Internet and intranet usage in a communications infrastructure for virtual construction project teams

Construction project teams are virtual enterprises which often comprise several disciplines, are usually non-collocated, and collaborate for relatively short periods in the design and construction of facilities. It is important for effective collaboration within such project teams that an appropriate and efficient communications infrastructure is established. This paper is concerned with the usage of Internet and intranet technologies in a collaborative communications infrastructure for construction project teams, within the context of the European project CICC (Collaborative Integrated Communications for Construction). It describes how these technologies have been applied to people and information retrieval, project team communications, progress monitoring and publicity. A pilot project on which the performance of the communications infrastructure is being evaluated is also included.