For the DCM project it became clear that the tools available could not cope with arbitrarily-structured hierarchically-organised data. So, I wrote a reporting system that would display a detailed report onscreen (in a browser), showing the complex relationships between items in the data library of the DCM system, and allow it to be downloaded as a PDF document. This tool can cope with arbitrary levels of detail and can easily be adapted to generate documents from XML

Franklin + Andrews. Commission to implement a powerful system for feeding data to the numerous F+A web-based data-centric applications. DCM (Data Control Module) will use sophisticated techniques to enable the same database to feed the various F+A systems, even though their internal structures are different. DCM holds complex hierarchically-organised data yet it has great flexibility in the way in which data can be input, stored and retrieved. Multiple properties and metrics may be stored against nodes in the DCM database and a powerful querying engine allows for sophisticated data retrieval, reporting, charting and export.

Completion of Phase II of LifeCYCLE. This product, initially intended for public release has been withheld from sale by the directors of F+A’s parent company, Mott MacDonald, who describe it as their “crown jewels”. So successful is LifeCYCLE that they want to keep it largely in-house to help improve their competitiveness.

Completion of Phase II of CapIT. This product has numerous enhancements over version 1 released last year

A system for controlling access to their web-based applications. Cerberus provides a mechanism for administering subscriptions and products. A future version of the software will also allow for online electronic payment of subscriptions..

A sophisticated web-based tool for engineers to assess the costs and carbon footprint of their projects that are based on specific industry-standard libraries. This tool, named CapIT, has different resource libraries than LifeCYCLE and does not calculate life costs. Like LifeCYCLE it has been enthusiastically received in the engineering sector.

SDS has been commissioned to create a highly sophisticated system, named LifeCYCLE, for the qualitative analysis of lifetime cost and environment impact of engineering structures. The system can analyse the distribution of capital monetary outlay over the projected lifespan of a structure as well as revealing its carbon footprint for construction, running and, finally, demolition. Whilst initially populated with cost and CO2 data, the software has provision for: o Cost o CO2 o CO2e (embedded CO2) o SO2 o NO2 o Dust