By Amanda Wolfe, Director, Content Marketing, STACK Construction Technologies
As construction companies and their projects grow in size and scope, so too does the volume of data generated and the number of individuals involved. With this complexity comes the heightened risk of data breaches, miscommunication and inefficiencies that can significantly impact a project’s success.
The Challenges of Managing Construction Data
The construction industry has traditionally lagged in adopting advanced technologies, but recent years have seen a shift toward digital solutions. This transition, while beneficial, has introduced new challenges in managing data. Construction projects often come with hundreds of plan pages, specifications and other sensitive documents. With multiple stakeholders, including everyone from senior management to administrative support, junior estimators and other subcontractors, the risk of sensitive information falling into the wrong hands has never been greater.
One of the primary challenges is the decentralized nature of enterprise-level construction teams. Unlike smaller businesses where employees may be centralized in one office, large-scale construction teams are often spread across various jobsites, working remotely or in different branch locations altogether. This physical dispersion makes it difficult to control who has access to what data. Additionally, the reliance on mobile devices and cloud-based platforms, while convenient, further complicates data security.
Importance of Controlled Access
To mitigate these risks, it’s crucial to implement robust access control measures. Not everyone involved in a construction project needs access to all information. For example, a subcontractor may need detailed plans for a specific phase of the project but doesn’t require access to financial records or contracts. By limiting access to only the necessary information, construction teams can significantly reduce the risk of data breaches.
Access control involves more than just setting up passwords or encryption. It requires a thorough understanding of the project’s data landscape and the roles of each team member. Managers need to define clear access levels for different team members and ensure that these are consistently enforced throughout the project lifecycle. This might involve using role-based access control systems, where permissions are assigned based on a person’s role within the project. For instance, a chief information officer might have access to all data, while an estimator might only have access to plan pages related to a specific project.
The Role of Technology in Enhancing Security
Technology plays a pivotal role in securing sensitive information in construction. Cloud-based platforms like STACK, for example, offer advanced security features such as data encryption, multifactor authentication and audit trails that can track who accessed what information and when. These tools can help managers maintain tighter control over data and ensure that only authorized personnel have access.
For large teams, STACK has the solution to keeping access to information where it belongs.
Roles and Permissions
STACK’s available roles and permissions add flexibility for teams who want to customize what’s available to certain users within the platform. STACK roles include:
Account Owner: This role has full access to ALL account information and features, no exclusions.
Estimator: This role can view and create projects, manage plans and documents, perform takeoffs, add items and assemblies to takeoffs, and edit reports and estimates (with cost data).
Takeoff Operator: This role can view and create projects, manage plans and documents, perform takeoffs, add items and assemblies to takeoffs, and edit reports (without cost data).
Cost Viewer: This role can view/search all projects, takeoffs, markups, takeoff reports, and snapshots (with cost data), and can hide/unhide takeoffs.
IT Admin: This role can view/search projects and takeoffs, hide/unhide takeoffs, print reports (without cost data), and access/edit Account Settings.
Project Creator: This role can view and create projects, manage plans and documents, view/search takeoffs, hide/unhide takeoffs and print reports (without cost data).
Viewer: This role can view/search projects and takeoffs, hide/unhide takeoffs and print reports (without cost data).
Project Teams
With project teams, STACK users can organize projects with extreme flexibility. Teams can be formed without limitation on a one-off basis or by standard configurations like office, region or location with the ability to add and move team members as needed.
Limiting access helps to protect sensitive information and limit interference from team members who should not have access to certain projects. Project teams provide all the flexibility and collaboration your employees need while still offering project controls and security required by larger teams. Each project has the ability to pull team members as needed.
Use cases for project teams include:
- Segmenting projects by team members from certain offices or regions.
- Keeping a project private so others can’t make edits or changes.
- Requiring NDA acceptance for a sensitive project that can only be made available to certain team members.
STACK Offices
STACK offices allows you to segment users by office, so that team members can be assigned to specific or multiple offices. This permits larger companies with multiple users and different hierarchies to work within a single STACK account, providing you with the best possible experience by limiting your projects and catalogs to those that are most applicable while offering the ability to access additional offices, projects and catalogs as needed.
Enhancing Team Management
Effective data management is not just about security; it also plays a crucial role in team management. When sensitive information is well-controlled, teams can work more efficiently, with clear communication channels and reduced risk of errors. By ensuring that the right people have access to the right information at the right time, managers can improve collaboration, reduce delays and enhance overall project performance.
Book time with an expert to discuss how these controlled access options can boost your team’s performance and secure your company’s data. ABC members that are new STACK customers receive a 10% discount off the list price.