AEC Firms Laud Benefits of Newforma Construction Administration Software

MANCHESTER, NH--(Marketwire - Mar 25, 2013) - Newforma, a project information management (PIM) software company transforming building and infrastructure project delivery, today announced that AEC firms using an early release of the tenth edition of its Newforma® Contract Management software for construction contract administration have confirmed its readiness for commercial release in April. This edition includes new features to manage potential change orders, daily reports, and site visits, as well as integration with Newforma Mobile Apps.

Tweet this: @Newforma releases new edition of Newforma Contract Management software for #construction administration

LMN Architects Project Manager Art Haug has been part of the team validating the latest release on live projects. "For years we've relied on Newforma software to help us track the flood of submittals, RFIs, change order proposals, and other items generated during the construction phases of projects," Haug said. "During my last project -- a $135 million multi-phase classroom/office building for a major university -- both the owner and the contractor would come to me for communications they could not find in their own files. Because of the ease of tagging email to a Newforma Action Item, RFI or Submittal, I was always able to find what they were looking for."

Matt Tosto is a project engineer and director of technology services for Affiliated Engineers, Inc. "Our project coordinators depend on Newforma software to execute a CA process that's consistent, timely and auditable," Tosto said. "Processing RFIs and submittals the same way every time is one of the ways we mitigate risk.

"We like using the latest edition because Newforma is consistent about implementing our suggestions for improvement," Tosto said. "We can't say that about any other software we use."

New and improved Newforma Contract Management features:

Newforma Contract Management provides an extensive array of functions to manage submittals, requests for information, contracts, change orders and more. Because contract administration is a series of interconnected steps, all functions connect to create seamless workflows and create audit trails. For example, an RFI sketch can be linked to a supplemental instruction, which in turn may be linked to a change order proposal and its final, approved change order. Capturing these relationships as work processes unfold is crucial to ensure accountability and transparency, to avoid delays, and to expedite the resolution of claims.

New features include:

• Daily Reports: The Daily Reports activity center provides an easy-to-complete form to record the official snapshot of the jobsite status and activities for the day, drawing upon notes, photos, videos, and audio clips uploaded via the Newforma Field Notes mobile app.
  
  
• Site Visits: The Site Visits activity center provides team members who periodically visit the site with an information management resource which, like the Daily Reports activity center, draws upon the Field Notes app's notes, photos, videos, and audio clips.
  
  
• Potential Change Orders (PCOs): The Potential Change Orders activity center provides project managers with tools to quantify the impact of changes and secure agreement from everyone affected by a change.
  
  
• PCO Scoreboard: At each stage of development, the PCO Scoreboard provides project managers a graphical, at-a-glance status of their PCOs and directs their attention to the important issues currently needing attention.
  
  
• Contracts: The Contracts activity center now incorporates a new Schedule of Values tab to record the original contract value at a cost code level, and a new graph charts the contract's growth history from creation through signed change order, reflecting forecasted PCO increases.
  
  
• Change Orders: The expanded Change Order activity center connects the PCO estimates back to the contract and formalizes negotiations between the subcontractor and general contractor. A new Schedule of Values grid gathers pricing items from approved PCOs and incorporates the final values into the contracted current commitment.

Newforma Co-founder and Executive Vice President Bob Batcheler said, "The construction phase of a building and infrastructure project is fraught with risks. It challenges team members to process ever-increasing numbers of submittals, change order proposals, addenda, supplemental instructions, and other elements of contract administration. Email and increasing technical complexity are adding to the burden. Risk takes the form of delays and overlooked items. In response to requests from architects, engineers, construction managers, contractors and others, we've expanded our project information management solution to manage these workflows and mitigate their risks. This latest edition of Newforma Contract Management incorporates the suggestions and requests of Newforma customers who are using our products to improve service, reduce risks and deliver more successful projects."

About Newforma
Newforma develops, sells and supports project information management (PIM) software for architecture, engineering and construction firms worldwide, and the owners they serve. Newforma is the first industry-focused and integrated solution to connect firms to each other, to their project information, to their processes, and to remote team members, all for the purpose of more successful project delivery. Firms in the Newforma Project Network are using Newforma software to manage information on more than one million projects, raising productivity, reducing exposure to risk, strengthening their brands, and freeing time and attention to focus on design, construction, and client service. For more information about Newforma, visit www.newforma.com, or phone +1 603-625-6212.

© 2013 Newforma, Inc. Newforma is a registered trademark of Newforma, Inc., in the United States and in other countries. All other brands or products are trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective holders and should be treated as such.