Welcome to our new readers in the Institutes sector; you join us at an interesting time as we spread our wings from our core product CDM ToolKit 2000™ into several other business areas which we hope will interest you along with our other readers. You can read our current and archived newsletters at any time by visiting our web site.
As always, your feedback is welcome. Please respond to the issues raised and we will do our best to react to your comments appropriately.
Following news that the HSE has just shut down 25% of the building sites in Northern Ireland because the sites posed significant dangers to workers, we would like to remind all our readers that the HSE has demonstrably embarked on a more visible and targeted phase of their CDM regulations enforcement policy.
According to the Contract Journal, Kevin Myers (HSE) "blasted" the CDM Regulations at the recent Symonds lecture in London. Strange but that was not the impression that we got and we were at the same meeting. Still I suppose as always it goes to show how everyone hearing the same speech will take away their own version.
For what it's worth this is the version we heard. Kevin rather than blasting and slamming the CDM Regulations said that it was still too early to tell and that the Regulations had fallen short of expectations because a large number of clients and designers have done nothing to make construction work safer. The HSE are trying to address this problem by carrying out an audit of hundreds of Designers (both large and small practices) throughout the UK. One of the questions will be to ask how CDM is being managed. Our CDM customers will be able to demonstrate through the ToolKit how their projects, risk assessments and plans have been carried out and show their audit trail. Unlike a large number of people they will be able to look forward to an HSE visit!
We have now shipped the latest version of our CDM Software to all our users. We are holding a number of free seminars to present the new version. If you would like details of these, please contact us. Product information including the new version updates and seminar dates are available on our site.
The news is that asbestosis is claiming around 600 deaths a year and that there are around 30,000 cases currently. This lingering disease is the subject of major new legislation from the HSE which will make several important legal duties to building managers and the like. You will find an update from HSE on our main site including revised estimates of when and how the new legislation will be introduced.
Meanwhile, we are on track to make our first installations of the new Asbestos ToolKit™ later this month. The product has been developed to integrate the storage of any documents, attachments, and digital photographs, with any database type (Access, SQL, Oracle etc). With these choices, the new product is targeted at organisations with small, medium, or large database requirements for their asbestos register. The product also attends to the needs of Asbestos Consulting companies wanting to integrate with their customer’s systems. This unique solution is designed to allow everyone involved in generating, updating or accessing information about asbestos to do so easily and 'on demand'.
We are running a free seminar on 19th June 2001 at Leighton Buzzard to present the Asbestos ToolKit™ product. If you are interested in attending, please contact us without delay as we are virtually full for that date.
As many of our customers know, we have been working with Wirral MBC to provide a 'ToolKit™' based energy management system for them. We are now ready to demonstrate this product to other organisations interested in developing integrated solutions across their management systems so that they can demonstrate ISO 1400X capability in line with the present government’s guidelines. We are holding a free, open seminar 14:00 - 16:00 on Tuesday 26th June 2001 at our Leighton Buzzard offices. Please contact us if you would like to attend.
Our project management site, CDMUK.com continues to be our focus for our users wanting to integrate their CDM documentation with their construction partners using the Internet. Coincidentally, we are developing our ideas with Microsoft to enable us to integrate their project management product within our own document management system. Microsoft claim to have some 80% share of the project management software market and we see this as a strategic product to have embedded in our portfolio. The combination will allow us to provide a fully integrated package from project 'scoping', provision of all project documentation with integrated document control plus enhanced time and cost management. We would like to hear from you if you currently use Microsoft’s Project Management package in any of its various versions with a view to providing a fast track development solution with a live project.
As part of our own business development, we have recently become a Microsoft Reseller. Our aim is to supply and support local businesses with operating system, networking and application development support. If you need a quote for any Microsoft business products please contact us and we will be pleased to help you.
Alternatively, you may like to visit our web site and follow the link to Action plc who are also Microsoft Certified Partners. A Microsoft Large Account Reseller they provide a 20,000 product-line store for purchases of Microsoft software and much more besides. Ai Solutions is a member of the Action plc affiliate program, so you will be supporting us each time you purchase using the link from our site, whether your purchase is for business or for personal use.
Are you using IT to save your business Time and Money? Want to know more about the how's? As a Microsoft Certified Partner based in Leighton Buzzard, we develop and install application software and Microsoft NT4 / 2000 products including Office. We can support and help you with your IT business needs.
Come and meet us at a free seminar on the 27th of June at 14:00 at our offices and see the new Microsoft Office XP and our options to help you in your business. Please get in touch as soon as possible to reserve your seat, as places are limited.