“Technology like conject’s is simply indispensable today because the online platform provides us project managers with a complete overview of everything going on in the entire project. At any time. With central access to all drawings and documents as well as completely documented communication, we are in an even better position to meet the demands placed on our management capabilities. This makes coordination of so many project participants substantially easier and more structured.”
(Florian Dingler, ARCADIS Immobilien Consulting GmbH)

Project participants
Owner: Multi Development Germany GmbH
Project developer: Multi Veste Berlin GmbH
Project manager: ARCADIS Immobilien Consulting
Architects: Ortner & Ortner Baukunst, T+T Design

Total rental space
Approx. 81,000 sqm, of which 64,000 sqm retail space

Project duration:
4 years (start in spring 2007 until autumn 2011)
Construction phase 1: reconstruction project until 2nd April 2009
Construction phase 2: new construction project planned until autumn of 2011

Investment volume
Approx. € 450 million

Use of the Internet Platform conjectPM
Project participants on the Platform: 64*
No. of documents on the Platform: 9,700*
No. of drawings on the Platform: 25,600* with indices
Storage capacity: 105 GB*

(* As of January 2009)

Read More in our User Story

“We use the software conjectCM Developer Standard to manage our construction costs. All established standard processes are displayed here, specifically tailored to project developers. The standardization of all phases in the project relevant to us in budgeting, awards and accounting as well as the dynamic reporting provide us with the basis needed for budget adherence and control project-wide.”
(Christian Breitbach, Hines Immobilien GmbH, Stuttgart)

Project: Reconstruction of the ‘Postquartier’ – former postal headquarters dating from 1927 – into modern office and business buildings in close proximity to Stuttgart’s Königstraße. The development of the group of buildings, which remained virtually empty after the Deutsche Post AG moved out in 2007, will be of great benefit to the city – this revitalization should jump-start development in the entire district.

Focus on Sustainability:The ‘Postquartier’ is one of the first buildings in Germany to receive the LEED Certificate from the U.S. Green Building Council for sustainable construction. Hines wants to use this to demonstrate that even existing properties can fulfill the strict criteria for sustainability required by the LEED Certificate (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design). And this is in spite of the fact that the LEED standard applied to the ‘Postquartier’ was developed for new buildings.

Investment Volume: over € 100 million

Project duration: start in August 2008, planned completion by the beginning of 2010

“Nova Imobiliare SRL decides for conject support during the building of “The Colosseum Mall” in Bucharest. With its fast service in initialization and set up, conject meets perfectly our needs. We are quite impressed with conject SmartSearch™, the high usability and the fact that conject even has a Romanian version of its product. conjectPM helps us to keep control of our documents and drawings at a very reasonable price. With these unique arguments it was an easy decision for us to implement conject. There is no better way to manage and control a project as with conject!”
(Paul Marsh, Development Director der Nova Imobiliare SRL)

Development: Nova Imobiliare SRL, Romanian specialist in investment and project development

Investment volume: Approx. 450 Million Euro

Project “The Colosseum”:
- situated in the North West Bucharest
- Plot covers around 600,000 square meters.
- estimated 30 Million Euro planned for the area infrastructure development
- will provide over 180,000 sqm of retail, leisure and entertainment space
- will be developed in two parts

First Phase: Construction of the retail park with large-sized shops, covering an area of 52,000 sqm with over 2,500 car parking spaces.

Second Phase: Construction of a first class shopping centre with 130,000 sqm, including over 450 shops, a contemporary food court counting more than 1,500 seats, 12 screen cinema, 20 lane bowling, over 5,000 car parking spaces.

Project duration:
Construction of retail park will start on site in 2009, with an anticipated opening date in 2010. The shopping mall will open in 2012.

“Innovation simply takes time and perseverance,” Dipl. Ing. (FH) Jochen Appelmann, head of the Project Management and Project Development Department at OBERMEYER Planen + Beraten GmbH, is convinced. He has been working with conject since he joined OPB in 2006. Why? “Its structure is logical, it’s easy to use and indispensable for project management.” And he uses the Klagenfurt State Hospital as a good example of this. With over € 350 million, it is the largest hospital currently under construction in Europe. Such a major project will just barely get by without optimum project management supported with software like conject’s. Today’s projects are increasingly fast paced and complex. More and more engineers must accept this reality. The inference is therefore simple: “Such projects require software that is quickly understood and provides optimum transparency. That is what conject provides,” Appelmann says. But not only is the state hospital in Kärnten’s capital city an Obermeyer/conject project. conject is also being deployed in other hospital projects such as Balingen and Nürtingen as well as the new elementary and secondary schools in Unterhaching – currently one of the largest new school buildings in Bavaria.

