from Steve E. Moskowitz
Supervisor, Facility Planning & Engineering
Guest editor for the Fall 2001 issue
I have to make a sheepish confession. I once made an error in judgment.
When I was asked to introduce the Fall issue of CAD Compass, I discussed the objectives with John Powell and then started to read the series of articles he sent me. As I read them, many memories came flooding back of the fifteen years I've spent learning using, and developing IM systems as an architect and facility manager. The articles you are about to read vary widely in their scope, but they all illustrate a concept that has come in and out of focus over time - Integration. Integration remains one of the key elements in harnessing the power and effectiveness of automation.
Fifteen years ago, CAD was primarily relegated to specialists at the high end and a few leading edge practitioners experimenting with limited CAD software on the second generation PCs. CMMS programs had appeared that took advantage of computer memory to remember what equipment needed to be maintained when. CAFM programs were also just starting to show up as a way to keep track of the space we managed.
At that time, CAD was the only acronym we had and, needless to say, CIFM (Computer Integrated Facility Management) was nowhere to be found. In the early 90's, as our computers got more powerful and our software became able to effectively manage and present more information, users started to realize that the increased efficiencies realized from individual programs multiplied readily when information was shared across applications. In the new millennium, the bad news is that those companies that ignore the benefits of integration will be left behind. The good news (relatively speaking) is that it takes time for the benefits to really start accruing and most companies are still fairly new to the game.
After reviewing this issue of CAD Compass, take some time to review your operations. Are people opening and closing many programs? Are they spending a lot of time gathering information from multiple places and becoming way too proficient with the Ctrl-C/Ctrl-V method of integration. My personal experience tells me that most of us will answer "yes" and can identify opportunities to improve through integration. If you're not there yet, it's time to lose the "CAD-centric" view of the world and open your mind and operations to new ways of working. Don't worry about CAD, it will always be a cornerstone of any facilities system. Just brace yourself for exciting new ways to work.
Oh yes, about that judgment error. The first computer application I learned was CAD. For several years, I immersed myself in customizing the program to our departments needs and became a real power user. Then one day, because I had a need that CAD programs could not address, I lowered my elitist standards and learned how to use a fairly primitive, flat file, database program. The application was our first work order/operations management system. I had avoided applications less sophisticated than CAD because I felt that there was more leveraging involved with more complex programs. Boy was I in for an education! As soon as we put our work order program online, I saw the power of two things, the network, and the power of leveraging simple improvements over much larger workgroups. After admitting that the quick work I did with the database easily exceeded all the benefits of my extensive CAD programming, I was able to move forward and, eventually, put everything together using standard desktop tools available to almost everyone.
We've come a long way since those early days (AutoCAD 2.5 and Q&A). When I look at our significant breakthroughs, they inevitably occurred each time we integrated operations. Now, it's your turn to hop on the integration bandwagon.
