The explosion in the amount of data available to AEC firms provides great opportunities – but data sprawl can be a barrier to success. In this article, Kevin Soohoo, director of AEC at Egnyte, explains how AEC companies can harness organisational data
Over the past couple of years, architecture, engineering and construction (AEC) firms have rapidly accelerated their storage of data as more migrate to the cloud, making it difficult to effectively manage and secure their mission-critical content.
On top of that, the AEC industry is experiencing more stringent compliance and regulation requirements like the Building Safety Act, further highlighting issues and risks when it comes to data management.
According to Egnyte’s AEC Data Insights Report, the average AEC firm has increased file storage by 31.2% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) from 2017 to 2021. The report also reveals that the number of individual files stored by AEC firms grew by 23.4% CAGR over the same time period, which can lead to data sprawl.
The growing challenge of data sprawl
If not careful, companies can quickly find themselves with large amounts of data in disparate locations – often dispersed across structured and unstructured file repositories (eg, email, collaboration/productivity tools and unauthorised cloud storage). This phenomenon is commonly referred to as “data sprawl”.
AEC firms have increasingly relied on larger digital files from various sources – including drone footage and 3D imagery – while the rise in specialty applications like Procore and Bluebeam has resulted in the constant movement of files from one location to another.
Data sprawl represents one of the most complex information management challenges that businesses face today, particularly when said data goes through many iterations/versions and needs to be migrated at scale. In the AEC industry, this can lead to an increased risk of errors on a project, resulting in more rework, lost time and higher costs.
And, with more data comes more risk. Egnyte flagged a staggering growth of “high-severity” issues from Q4 2020 to Q4 2021 – a 325% increase across AEC domains – meaning it could severely impact the business, for example, when a credit card number is stored in an uncontrolled folder.
How can AEC teams optimise their data use and increase productivity?
With the implications of data sprawl having far-reaching impacts on AEC firms, a priority for business leaders is to find potential solutions that can manage digital workloads and mitigate ever-present risks. Below are four steps that AEC teams can take to optimise their data use and increase productivity.
Understand the varying categories of data being stored and align with a management plan. AEC firms should create a data management plan that covers not only their overall business objectives but also the data required to meet those objectives (eg, office and project-generated data).
The plan should detail the means and methods for making progress, as well as a schedule for periodic reviews and updates. All obligatory steps to carry out these organisational and project processes should also be incorporated. These processes may include policies, forms, checklists, tutorials and screenshots.
Find the right platform. Business leaders need to find the right platform to deploy their data management plan, and it must also be highly accessible to meet hybrid and remote workers’ needs. To determine which storage best fits a firm’s data management objectives, it’s critical to understand the volume and velocity of incoming office and project-generated data, in addition to use and accessibility requirements. For large amounts of project data, understanding how automation can save administrative time and associated costs is also crucial, as this reduces the likelihood of human error.
Establish data governance. Even though AEC firms face a growing number of data threats, many believe they do not have any sensitive data, such as employee national insurance numbers, health records for safety documentation and proprietary project information for customers. Therefore, putting systems and processes in place is key to protecting data and complying with corporate, industry and government regulations.
As part of security and data management protocols, firms should include details about how credentials are issued and permissions granted to enable fine-grained access controls. Meanwhile, prescriptive data quality measures will help reduce data exploration time and mitigate the risk of internal and external threats.
Put the plan into practice. An effective plan will supply a team with the knowledge and skills required to manage organisational and project data effectively. While it’s important that IT teams follow best practices, AEC firms should also equip end users with a basic level of understanding in terms of what good cyber hygiene looks like. This is important given that AEC firms are particularly attractive targets for cyberattacks like ransomware that most often lead to extended downtime.
The explosion in the amount of data available to AEC firms provides an opportunity for improved insights, productivity and project outcomes; however, it can also become a barrier to success – causing wasted time, labour, delays and rework.
Ultimately, AEC firms that can harness the rapid growth of organisational data and align those practices with their business needs will be in the best position to succeed.
Kevin Soohoo
Director of AEC
Egnyte
Tel: +44 (0)20 3356 3714