But the reason why many but not all project managers are working with modern software tools the vice president in project management explains by pointing out how extremely conservative the sector is. “Unfortunately the prevailing motto often is still: We’ve never done it that way; who’s paying for it and why does it always end up being me?” He feels these are arguments bear no weight but they are still heard often. And that is why he stands by his convictions that things just won’t work without it - or at the very least either much worse or more expensive. “Whoever works and communicates in an unstructured manner will quickly see this will backfire on him,” he describes and knows that: “If someone is the trendsetter or market leader in this segment, he is often met with resistance. But once he has managed to win over the persons involved, it really can be fun and in the next joint project everything runs smoothly from the very start.”

In his private time Jochen Appelmann spends as much time as possible with this family, devoted to his daughter and his son – for example at home games in the ‘E Youth’ in Munich Allach, where he is “still active as a referee.” If he does have any time left, he tries to “hit a few golf balls in the right direction at the local driving range.” This is why he is looking forward to his vacation at the beginning of June in Cornwall where he’ll able to spend a good amount of time on the golf course.

Before Diplomingenieur (FH) Appelmann, a craftsman tiler, came to OPB, he worked both abroad (in London) for a major English project manager as well as in Germany as foreman in turn-key home construction and in project management as well as on the project developer side. He is distinguished with having nearly 20 years work experience.

…conjectPM now has SmartFlows™?

conjectPM SmartFlows™ provide the complete overview about incoming and outgoing mails regarding one topic composed into one single activity, there is no need to collect relevant pieces of information manually anymore.

You'll get:

• One single page combining all incoming and outgoing messages regarding one topic
• Access to all message attachment directly from that page
• Automatic hiding of redundant information enables quick understanding of important information regarding the topic.

More on conjectPM here.

...using conjectFM Workflows with the new convenient functions is now even more efficient?

Our customers have been using the highly flexible, integrated workflow system in conjectFM for years to support and optimize complex processes. With the extended convenient functions in conjectFM 7.5 it is now possible to work within a process even more efficiently and to set up a link to dependent processes very easily.

For example, context-related mails can be sent with a double click to persons named in the process. Also, new processes relating to the current process can be initiated or edited. This makes editing even easier for the user and further increases transparency in information.

More on conjectFM here.

This year the Conference on Infrastructure Lifecycle Management (ILM) is taking on a new shape. The organizers, a 20-member program committee – at the height of success – have agreed on a new concept and are bringing it to the CONSENSE which is organized by the DGNB and held once a year. Together they will now also be inviting people to the 1st ILM Alumni Evening on 22 June at the opening of the congress in Stuttgart.

“As initiator of the ILM, we have been intensely involved in this merger,” says Martin Reents, CEO of conject AG, who is a member of DGNB himself. “Since 2005 when the 1st ILM Conference was held, we have been laying emphasis on sustainability. Properties cannot survive if lifecycle costs are not sustainably taken into consideration in the planning, construction and operation.” From now on, the ILM program committee and the DGNB will act together. “Both projects are bundled – bringing us closer to our goal of promoting sustainable construction,” Reents is certain.

Along this line of thought, the persons responsible for the ILM Conference on one side and CONSENSE on the other have come together. In terms of sustainability, from now on they want to present all the aspects of this topic at a central conference once a year. This year focus will already be on lifecycle costs at the CONSENSE 2009 in June. Moreover, the organizers of the ILM (the program committee) and CONSENSE (DGNB/Neue Messe Stuttgart) will be inviting people to the 1st ILM Alumni Evening, which will take place during the opening of the congress on 22 June in Stuttgart.

You will find more information (in German) as well as the registration under here.

conject AG in cooperation with the Deutsche Gesellschaft für nachhaltiges Bauen e. V. (DGNB) is making a new communication platform available beginning in June. Responsible persons in the construction and real estate industry can take part in the discussion on the topic of sustainability. The first live transmission on 23 June 2009 from 3:00 pm to 4:30 pm from this year's CONSENSE in Stuttgart is the first in a series of Internet-based seminars – an absolute novelty in the sector.

Concepts for sustainable construction are derived in a smart cooperation of architects and professional planners, investors and building operators. conject is inviting persons to take part in its webinar series, an interactive, Internet-based event format for a direct exchange - free of charge to all participants. The format enables a larger number of interested persons to join in the discussion directly from their workplace.

You are invited to join in:

The premiere webinar will be transmitted live on 23 June 2009 from 3:00 pm to 4:30 pm from this year’s CONSENSE in Stuttgart.

Click here for further information as well as to sign up for the conject Webinar (in German only)

In this time of global crisis, people are looking for new strategies to secure their businesses, others looking to secure their professions. Regardless of what it is that needs securing, everyone knows that during these tough times, EVERYONE must Get Smart to Survive! - This fact is what prompted more than 50 real estate and construction professionals (primarily focused on project managers) to attend conject’s business lunch on 13 April 2009.

