DesignDesign: Month two…
The rulebook
Every firm works to the project's rules from day one: naming, templates, one set of coordinates, and how much detail each thing needs.
Stage 4 · Design it · Stop 2 of 7 · The right way
Made to the rules
The back alley's bill so far: 74 weeks · See the bill
The right way
The label
Drawing 042 gets its name, P1234-ABC-XX-A2-D-C-0042, and its label: status S0 and revision P01.01. Still with Alex, still being made.
DesignDesign: Coordination…
Everything lines up
The drawings go together and the plant room is where it should be. There's one 042, and Rex doesn't need to guess. The cow stays uninvolved.
House rulesFour finals, three grids, and a plant room in a field.
The project's rulesOne name, one label, one grid, and the cow uninvolved.
Now there is: Drawing 042, still being made, named and labelled to the project's rules (status S0, revision P01.01).
What's going on here
Every firm has its own habits. On a job, they all have to follow the same rules: one way of naming, one grid, one set of templates, and a label on everything that says what it is, what it's for and which version. Then people stop guessing which file is real.
New at this stop
- The label
- The details on the outside of every piece of work, so nobody has to open it: its name, its status and its revision.
- Status codes (S4, S5)
- Part of the label: what the work can be used for. S0 means it's still being made.
- Revisions (P and C)
- Part of the label: which version it is. P versions are drafts. C versions are published.
In the town See it in the town: Four files called FINAL. Which one would you build from?
Drawing 042 is still with Alex's firm, being made, before it ever leaves for the Site Office. It now gets the label: a name to the project's rules, a status that says what it's fit for, and a revision that says which version. S0 and P01.01 mean it's a draft and still with Alex, so when it later travels down the home line, nobody has to open it to know what it is.
Fix it Already four finals? Rename and relabel.
- Find every file with "final" or "latest" in its name.
- Rename each to the project's rules and add its status and revision.
- Archive the extras so one version of each drawing remains.
A note for the information manager: Give every firm the project's templates and naming rules on day one, because house habits only change when the easy route is the right one.
Try it on your job
Find three files on your job with "final" in the name. Can you tell which one is current without opening them?
ISO 19650 From house rules to the label
| ISO 19650 says | Means | In the town |
|---|---|---|
| Project's information standard | the job's agreed rules for naming, templates, coordinates and how information is exchanged | the rulebook |
| Information container ID | each file carries one unique name built from agreed parts | the name on the label |
| Metadata: status and revision | details attached to each file saying what it's suitable for and which version it is | the status and revision on the label |
| Level of information need | how much detail each thing needs for its purpose, and no more | how much detail each thing needs, in the rulebook |
Based on the ISO 19650 series: the ideas come from the standard; the plain-English wording, examples and advice are InfoTown's. ISO 19650 and its UK National Annex are © ISO and BSI. You'll hear the same language across the industry. Read more for free in the Information Management Initiative (IMI) Framework guidance from BSI and nima. For the full requirements, use the standard itself.