“Large-scale projects are generating increasing amounts of data. At the same time, pressure is mounting for legally compliant documentation in the construction business. This cannot be achieved using standard storage methods. In the conject Project Space, all documents are available online at any time and in all editing versions. Changes are documented with legal proof of all accesses to the documents – transparently and gap-free. But not only that. The entire management and evaluation of drawings can be accelerated with the conject Platform. In addition, we are completing our RFB and tendering processes directly via the Project Space. A paperless bidding process! Lufthansa Technik is currently considering the deployment of Project Spaces as the standard in small and medium-sized projects as well."

(Clemens Rübcke, Dipl.-Ing., Architect and Project Director of Buildings & Technical Facilities, Lufthansa Technik AG)

One of many projects:

“N3” New construction of facilities for Engine Overhaul Services in Arnstadt/Thuringia

• Budget: approx. €100 million
• Project duration: 2 years (planning 02/2005 to 01/2006, construction time 02/2006 to 02/2007)
• Project participants: approx. 250 active participants in the conject Project Space
• Data volume of project documentation and communication: approx. 7,000 drawings, a further 8,550 written documents as well as roughly 6,850 conversations, each with an average of 10 contributions (corresponds to roughly 68,500 individual emails)

“Restructuring this urban area represents a complex project – consisting of 11 components and on an area the size of 3 football fields. We are relying on conject’s online Project Management Platform to keep track of the entire planning and realization involving roughly 30 planning companies and service providers. Documentation, communication, drawing management – we process everything here via the Internet, quickly and easily. Changes in the course of the project are transparent at all times; risks can be detected early on. This is exactly what counts in large-scale projects.”

(Heinrich Fetzer, Project Manager, CBP Projektmanagement GmbH, Frankfurt am Main)

Project:

Following intense negotiations and coordination with the City of Frankfurt, the DIC has begun realization of the “MainTor” project in Frankfurt am Main. The site of the former headquarters of the Deutschen Gold- und Silberscheideanstalt (Degussa) is located between the financial district and the historic part of the city, in the front row on the banks of the Main River. This has not been accessible to the public for decades and had separated the city center from the arm of the river and the public parks on the embankment. The “MainTor” will re-establish this link and serve to reconnect and revitalize these urban areas. The urban development will provide Frankfurt with a decisive stimulus. The interplay with the towers of the financial district creates a gateway to the Main River, which in turn adds an inviting and lively area to the adjacent historic part of the city. As a connection between the surrounding areas, the new ensemble provides individual buildings for offices and residences as well as a network of paths as part of the city grid.

Investment volume: Roughly €500 million

Area: 108,000 sqm

Owner: Deutsche Immobilien Chancen AG & Co. KGaA (DIC)

Project manager: CBP Projektmanagement GmbH, Frankfurt am Main Architect: KSP Engel und Zimmermann Architekten, Frankfurt/Main

Project duration: Construction to begin in autumn of 2009, planned completion in 2014

“We at IPRO DRESDEN use conjectCM for our internal project controlling. On one hand, for cost controlling and, on the other, to manage both internal and external services, including the entire invoicing process. For example, roughly 630 contracts and approximately 3,200 invoices were generated with conjectCM in the past year. An overview of all of these documents ensures us the essential level of transparency of all expenses. Only with this constant monitoring during all phases of the project are we able to detect deviations early and to take appropriate measures.”

(Lutz Junge, Authorized Representative and Head of Accounting, IPRO DRESDEN)

Example project of IPRO DRESDEN: "European Distribution Centre" (EDC)

Construction of a state-of-the-art distribution center in Leipzig with two main functions: high bay storage facilities are being built on 15,000 sqm for storage of 66,000 various articles on 255,000 container storage spaces and 4,400 pallet storage spaces, as well as a production facility for receiving and shipping. This impressive complex of buildings represents the first completely automated storage facilities in Europe. The daily distribution capacity will be 4,200 deliveries with a total of 18,000 transfers per day – an entirely new dimension in capacity and flexibility.

