New Expedition offers enhanced cost control
01 October 2001
Primavera Systems, a leading provider of project management, execution and control solutions for engineering and construction, has launched a new version of its software that integrates project control information with an accounting system.
The Primavera Expedition TGIF version 2.0 provides the construction industry with enhanced integration between Primavera Expedition project control software and the US-based Timberline Software's Gold Collection accounting software.
By tightly integrating the latest contract changes and details from Expedition with up-to-date accounting information from Timberline Gold, managers have the information necessary to keep all of their projects within budget, regardless of the system from which the information originates, says a spokeswoman for the US-headquartered company.
"The ability to control contracts and costs across all of the construction projects a facility owner or general contractor has under way is a distinctive benefit of using Expedition," says Jennifer Vanella, product manager. "That's why we have simplified the integration of entire project portfolios with Timberline Gold, ensuring data consistency in both systems. Our customers can focus on controlling costs and completing projects efficiently, rather than on the tedious job of entering the same data into two systems."
Expedition TGIF 2.0 has the ability to integrate multiple documents from multiple projects from Primavera Expedition to Timberline Gold.
Documents, such as contracts, purchase orders, change orders and invoices, are easily transferred in one step rather than having to transfer each document separately, she points out.
Expedition TGIF 2.0 provides the following additional capabilities:
The Primavera Expedition product suite is a leading project control solution for the AEC (architectural, engineering and construction) industry. More than 100,000 users have benefited by implementing Expedition to improve project control and manage change processes across multiple projects, the spokeswoman says. Expedition includes support for multiple languages and currencies for controlling global construction projects.
''Expedition is a client/server, project administration and contract management tool that addresses the demands of multiuser, multiproject, multisite environments. Through its design review and submittal functionality, Expedition helps ensure all materials necessary for a project are designed, specified, ordered and delivered on time to avoid delays. Expedition helps manage all changes - from differing site conditions to plan modifications - that occur from the inception of a project, ensuring that all change documents are recorded, costed and tracked through to resolution,'' says a spokesman.
The Primavera Expedition suite, which also includes Expedition Mobile, Analyzer, Express, TGIF and SDK, provides personalised tools for each member of a project team involved in the building process. Project information can be accessed via the Internet and on PDA (Personal Data Assistant) devices. Project teams can conduct advanced data analysis and seamlessly integrate Expedition data to existing enterprise applications like enterprise resource planning (ERP), accounting and estimating systems, she adds. The Expedition product suite, including web and mobile products, also integrates with Primavera Project Planner (P3 and PrimeContract(SM).
Founded in 1983, Primavera Systems, Inc. is a leading provider of enterprise and Web-based project management, control and execution software and services.
Primavera's innovative solutions help more than 40,000 companies around the world achieve business success through project success, Vanella adds. ''Primavera products maximise return on investment by speeding time to market, establishing best practices, assessing risk and providing project visibility to all participants, from executives to team members.
The company serves a broad range of industries, including aerospace and defense, automotive, chemical processing, construction, energy, engineering, financial services, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, software development, technology, telecommunications and utilities.
Timberline Software Corporation is an international supplier of accounting and cost estimating software for the construction and property management industries.
Founded in 1971, the company has installed more than 28,000 systems worldwide.
''The Gold Collection is a fully integrated accounting system for construction and property management firms,'' says a spokesman for Timberline Software. ''Designed for the 32-bit multitasking environments of Microsoft Windows 95, Windows 98 and NT, Gold gives contractors and property managers tools for making better decisions, increasing productivity and, ultimately, building profits.
The Gold Collection has served as the accounting backbone for project-oriented construction, engineering, and property management companies.''
''With a direct interface between the two systems, Expedition TGIF, managers can leverage the strengths of each program and keep vital project information current and accurate.
''Expedition and Gold together form a complementary solution. With just enough overlap to make data integration straightforward, each system has been designed to handle different jobs within project-oriented companies.
''Gold and Expedition together help the client make better-informed decisions, increase productivity, and improve profits.
''Expedition TGIF allows customers to have the best of both worlds by giving them a quick and easy way to synchronize data. Relevant fields, including cost codes and titles, contacts, contracts, purchase orders, change orders, and labor costs, are transferred between the two systems with just a few mouse clicks.''
''Expedition TGIF reduces administrative costs and eliminates data entry errors,'' the spokesman concludes.