During the event, conject representatives shared their insights with the audience on how with ILM technology, the market’s key players can take these difficult times to their advantage, optimise on all opportunities and get ahead of their competitors.

Fadi Shana’ah, Business Development Director of conject’s Middle East Headquarters in Dubai presented solutions that an ILM software could provide and gave the audience a moment to conclude that in today’s financial slowdown. Software solutions can support intelligent companies reassessing their business processes to ensure increased efficiency and obtain even higher returns.

conject’s Co-Founder and Managing Partner, Dr. Uwe Forgber delivered an eye-opener on how getting organised in your construction projects. This could lead to saving more on your projects by cutting costs, shortening the planning period and eventually securing delivery.

The question on everyone’s minds is: How are YOU surviving the financial crisis, or better yet, prospering despite it?

The event was held in collaboration with GPPMA a non-profit organisation established to promote project and process management in the region and Dubai Knowledge Village.

To obtain copies of the presentations, please email us with your request.

He is a true “Defender of Nature,” as stated in the title in the Süddeutsche Zeitung in its portrait of one of conject AG’s biggest private investors, Friedrich Lehmann of Düsseldorf. Whoever is familiar with the dynamic businessman from the Rhineland knows he is an energetic forward thinker. He was one of the first importers of organic goods and is one of the most successful producers of organic goods in Europe. And he has also been supporting sustainability in other segments, e.g. in the construction and real estate sector. Lehmann has been one of conject AG’s investors since 2001.

What does a man whose heart beats for organic farming have to do with conject? Friedrich Lehmann laughs and answers: “Quite simply because of the issue of sustainability. When conject was founded it wasn't yet fashionable to talk about that, things are different today, thank goodness.” That is the voice of a true visionary talking.

The businessman from the prairie was rebellious at an early age and at first was glad when he got a job from his father who sold fruit and vegetables in a small town near Wuppertal. From potato packer to big businessman? Something like that. After Lehmann first supplied fruits and vegetables to small corner shops in Bergisches Land and in the Ruhr District, he took over the company in 1972, then headed to Düsseldorf and Duisburg seven years later, and restructured and expanded the company within a few years’ time. When he saw bananas selling at an organic market for DM 12.00 a kilo, while his supermarket clients were selling conventional bananas for DM 0.99 a kilo, it became clear to him that, “somebody must put an end to this insanity.” In 1989 he founded the company “Lehmann Natur,” which today is one of Europe’s largest importers of organic fruit and vegetables.

Lehmann does not have a lot to do with properties, except for one in Spain. He spends time every month at his farm in Andalusia – the athletic businessman has planted subtropical fruits here in adherence with Demeter’s guidelines. His concept: work with nature not against it. If it were up to Friedrich Lehmann, a sustainable form of agriculture would serve as the model for a new, deep ecological economic system. He is pleased to see the real estate sector focusing more and more on sustainability. “That’s how conject won me over back then,” he says, “because I got to know how special its corporate culture is. Employees are the heart and soul of the company – even office dogs have their place as a matter-of-course,” says the man who also really loves animals. He relies on unconventional ideas and knows how to stand up for them.

Friedrich Lehmann has a lot of supporters, though some aren’t always able to follow his ideas. But the passionate motorcyclist has already managed to put several ideas into action, where others merely shook their heads initially. He took part in Greenpeace actions near Mururoa to protest against France's nuclear tests. When he’s not near the Rhine River or in Andalusia, Lehmann passionately enjoys traveling around the world, most recently living in Venezuela with Indians and shamans.

You will find more information under http://www.lehmann-natur.com

Why a full text search?

When working with a Web platform such as conject, important project documents are made available to all participants. But how is everyone able to find the documents relevant to him out of a huge mass of information? Normally, metadata is added when a document is uploaded – if this is missing or if a project participant assigns this differently than normal, there is almost no chance of finding that document within large amounts of data. Also new project participants, who aren’t familiar with the specific rules for filing, quickly run into this problem.

No problem for conject users!

What makes conjectPM SmartSearch™ so unique is the option of finding a document also via the full text search, in other words through its text contents. Even if no categories or keywords are entered, it can be found quickly and easily.

Gaining a patent with true pioneering work!

How does it work? All document contents must be combined into one large search index. The pure text is extracted from documents for this – this applies to all formats and contents, even to scanned files or pictures. The conjectPM SmartSearch™ understands the art of detecting the actual content of a document, quickly and reliably filtering out the pure text. A few of the technical mechanisms for this search function were newly developed by conject for the first time ever. Several suppliers had already programmed partial solutions - but never before as a viable complete package. The patent is based on true pioneering work and the convincing quality of conject’s solution.

Try it for yourself – click here for the live demo.

Enjoy the view from the 27th floor. This could be your new workplace.

