Collaborative project information management in a semantic web environment

Project information management in architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) projects can be a challenging endeavor due to the complex nature of projects and the numerous sources and types of information required, including drawings, plans, specifications, and building information modeling (BIM), among others. AEC projects require stakeholders to develop temporary teams, develop work processes, and collaborate across organizational boundaries. Additionally, the numerous technologies used in information management, such as project management software, scheduling software, and BIM, require contractual agreements among project stakeholders to address these technologies’ potential risks while still allowing stakeholder collaboration to benefit project execution and delivery. Contracts are used to define project requirements and can be used to define different aspects of project information management, like required deliverables or stakeholder roles and responsibilities. While recent research has evaluated the relationship between BIM and contracts, there is a gap in understanding the relationship between contracts and information management more holistically. The objectives of this research were to gain insight into how contracts impact information management, identify barriers that exist in contracts related to information management, and to develop potential contract-related strategies to improve information management on AEC projects. Researchers implemented a qualitative analysis approach through semistructured interviews with 38 AEC professionals and the application of a systematic and iterative qualitative coding process. This research found that contracts can be used as a tool to influence the development and execution of project information management strategies. Specifically, contracts can be used to define deliverables, workflows, and software, as well as templates and forms. While interviewees discussed many contract-related challenges, they also proposed potential contract-related strategies to improve project information management. These strategies encompass three main categories: improving contract compliance, contract flexibility, and setting expectations. These findings provide insight into how contracts can impact project information management and provide practitioners with specific contract strategies to improve project information management.

The early conceptual architectural design phases are characterized by a constant interplay of creating variants and assessment of those variants as well as their consistent detailing. Variant comparison plays a significant role in achieving the desired final building. Objectifiable criteria used for the evaluation and comparison of design variants can be used to legitimize decisions and selections as the design process proceeds. Moreover, using these criteria, such as the results of simulations and analysis performed by various domain experts, most likely leads to building designs with better performance. One major challenge in practice today is the management of design information and collaboration between several actors in a building project. A large portion of the Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) industry still deals with conventional methods to exchange design information. The growing use of building information models is promising, but even the most recent developments and practices still rely heavily on human-readable protocols and issue management systems (Beetz 2009; Borrmann et al. 2018). Considering the potential of schematized computer-readable communications to be analyzed and used for future references and case-based reasoning systems, this paper proposes a novel minimized communication protocol based on BIM, which aims to introduce a computer-readable, yet adaptive universal method/function which works on schematized information exchange requirements (templates) for different use cases. Furthermore, this concept will be explained and demonstrated using an example scenario.

Purpose – Personal projects are any kind of projects whose management is left to an individual untrained in project management and is greatly influenced by this individual’s personal touch. This includes the majority of knowledge workers who daily manage information relating to several personal projects. The authors have conducted an in-depth qualitative investigation on information management of such projects and the tacit knowledge behind its processes that cannot be found in the organisational structures of current personal information management (PIM) tools (file managers, e-mail clients, web browsers). The purpose of this paper is to reveal and understand project information management practices in details and provide guidelines for personal project management tools. Design/methodology/approach – Semi-structured interviews similar to that in several other PIM exploratory studies were carried out focusing on project fragmentation, information overlap and project context recreation. In addition, the authors enhanced interviews with sketching approach not yet used to study PIM. Sketches were used for articulating things that were not easily expressed through words, they represented a time stamp of a project context in the projects’ lifetime, uncovered additional tacit knowledge behind project information management not mentioned during the interviews, and were also used to find what they have in common which might be used in prototype designing. Findings – The paper presents first personal project definition based on the conceptualisations derived from the study. The study revealed that the extensive information fragmentation in the file hierarchy (due to different organisational needs and ease of information access) poses a significant challenge to context recreation besides cross-tool fragmentation so far described in the literature. The study also reveals the division of project information into core and support and emphasises the importance of support information in relation to project goals. Other findings uncover the division of input/output information, project overlaps through information reuse, storytelling and visualising information relations, which could help with user modelling and enhancing project context recreation. Research limitations/implications – On of the limitations is the group of participants that cannot represent the ideally generalised knowledge worker as there are many different kinds of knowledge workers and they all have different information needs besides different management practices. However, participants of variety of different backgrounds were observed and the authors converged observations into points of project information management similarities across the spectrum of different professions. Nevertheless, its observations and conceptualisations should be repeatable. For one, some of the issues that emerged during this work have been to different extents discussed in other studies. Practical implications – The empirical findings are used to create guidelines for designing personal project information management tools: support the selective focus on information with the division into core and supportive information; visualise changes in project information space to support narratives for context recreation; overcome fragmentation in the file system with selective unification; visualising project’s information relationship to better understand the complexity of project information space; and support navigating in project information space on two axes: time and between projects (overlaps through information). Originality/value – The study presents a longitudinal insight into personal project information management. As such it provides a first formal definition of personal project from the information point of view. The method used in the study presented uses a new approach – sketching in which participants externalised and visualised personal information and projects they discussed. The insights derived from the study form design implications for personal project management tools for knowledge workers.

