INEIGHT CASE STUDY
OTTAWA RAIL PROJECT: BUILDING TRUST THROUGH REAL-TIME ANALYTICS
The tools chosen for complex builds can make the difference between project success or chaos.
It can be very exiting to consider the next 20 to 30 years of transportation expansion across growing regions worldwide. There are potential job increases, economic stability and the positive impact of connecting communities. But for those tasked with building the infrastructure this growth requires, it can also be daunting. The sheer complexity of project tasks — figuring out how to best communicate with stakeholders, successfully manage teams and keep up with often unpredictable supply chains, all while staying up to date with industry standards and regulations — means project leaders must navigate more details than ever before. The construction project management tools chosen for these complex builds can make the difference between project success or chaos. The Ottawa Rail (O-Train) expansion team knows this first-hand.
OTTAWA RAIL AT A GLANCE
The O-Train Line 1 is a 12.5-kilometre electric light-rail service that connects 13 stations from Tunney’s Pasture in the west to Blair in the east.
RECOGNIZING THE NEED FOR A CENTRALIZED SOLUTION
The pace of innovation increases with each passing year. Being prepared to succeed in an increasingly digital environment remains paramount. For Hussein Moustapha, cost engineer for Kiewit, being prepared is all about data control. “We have more than 25 disciplines on this project, and they were all working in their own formats,” he says. “There was no common hub to our data, no centralization. We realized the longer we allowed that situation to go on, the harder it would be to bring everybody into one single platform when they were searching for the truth.”
The issue of “truth” in communication loomed large for other reasons as well. First, using generic software like Microsoft Excel® for reporting required that each report have its own special fix when problems arose, which was often. “It’s like trying to use duct tape over and over,” Moustapha says. “It works in a pinch, but it’s really only temporary until the next issue arises.” The other problem was being able to accurately display the data in a digestible format. “Excel is a good way to store data, but it may not be the best way to display data or progress, or to create visuals,” he explains. “Let’s face it. Just because you can hammer a nail with a very sturdy phone case, doesn’t mean it’s the best tool for the job. It’s the same with software.”
“Let’s face it. Just because you can hammer a nail with a very sturdy phone case, doesn’t mean it’s the best tool for the job. It’s the same with software.”
-Hussein Moustapha, Cost Engineer, Kiewit
Because of this, a solution specifically built to create the construction visuals they needed, and with many different stakeholders in mind, was put on their short list.
Catie Williams, VP or Product at InEight and project lead working with Moustapha, explains another issue, one that often happens to key pieces of data when people use different systems. “What if somebody needs that information on another project five, 10 or 15 years down the line?” she explains. “If each piece is stored locally in a
folder on someone’s desktop, and then they move on to another project or to another role, it can easily get lost. This is one of the biggest limitations of point solutions.”
This meant any new solution would have to not only hold historical data securely, but in a centralized manner that would be immune to disruption from the normal shifts within such a large construction project.