You say that no one erects a building anymore in Dubai because of the crisis? Less…, that’s true, but that’s not why we need you.

Now it is much more the time to take care of existing buildings. And for exactly this reason we are hoping you will join us in Dubai as a CAFM consultant.

If you have several years experience in FM/CAFM and project management and if you are a bit on the adventurous side, then ten colleagues from five nations are looking forward to meeting you.

By the way, did you know there's no income tax in the Emirate of Dubai?!

You will find more information on the open position of CAFM Consultant here.

1) conject’s participation as an exhibitor at this year's FM Fair was uncertain from the start. Why did conject nevertheless decide to participate?

Ralf Golinski: Our participation in the fair had been under consideration for two reasons: 1. Attendance had been on the decline in recent years and we were unsure whether participation would even be worth it. 2. The organization of the fair itself was under fire. There was not enough advance advertisement, the positioning of the booths was poorly organized, and the congress held at the same time was not integrated into the exhibition. As regards the second aspect, through our membership in the CAFM Ring we initiated this year, conject was able to have substantially more influence. Mesago was willing to take up our ideas – such as the first-time appearance of the CAFM Marketplace. As regards the number and quality of the visitors it was – admittedly – a gamble: Since the start of the year we have noticed growing demand for our products for Infrastructure Lifecycle Management. The gamble was whether or not this would have a positive impact on the significance of the FM Fair.

2) Did the fair also meet expectations?

R. G.: Yes, in fact it exceeded expectations: Altogether we were able to hold over 100 pointed talks during the three days of the fair. We are now in the process of initiating concrete business deals with over 60 interested parties

3) Was conject able to make successful use of the fair? What were the factors for success and how were they achieved?

R.G.: For us a fair is only then successful if we have managed to get in contact with new interested parties who already have a concrete interest in acquiring new software – in this case above all in our CAFM system conjectFM. The substantial investment involved in such a position at the fair is not worth it if it only yields five or even eight such initiated business deals. But over 60 leads are already an extremely good amount. In my opinion, we were able to link such large interest in our fair booth to this satisfactory result for two reasons. First, the interested parties at the fair this year were much better prepared – most knew exactly which uses and which performance they could expect from the companies, the software and the capabilities of the consultants. And secondly, we were able to meet these expectations precisely and underscore them with a series of excellent references. The coming months will show whether those interested parties will also become customers. I am very optimistic given how high the quality of talks was.

4) What does the CAFM Ring actually have to do with this?

R. G.: The CAFM RING is an association which currently brings together the four leading providers of CAFM. Even though we are in competition with one another, we do have one common interest: we want to increase awareness of the concrete use of CAFM software, for instance for transparency and cost reduction in the operation of real estate and properties. And to that effect we want to make a tangible contribution towards fulfilling the requirements of parties interested in CAFM customers’ expectations with a high standard of quality. For this we tried to spread the word and hope that other providers will join us. As the host of the FM Fair, Mesago recognized the associated significance of the CAFM Ring from early on and granted us a place on the fair advisory board. We were able to introduce our suggestions to optimize the focus of the fair. And I am very glad that this was addressed and implemented in a constructive manner.

5) Is there a chance of seeing conject at the FM Fair in 2010?

R. G.: You bet :)

Many Thanks, Ralf Golinski!

The architectural offices of 'Weinmiller Architekten’, in Berlin, and 'kister scheithauer gross architekten und stadtplaner,’ in Cologne, were awarded the 2009 German Natural Stone Award. The € 30,000 architectural prize is awarded every two years.

The exterior cubic structure of the new building of the Landeskreditbank Baden-Württemberg in Karlsruhe by Weinmiller Architekten adheres to the parceling of the Baroque fan-shaped city. The inner courtyard is rectangular, cut out of the building structure. The natural stone used, a beige limestone in a solid construction in the style and dimension of Roman brickwork, strongly shapes the appearance of the building. The selection of stone is in harmony with the brick façades of the neighboring buildings. The jury cited the balanced and finely proportioned relationship between the massive wall surface and the apertures cut into them.

Another first prize was awarded to the new construction of the city archives in Halle/Saale by the firm of ‘kister scheithauer gross’. The new building in the form of a massive stone tower is inserted into a small gap next to the neo-Renaissance city palace dating from 1884. As a direct reversal of the materials used in the historic building, the archive tower appears as a tall block of natural stone composed of shell limestone, into which vertical apertures have been cut. They are filled with brick matching the color of the old building as a constructive wall structure. According to the jury, “the wooden ventilation flaps of varying heights dance over the façade and lend a new interpretation of apertures in a manner appropriate for an archive.”

Five other projects received honorable mentions.

(The prizes were awarded as part of the Stone+tec Nürnberg 2009, International Trade Fair for Natural Stone and Stoneprocessing Technology.)

You will find further news on the real estate industry from industrieBau-online.