Connecting VC, Fabrication & Construction Workflows

NOX Innovations is dedicated to helping contractors scale, adapt and maintain their agility in an ever-changing market. Due to company growth, Corbins Electric, the sister company of NOX Innovations, needed a way to bridge gaps and inefficiencies and tie their VC, fabrication and construction workflows together. They were using their own project management software, but it didn’t connect to the cloud and their virtual construction workflows. “We had our own internal project management software that we developed over the years, but it didn’t connect to BIM 360 Docs, model coordination and all the other things we use for the VC side of things,” said Tony Anderson, VC Innovations Specialist. Tony has been with Corbins Electric for 25 years and has worked in the virtual construction department for 10 years.

The following priority project goals were identified: 1) Connect VC, fabrication and construction workflows. 2) Phase out Revit Server and migrate all data to the cloud. 3) Keep track of kits from model to hand-off.

Corbins Electric was looking for a solution that would connect their workflows and began testing the Autodesk Construction Cloud Platform. With questions and training opportunities coming along with the new platform, CE looked to ATG, their Autodesk AEC Solution Provider of over 10 years, to be a guide throughout the process. James Foster, Account Executive at ATG, helped CE make the transition to the Autodesk Construction Cloud by providing guidance, effective communication and helpful resources. “James has been instrumental in helping us get where we need to be, answering any questions and just always being there. He got me involved with what’s new, what’s next in seminars from Autodesk and I was able to use that to pitch new features to my team. Now, the entire team is involved, and we are exclusively using Autodesk Build for project management,” said Tony.

With the transition to the Autodesk Construction Cloud, Corbins Electric has seen many changes to the way they work. The benefit of working on one platform, communicating between issues and RFIs and accessing information in one place at the same time has improved and connected their workflows. Through using Autodesk Build, CE discovered the Asset Module and began using it as their kit tracker to keep track of sheets for fabrication and installation plus any changes via RFIs. “We’re moving to using barcodes so we can track that kit from the time it’s done and signed off in the model to the time it’s signed off in the field and handed to the owner. It’s created a very good workflow for us to track every stage of the process. We are heavily invested in fabricating out of our models, which is why we want to gain benefit from that process,” said Tony.

“We are an innovative and problem-solving team, but ATG strengthens our ability to be successful. That partnership is definitely something that you want to develop when you’re going through that growth. James is what stands out to me the most in the ATG partnership. We’ve been working with him for at least 10 years and he is always in contact. James is the guy that we think of when we have a question or a need,” said Tony.