package cannot be modified and it will be in a read-only format. This will be done by X4D recognizing which type of user it is (creator or construction). Through this method, the construction team will also be able to view all the information associated with the work package. Another feature it will contain is the possibility to progress work. This will be done by opening up a new window which directs the user to the Work Progressing module and have it automatically filtered to the contents of the work package. This solution is beneficial as it integrates well with Work Progressing and also is easier to implement from a development standpoint versus creating an entirely new module for IFC.