In the world of Indirect Construction Costs (IDCCs), studies show scaffolding ranks fourth among the most important categories measured, following field supervision, major construction equipment management and overall project management.

The same studies also indicate scaffolding tops the list as the most wasteful category measured, a red flag to major scaffolding users, particularly those running multibillion-dollar projects and turnarounds lasting years. Managing large industrial capital projects involving massive amounts of scaffolding, equipment and building materials as well as thousands of people working on the jobsite is, no doubt, challenging. Too often, uncertainties develop with multiyear timelines, ever-shifting requirements and complex procurement difficulties that all affect costs, schedules and quality, with no reliable methods of managing all these workflows smoothly.

That's where BRACE Industrial Group in Houston comes in. Using improved indirect capital project management practices and pre-planning and forecasting technology to manage IDCCs, BRACE realizes cost certainty and better performance while reducing time and labor.

Clear, accurate picture in advance

BRACE Industrial Services starts with a superior scaffolding product that can save customers money by reducing the manpower required to install and dismantle it, which can make scaffolding a smaller line item easier on a customer's project budget.

Who wouldn't want a detailed cost estimate of scaffolding material and labor before starting a job on a construction site? With its planning software, BRACE can map out an entire major construction site project and manage scaffolding material counts and personnel in advance. It can even generate verifiable labor forecasts, set implementation schedules, and control thousands of pieces of scaffolding and labor distribution, all before a crew steps onto the jobsite.

The BRACE system also adjusts workloads according to specific conditions using stored modifiers such as scaffold type and complexity, creating a reliable overview of the entire project. This enables users to reduce material and personnel costs in the long run, achieving simpler, more precise cost calculations.

Modeling software provides real-time view of projects

BRACE is also at the forefront of the industry with its use of new Building Information Modeling (BIM) software and cloud-based reporting tools for planning and implementing projects based on 3-D building and structure models. Using BIM, a team of project managers, a crew and contractors can collaborate on designing and building scaffolding using the same database and computer model. BIM digitally represents the actual project jobsite and is a shared resource from start to finish across multiple disciplines participating in the project.

"With BIM, it's possible to map out the lifecycle of an entire project and make all relevant information available to everyone involved," said DeWayne Harmon, president of BRACE's Integrated Services for the South Central region. "We use the BIM system with our planning software before starting a project to gather and review vital data on a building. It acts as a 'virtual building,' giving us a high degree of transparency during the construction phase."

Software that helps BRACE integrate material and personnel management increases efficiency and productivity significantly across the entire construction site. But the technology especially maximizes safety and speed during assembly.

"Daily work activities on a major construction site can be hectic and at times confusing," Harmon said. "Having this planning/tracking software identifies bottlenecks and makes for a more efficient and productive environment. This empowers every member of our team to work more safely and mitigate risks and hazards. Once customers see and realize the benefits gained in utilizing our scaffolding system and planning/tracking software, their involvement with BRACE in the infancy stages of the project becomes a necessity."

For more information, visit www.brace.com or call (281) 749-1020.

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