General planning and construction supervision: IPRO DRESDEN Planungs- und Ingenieuraktiengesellschaft

Owner/Investor: Future Electronics, the world’s third-largest distributor of electronic components

Investment volume: over €40 million

Project duration: 5 months for the entire planning, 6 months construction time, planned completion in the first half of 2010

Will Blake is a man of determination and action. With his extensive background in the hospitality and real estate industry that spans Europe to the Middle East, it comes as no surprise when in 2008, Will decided that due to the global credit crunch and “with limited jobs in my field becoming available, it was then that I decided was the time to start up my own company” in the Sultanate of Oman.

A believer in software tools since he began his career fifteen years ago, Will reignited his relationship with conject whom he was introduced to two years ago during his tenure with Hamptons International. “I came to learn their professionalism and superior advantages their systems had over competing software”, he confirms. And since its founding, Elite Properties’ businesses are supported by conject’s CRM system. “It makes me feel very proud and pleased that we have been able to set this up and deliver a robust platform that will take real estate here in Oman to a new level of expectations to our clients”, states Will.

In January 2009, Elite Properties Oman made its official entry to the Sultanate’s market and set the benchmark for middle-class real estate. Will recognises that “so often developers deliver dream master plans that in reality are not what the customer wants or can afford”. He adds, “I want Elite Properties to be able to offer professional consultations with developers and investors that will deliver solid information based on collective data that is being collated every day of the business operation.”

Will decided “it is imperative that from day one we gather our data correctly that will in return give us a better advantage to our competitors and a solid understanding of what the customer wants”. To help realise this plan and “to gain market advantage and offer a 360 degrees quality service that will in return give you a credibility”, Will considered that software as a service is going to be essential for his company’s success. He excludes himself from the people who do not recognise this potential and “turn their backs against the outline cost and do not see the long term benefits and returns”.

Life, combined with work can be chaotic at times – Will finds sanctuary in playing golf and exploring the seas with his wife and children. It has also become their family tradition to head to Florida every two years where they own a timeshare to visit the magical Disneyland theme park, which not only the children enjoy but Will as well! Will is also very passionate about travelling – from the tropical weather, ancient traditions and tranquil temples of Thailand to the historical sites in Europe. “Away from the day to day hectic life, it is usually on the beach at the famous Al Bustan Palace Hotel (in Oman) where I like to escape with my family and enjoy the qualities the hotel has to offer”, concludes Will Blake.

…in conjectPM all messages on one topic are combined in one process?

Processes serve to combine individual messages by topic. Effective immediately, you can view all messages and processes on one topic at a glance in the new “Processes” tab.

You have access to all sorts of new functions available in Process Management, for example:

1. Respond to messages of one process or forward the entire process
2. Forward the entire contents of a process (all text contents and attachments) in one step to a new group of recipients
3. Label a process as completes in order to file it and thus hide it in the standard view
4. Print the entire process

You will find more information on the newest products here in the Release Notes.

...you can activate the multiline entry in conjectCM?

In conjectCM you have the option of switching to a multiline entry mode in all text fields. As a result, you can conveniently enter a long text of several lines into this field. To do so, place the cursor in the desired text field and press the key combination “Ctrl” + “F”. This opens a separate input screen, into which you can enter the desired text. Afterwards the first line of this long text is displayed in the single line text field. In order to display the complete text or to make changes to it, you can again use the key combination “Ctrl” + “F”.

...you can now save OLAP Cube layouts in conjectFM?

The OLAP Cube has proven to be a flexible tool for evaluations. Up to Version 7.0, the layouts created by the user could not be called up again; instead they had to be set up again each time they were called up.

With conjectFM 7.5 this is now a thing of the past. Every table can be transferred to the Cube view as usual. What is new is that any number of layouts can be saved to a table. A layout represents the complete display. Whether a table and/or chart should be displayed and which title is to be used for the chart are both saved.

All layouts can be called up via the context menu and applied to the current table. One layout at a time can be designated as the default. This is the layout initially applied when the Cube view is called up.

The cat is out the bag: Germany’s Federal Government is making an additional €14 billion available for investments in construction measures for states and municipalities. More than half of this must be spent during this year. Time is running out!