A design support system has been developed for the spiral development of object-oriented switching systems. This system quickly recovers software design information from the source code and supplies it to the developers. It provides uniform management of design and code information, revision control of design information, and representation corresponding to the switching software structure. This system reduces the cycle time in spiral development and improves switching software productivity.

Semantic Web Services are the key technology providing services for the users' convenience in the semantic web environment. Many companies in various fields are researching and developing languages for constructing Semantic Web Services such as DAML-S, WSDL, X-LANG and BPEL4WS. DAML-S is a method that accesses the existing Web Service method from a semantic web environment. However, the current Semantic Web Services Discovery System does not provide sufficient processing of quality factors (performance, accessibility, availability, reliability and transaction) nor reliable and accurate service results desired by the user through a UDDi search method. The present study analyzes the disadvantages of the current web services and suggests a Semantic Web Services Discovery System based on QoS applying semantic web technologies as a solution to the problems. The suggested system provides a UDDi and DAML-S based discovery engine to allow efficient web service discovery and composition.

Nowadays, most designs of tunnel excavation are manual, and the designs have a poor quality and slow speed. To solve these problems, the component and structure of blasting design system of tunnel excavation based on CAD technology are studied. On the basis of comprehensive analysis and influence factors, a basting CAD auxiliary system based on ActiveX interface and VBA interface technology is developed for blasting design about tunnel excavation. Some function modules, including system management, arrangement design of hole, construction design, parameter calculation, blasting data and construction information management, can meet the demands of system function. A design of blasting example of tunnel excavation shows that the system can carry out blasting design with high speed accurately. The design can also avoid the dependence of personal experience. Meanwhile, the work of blasting design becomes more reasonable. Design results can be reliable and practical. Further, the system has some advantages, such as high speed and excellent transplantation. The system has positive significance for economic benefit of coal production.

In this paper, the authors explore the characteristics and requirementsof digitally supported ‘green’ building design. Well planned, integrated and interdisciplinary digital design practices play a vital role in the iterative processes of sustainable building design. Unlike traditional ways of working, the management of design information and process integration in green building design involves a wider range and a larger number of consultants utilizing sophisticated environmental modelling and analysis systems. To understand the complexities surrounding information management in this context, the authors focus on issues relating to: 1) information exchange and model management, and 2) multidisciplinary design process coordination. Different aspects of sustainable design modelling methodologies are explored in relation to technology requirements, information exchange, and multi-disciplinary collaboration. Finally, the literature is synthesised in a conceptual roadmap framing the key factors identified by the study.KeywordsBuilding information modelingenvironmental sustainable designinformation managementcollaboration

This paper aimed to unveil the outcome of an appraisal of the systematic approach to construction information management. This was performed with a view of creating awareness of how information management can be beneficial through the management of the large chunk of information emanating from construction processes. This will improve the gathering, sharing, and storage of information for construction activities. The study implemented a quantitative survey approach with the aid of a questionnaire as the mechanism for data gathering from architects, civil engineers, quantity surveyors, mechanical and electrical engineers, construction managers, and project managers. Data analysis ensued with the aid of SPSS in which applicable measure of dispersal and inferential statistics were implemented. The study unveiled that information management is a major aspect of the construction procedure, and that, to achieve in construction, there must be a well-structured information system. Further findings revealed that the benefits of information management include the firm’s growth, organizational performance, enhanced market value, employee’s motivation, and quality service. The prowess of this study depends on the appraisal of the benefits of systematic management of construction information and how identification of the benefits can help to motivate construction companies.

In this paper we consider the types of community networks that are most often codified within the Semantic Web. We propose the recognition of a new structure which fulfils the definition of community used outside the Semantic Web. We argue that the properties inherent in a community allow additional processing to be done with the described relationships existing between entities within the community network. Taking an existing online community as a case study we describe the ontologies and applications that we developed to support this community in the Semantic Web environment and discuss what lessons can be learnt from this exercise and applied in more general settings.

Collaborative working improves operational effectiveness, knowledge sharing and project delivery, all of which enable organisations deliver value to their clients. This is particularly important as the global business challenges architecture and engineering organisations face will increasingly require greater value to be obtained from less resource. Achieving this in a knowledge economy requires improvements in the nature of content as well as the processes and media through which often large volumes of information are created and managed. Organisations have over time developed and implemented various interventions ranging from point technology implementations to reorganising entire business processes to achieve this end, with varying degrees of success and failure. The findings from a qualitative study into the key lessons in developing and implementing effective information management strategies across organisations are presented herein. Nine expert practitioners from large UK-based architecture and engineering organisations were interviewed, the outputs of which were analysed using thematic analysis techniques. Seven key themes emerged. The findings provide much needed practical insights for practitioners and managers developing and implementing information management strategies across organisations. They show that improving collaborative working and information management to gain strategic advantages requires a holistic approach which aligns information needs with the organisations operational strategy.

