Evaluation of Web and PDA-based quality assurance system on a building site

Quality assurance tends to dangerously balance between redundant externalized paperwork and real life problems in everyday processes of design and construction. This leads to too many failures and complaints from customers. This paper describes an evaluative study of the implementation and use of a new ICT system based on the use of Personalized Digital Assistants (PDA's) on the construction site supporting inprocess quality assurance. In the pilot project we followed bricklayers using the PDA' while they where working at a line of bathrooms. The central idea of the PDA based system (developed by the small Danish company ETJEK) is to lift the standard quality procedures from the paper based platform to a real-time database with direct access. The evaluation shows that system in facts works, and the introduction on the workplace was smoother than could be expected. The perspective of the evaluation is that the PDA system not only enables in-process quality assurance, but also integration and data transfer between building workers, foremen, manager and the construction company. Hereby a smoother process a more efficient handling of errors and competence development amongst building worker is enabled.