How do you manage 5, 10, 20 or more construction and redevelopment projects at the same time? And how do you complete your projects as quickly as possible?

conject can help you: With conjectPM – the Internet-based Project Space for every type of construction project.

Take advantage now of the particularly attractive packages which conject has made available for new customers in the public sector under conject.com/public.

Get further information (only in German) here

The graphical user interface of conjectCM has been redesigned completely. All icons and colours have been adjusted to the typical conject design. Your working environment is more appealing and structured!

We show you the new conjectCM live – see for yourself.

conject has been successively expanding its commitment to sustainability. Since the end of last year as a foundation member of “Energiewende Oberland” and now also as a member of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Nachhaltiges Bauen e.V. (DGNB).

With this, conject is supporting the DGNB in its quest to highlight and promote methods and solutions which enable sustainable construction/building. This involves the planning of buildings as well as their execution and utilization. The DGNB’s role is to serve as the central organization in Germany for the exchange of knowledge, advanced training and for increasing public awareness of this future-oriented segment of the construction industry. The focus of their work is on awarding certificates for sustainable buildings.

The focus of sustainable building is primarily on quality – and from a comprehensive point of view. Sustainable buildings are built efficiently from an economic standpoint, environmentally friendly and saving resources. They benefit the comfort and health of the users and are inserted optimally into their socio-cultural environment. As a result, sustainable buildings retain their high value in the long term – equally for investors, owners and the users.

For this reason, sustainable building aims, on one hand, for a high level of quality and to retain the value of buildings and, on the other, adapts to future developments. Above all, however, it reduces the burden to the environment, provides social use and supports the economy.

The basis for conject's commitment is the comprehensive approach to Infrastructure Lifecycle Management (ILM), for which conject is the market leader in software and services. This covers all phases in the lifecycle of a property – in essence a holistic approach, which is the basis for sustainable construction and operation in the real estate business.

That was quite an ambush. Michael Kapfhammer, an architect and with a degree in civil engineering, was more than a bit surprised when Captain Falconbeard and a young lady pirate showed up at the door of BG Planen und Bauen GmbH in Munich. As opposed to most pirates, their intentions were good. They presented a treasure chest filled with delicious goodies to the project director of major planning and realization projects. He took part in the competition "conjectPM Treasure Hunt" of the Munich-based software house at the end of last year – and won.

And it was recorded live – have a look for yourself (in German only)

For a long time, things in Dubai had been moving at a much faster pace than anywhere else, but here they’ve now slowed down as well. Some are calling it a "crash," others are simply referring to a much-needed consolidation of the market, which was frightening to many. The fact is that there has been an enormous decline in real estate prices and many projects are on hold. But it doesn’t mean that these projects will never be realized! What counts here now is the right sense of proportion. And it means even more work for conject!

"Even if the market continues to shrink – we can still grow strongly," says Dr. Uwe Forgber, Director of conject Dubai. Because in difficult times financial gains and return on investments are more important than ever for investors and end users. “conject can help here, particularly with German values. Many companies have come to realize this now in particular.”

Because up until last year solid real estate business was hardly in vogue particularly in Dubai’s young, almost wild real estate market. Due to the financial crisis many are taking a more sober view of the real estate business in the Gulf region. Many are saying it’s actually healthier.

Further info directly from Uwe Forgber here.

The Porsche Museum in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen is finished. The design came from the Vienna-based offices of Delugan Meissl Associated Architects who won the architecture competition in 2005. The exhibition design was provided by the office of HG Merz in Stuttgart.

The building consists of two zones: the foyer, classic vehicle workshop, shop, archives and administration are located on the ground floor. Above this is the exhibition wing which is set apart and appears to float.

The spatial steel girders rest on only three cores which serve as supports. With 5,600 sqm exhibition space, it provides room for around 80 classic vehicles and over 200 smaller exhibits from the company’s history.

The entire interior of the museum is white. The exhibitions are intended to speak for themselves, without any dramatic spectacles. Since nearly all vehicles in the museum are still used in historical racing and rally events and because the cars on display change as a result, the appearance of the exhibition is constantly in flux. An impressive escalator serves as the link between the ground floor and the exhibition wing.

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