This paper introduces the concept of information management and work steps. From the application view of the implementation phase, especially the information management in the construction phase can explain the importance of the project information management. And project status and development of information management are discussed.

Use Best Practice Patterns to Understand and Architect Manageable, Efficient Information Supply Chains That Help You Leverage All Your Data and Knowledge In the era of Big Data, information pervades every aspect of the organization. Therefore, architecting and managing it is a multi-disciplinary task. Now, two pioneering IBM architects present proven architecture patterns that fully reflect this reality. Using their pattern language, you can accurately characterize the information issues associated with your own systems, and design solutions that succeed over both the short- and long-term. Building on the analogy of a supply chain, Mandy Chessell and Harald C. Smith explain how information can be transformed, enriched, reconciled, redistributed, and utilized in even the most complex environments. Through a realistic, end-to-end case study, they help you blend overlapping information management, SOA, and BPM technologies that are often viewed as competitive. Using this books patterns, you can integrate all levels of your architecturefrom holistic, enterprise, system-level views down to low-level design elements. You can fully address key non-functional requirements such as the amount, quality, and pace of incoming data. Above all, you can create an IT landscape that is coherent, interconnected, efficient, effective, and manageable. Coverage Includes Understanding how a pattern language can help you address key information management challenges Defining information strategy and governance for organizations and users Creating orderly information flows you can reuse and synchronize as needed Managing information structure, meaning, and lifecycles Providing for efficient information access and storage when deploying new IT capabilities Moving information efficiently and reliably to support your processes Determining how information should be processed and maintained Improving quality and accessibility, and supporting higher-value analytics Protecting information via validation, transformation, enrichment, correction, security, and monitoring Planning new information management projects in the context of your existing IT resources

As every technological development, information and communication technology also offers new life patterns to human beings. One of them is related to business and its environment. In this context, the main problem is how to manage knowledge and information and assets related to knowledge and information in business. Therefore, we have constructed the business knowledge and information policy model by using triangulation methodology. The business knowledge and information policy model includes the informative business theory, knowledge and information management (KIM) tools and projects. The first one has six characteristics. KIM tools include nine profiles which are common language, strategy, data-information-concepts, personal and social informatics, ICT infrastructure, measurement, cultural informatics and governance. KIM projects could be designed depending on business conditions and goals.

Search engines play important role in the success of the Web. Search engine helps the users to find the relevant information on the internet. Due to many problems in traditional search engines has led to the development of semantic web. Semantic web technologies are playing a crucial role in enhancing traditional search, as it work to create machines readable data and focus on metadata. However, it will not replace traditional search engines. In the environment of semantic web, search engine should be more useful and efficient for searching the relevant web information. It is a way to increase the accuracy of information retrieval system. This is possible because semantic web uses software agents; these agents collect the information, perform relevant transactions and interact with physical devices. This paper includes the survey on the prevalent Semantic Search Engines based on their advantages, working and disadvantages and presents a comparative study based on techniques, type of results, crawling, and indexing.

The purposeof the article is to present the author’s approach to the study of information management when making managerial decisions by public administration bodies. In this paper, information management is consistently considered as an object, subject and method of information management. By the example of the content and correlation of such concepts as data and information, information and knowledge, the main obstacles to the transition of the state from the information economy to the digital economy are shown. The hypothesis is formulated that effective information management does not so much contribute to the formation of the added value of management processes, as it creates the potential for obtaining additional value of a management decision as an information product.Materials and methods. The research is based on the analysis of the processes of informatization of society and the state, as well as the analysis of the possibilities of information management for building a digital infrastructure and effective interaction of the subjects of the digital economy. Various aspects of information management are disclosed in accordance with the “subject-object-subject” and “subject-object-object” models. The problems of determining the quantity and quality of information are revealed in comparison with the attributive, functional-cybernetic and semiotic concepts of information. The information base of the research was made up of the results of scientific research in the field of decision-making in public administration and methodological approaches to information management used in science.Results. The main risks and problems of information management in decision-making by public administration bodies were identified. It is determined that knowledge becomes an economic resource not at the stage of its production, but at the stage of use. This resource allows you to create the added value of a management solution as an information product. It is proved that the role of the state in the dissemination and use of knowledge is provided by the unconditional desire of the individual to produce new knowledge. In addition, it is shown that for the transition to the digital economy, the state needs to create an information infrastructure in which openness and transparency of data are combined with equal opportunities for individuals in the economy (inclusive economy).Conclusion.Information management is a significant factor in the transition of the state from an information economy to the digital one. The simple accumulation of information and knowledge cannot be a guide for the transition to the digital economy. Information management from the perspective of creating and using additional information value will avoid the risk of mechanical informatization and uncontrolled digitalization. The state activities in this direction should be responsible and consistent. The volume of information increases as a result of the individual’s desire to produce new knowledge, but the social value of knowledge increases as a result of the effective impact of the state on the development of information infrastructure and the diffusion of information technologies. Thus, the realization of the potential of the additional value of information and its scaling on the basis of state-supported platform tools will allow for the transition from the information economy to the digital economy.