Idox: Poor document management delays U.S. energy transition projects

(WO) – Idox revealed that poor document management is causing unforeseen costs and delays for U.S. energy projects critical to decarbonization.

These insights derived from a new industry report reveal that failure to standardize and centralize data is causing contractors to miss budgets and timelines for project delivery, obstructing handovers between owners and contractors, while impeding the cross-sector collaboration needed for new energy projects. Poor version control is also hampering auditability and resulting in critical design and procurement flaws, with one major contractor suffering $780,000 in costs and significant delays due to a single incorrect pump design document.

This comes in the wake of accelerating demand for new energy and utilities infrastructure to support the energy transition, with recent legislation unlocking over $500 billion of investment in renewable energy and climate tech in the U.S. alone. However, despite this potential, new research has found projects in North America are more likely to run late or over budget than any other region due to a lack of standardized systems and processes and poor communication among project stakeholders.

Steven Bruce, Divisional Director at Idox plc said, “Sluggish digital modernization means we’re still facing an over-reliance on paper-based or proprietary systems and point solutions, causing data silos and communications gaps between project partners. However, digital standardization and centralization of engineering documentation through cloud-based systems has been shown to significantly improve project performance against targets.”

The report reveals that consulting and engineering giant, Wood Group, implemented a cloud-based document management system built around universal visibility which drove closer collaboration across project partners and accelerated setup of new projects. The company used the newly integrated data to clone successful past project templates, drive smart project analytics and create progressively improved project delivery.

Steven continues, “Amidst volatile supply chain and skills costs and tough policy deadlines for new renewable infrastructure, contractors are facing major pressure to reduce costs and delays for new energy projects. For the burgeoning North American sector, collaboration is key as complex projects diversify throughout wind, power and batteries. Cloud-based document management and connected data will be essential tools for those looking to deliver on-time and to budget.”