When you envision the future of construction, what do you see?

• Receiving great decision support during design
• Achieving faster, more streamlined schedules
• Knowing how your building will look and perform before ground is broken
• Immediately providing critical information to the entire team, regardless of their location
• Minimizing change orders
• Getting the best possible value for your investment

At Webcor, the future is happening now!

From our own initiatives and through collaboration with world-class academic and industry organizations, Webcor is leading the way in building information modeling, virtual design and construction, integrated project delivery and high-speed data communications. The results from these efforts are new methods and technologies that continue to push the boundaries of quality, value and performance.

Value through Innovation is our business philosophy. It means that we are constantly looking for better ways to build and manage projects. We identify the best emerging technologies and processes, put them to the test in the field and refine them into tools that move the science of building forwards. Some of our current efforts include:

• Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Virtual Design and Construction (VDC). Webcor is a recognized industry leader in developing and implementing advanced digital modeling tools that simulate the building and its construction process. This approach provides a quantum leap in visualizing the final product before the project breaks ground. By providing rapid cost and constructability feedback on design decisions and identifying potential problems before they occur, these tools help optimize the schedule, reduce costs and increase the bottom line.
  
  
• Integrated Project Delivery (IPD). Many owners and architects have long recognized the value that builders can bring to the design process, and Webcor is well known for the quality of our preconstruction services. The design and construction industry as a whole is now recognizing the value of integrating the efforts of designers and builders early in a project. Integrated Project Delivery, enabled by BIM and VDC, has become a major thrust of many industry organizations and Webcor is again at the forefront. The AIA has asked Webcor to aid in the development of its new standardized IPD contracts.
  
  
• The Webcor Challenge Scholarship Program. To truly reap the benefits of these new technological advancements, we need more professionals with the ability to apply them. Towards this goal, Webcor has made a five-year, $100,000 commitment to the College of Engineering, Computer Science, and Construction Management at California State University, Chico, to help develop their BIM/VDC curriculum and provide scholarships for promising students.
  
  
• Communications and Collaboration. Webcor was one of the first contractors to extend our corporate computer network to all jobsites via high-speed data lines and give all members of the team immediate access to information such as drawings, photographs and digital models. On most large-scale projects we use an internet-based collaboration tool that provides the owner, architect and consultants with real-time web-based access to our internal project management database.
  
  
• "Virtual Office." In an ongoing Webcor initiative to extend the corporate network beyond the jobsite trailer, we provide our key field supervisors and managers with Palm wireless PDAs that connect them to critical network functions and enable them to spend more time in the field where the action is happening.
  
  
• Research and Development. We believe that to get the most from these technologies, the industry must share knowledge and provide coherent direction to technology providers. Towards this end, Webcor actively participates in several cutting-edge research and professional organizations including Stanford University's Center for Integrated Facilities Engineering (CIFE), UC Berkeley's Center for the Built Environment (CBE), the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS).