IMPLEMENTATION OF CODESO

CONSTRUCTION VERTICAL MODULE

AT

XYZ ENGINEERING SERVICES (PVT.) LTD.

Course of Study: MBA Weekend - General

Subject Code: MBA 5106

Subject: Management Information Systems

Group No: 2.5

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Table1
Individual Member Contribution Matrix

Registration
Name Focus Area
Number

2020/MBA/WE/119 EKSH Siriwardhana Executive summary

Organizational background
2020/MBA/WE/077 MAHP Nawarathna The need to implement the propose IS
system

2020/MBA/WE/123 P Vathsalyan The implemented IS

2020/MBA/WE/096 MH Prageeth The process/method of implementation

The challenges encountered during the

2020/MBA/WE/073 APEN Mendis
implementation

2020/MBA/WE/105 LAR Rukshika The benefits/intended benefits achieved

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Acknowledgement
We take this opportunity to express our gratitude to those who gave an idea to do
the assignment on Implementation of CODESO Construction Vertical Module (CODESO
CVM) at XYZ Engineering Services (Pvt.) Ltd. and provide the support in collecting
information.

First, we would like to thank Dr. Nuradhi K. Jayasiri and Dr. Ajantha Atukorale
for providing guidance to design and prepare this report through the Course Outline and
briefings in Lectures.

Also, we would like to thank the management, and employees of XYZ Engineering
Services (Pvt.) Ltd. for giving the consent and providing information for the success of
this report.

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Contents
Acknowledgement .............................................................................................................. iv

Contents ............................................................................................................................... v

List of Figures ..................................................................................................................... vi

List of Tables .....................................................................................................................vii

1. Executive Summary ...................................................................................................... 1

2. Organizational Background .......................................................................................... 2

3. The Need to Implement the Proposed Information System ......................................... 2

4. The Implemented Information System ......................................................................... 3

5. The process/method of implementation ....................................................................... 4

5.1. The Implementation team and company readiness ............................................... 4

5.2. Introduction to Implementation ............................................................................. 4

5.3. The Process of CODESO CVM Implementation .................................................. 5

6. The Challenges Encountered During the Implementation. .......................................... 7

6.1. Complexity in Mapping out the Construction Process ......................................... 7

6.2. Making the Service Provider Understand the Requirements ................................ 7

6.3. Acquiring the New Technology ............................................................................ 7

6.4. Complexity in the Development Process .............................................................. 8

6.5. Input of Old Data to the New IS ........................................................................... 8

7. Benefits of Using the CODESO CVM for Project Management ................................. 8

7.1. Optimize Planning ................................................................................................. 8

7.2. Streamlining Project Management ........................................................................ 8

7.3. Facilitating Cost & Revenue Estimation ............................................................... 8

7.4. Simplifying the Exchange of Information ............................................................. 9

7.5. Improving the Decision-Making Process .............................................................. 9

7.6. Increasing ROI ...................................................................................................... 9

References .......................................................................................................................... 10

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List of Figures
Figure 1 Key Features Specially Added to the System ......................................................... 3
Figure 2 The Processes and Deliverables of the Implemented System ................................ 5

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List of Tables
Table 1 - Individual Member Contribution Matrix ................................................................... iii

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1. Executive Summary
Information Technology developments are transforming the way the organizations
function, enabling organizations to enhance the value creation and delivering while
reducing cost and increasing efficiency and effectiveness. Many Sri Lankan leading
organizations are adapting to these new revolutionary changes, making big investments in
Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) Systems, Cloud Computing, and Artificial
Intelligence Systems etc. It has an impact on every industry.

Construction industry is getting more complex, competitive and challenging in

recent years. Construction companies are looking for ways to boost productivity, integrate
operations, and maintain competitiveness. ERP systems help construction organizations
and their contractors to effectively and efficiently manage capital projects throughout the
project lifecycle. This report is based on the implementation of CODESO Construction
Vertical Module (CODESO CVM) to manage construction activities at XYZ Engineering
Services (Pvt.) Ltd. (XYZ) which is a high end engineering service provider in Sri Lanka.

This report addresses the implemented CODESO CVM at XYZ, process of

implementation, the challenges encountered during the implementation and the benefits
achieved by using this new ERP system. The XYZ decided to invest in CODESO CVM
with their overseas expansion to facilitate business activities. Implementation of the new
system went through 4 phases namely, Analysis, Implementation, Testing and
Deployment. The Company faced several challenges when implementing such as
selecting the right vendor, training employees, importing old data to the system etc. which
are further discussed in the report. However the organization is enjoying an array of
benefits through this new information system including improving decision making and
ROI etc.

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2. Organizational Background
XYZ Engineering Service (Pvt.) Ltd. (XYZ) is a professionally organized company
for giving optimum Engineering Solutions for all Engineering aspects in any field of
Electrical, Mechanical or Civil Construction. XYZ deliver high end designs and
fabrications for large Construction works and their fast growing story will facilitate the
Engineering field in Sri Lanka.
XYZ was founded in 1995 as a Small Organization with a sharp vision to be the far
most Engineering Solution Provider in Sri Lanka and they have come across passing
significant milestones serving for the engineering sector in Sri Lanka during the last two
decades.
In 2015, XYZ has expanded their operations to Maldives and completed several
milestone projects during last 6 years. With their expansions, they have introduced a
management information system to facilitate the company growth easily.
After a comprehensive requirement analysis, the first phase of the CODESO ERP
System was developed few years ago to improve its management control and achieve
service excellence. Under the initial stage Finance module, Inventory module,
Procurement module, Sales module and HR module were developed and are being used.

3. The Need to Implement the Proposed Information System

There was no facility to handle construction activities in XYZ such as project
estimation, project planning, project budgeting, budget controlling, sub-contractors
handling and project forecasting in the existing ERP system.

XYZ was using Excel formats for estimation, budgeting, project monitoring and
MS Project for scheduling, resource allocation. It's simple to waste time for finding,
updating, and double-checking project information, depending on the size and complexity
of individual projects and the number of projects XYZ are managing or participating in.
It’s also difficult to track project progress and easy to overlook risks, miss upcoming
deadlines, or ignore over allocated resources. This reduces visibility into the project and
makes informed decision-making impossible.

Hence more integrated construction management software has been identified as an

essential need for XYZ in the phase of their continuous expansion and the resulting
business needs. With this requirement, XYZ planned to further streamline their processes

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and make them visible across all departments horizontally and vertically, resulting in
quicker response times and greater efficiency across the organization.

4. The Implemented Information System

ERP software is a class of software solutions which empowers companies large
and small to consolidate internal and external data and to manage essential business
processes. There are several sophisticated ERP systems available for construction
industry such as Procore, Vista, e-Builder Enterprise, AccuBuild, Builder MAX, etc.
(Solutions Review, 2020). However these systems are very expensive which cannot be
afforded by even medium and large construction companies. CODESO is an ERP that is
often being defined as "a method for the e-effective planning and controlling of all the
resources needed to take, make, ship and account for customer orders in manufacturing,
distribution or service company. CODESO integrated business management software
allows Resource Management System (RMS) to automate operational back office
services and to better manage their
Figure 1
business in one system. Since this is an
Key Features Specially Added to the System open source software customization
based on the organizational needs can
Estimation & be done without much complication and
Tendering
less cost.
Smart
Budgeting &
Payables and
Receivables
Cost Control Software developers of
CODESO closely worked with the
CODESO CVM
engineers, project managers, finance
team and senior management of XYZ
Accounting & Subcontractor
Financials Management had tailor made development to add
specific features to the CODESO CVM
Purchasing &
Inventory to fulfill the needs of the construction
industry.

Estimation & Tendering, Budgeting & Cost Control, Inventory Tracking and
Stock Control, Subcontractors Management, Machineries Maintenance and Multi-site
Activity Management are the key features specifically added to the solution provided to
XYZ. Project budget will include materials, labor and other overheads and this will be the

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estimate of the project and could be monitored phase wise over the project completion
period. Each new project can be opened as new job cards and will be assigned to a team
consist of project manager, site engineer, site supervisor, technical head, QA officer etc.,
including additional information such as expected completion date of each phase, total
delivery period, invoicing details, method of billing, site details. Revisions in the Bill of
Quantities (BOQ) and Bill of Material (BOM) or Project Budgets can be handled
seamlessly including the approval based on the delegation of authority levels via the
system itself. Actual material consumption will be monitored against the estimate through
detailed reports and routed to alerts and approval requests.

Advanced Reporting and Analytics tool uses Intelligent Reporting which will
support to Optimize Business Operations and Take Data-Driven Decisions, Customized
dashboards for a thorough performance analysis and comparison, Share reports with
colleagues by annotating them for a detailed discussion, Generate dynamic reports using
Customizable KPIs based on in-house formulae. Interactive Timelines for Easy
Visualization through Gantt charts provide a crystal clear picture of where the project
stands the upcoming deadlines, the dependencies, task priorities, and more for a smarter
way to complete projects in time. A simplified hierarchy and communication system
allows project heads or clients to proof the deliveries and work in progress (WIP) to
suggest revisions, provide feedback, and approve them quickly and effortlessly.

5. The process/method of implementation

5.1. The Implementation team and company readiness
The company’s head of the project was the leader of the system implementation and
cross functional teams were established for the implementation including necessary
resources. After establishing the teams for the CVM implementation, the key system
requirements were identified and communicated with the service providers. Then after
discussions & presentations, the project phases were finalised.

5.2. Introduction to Implementation

It is scheduled to follow four key phases in implementing CODESO CVM due to its
complexity. It also necessitates the company's awareness, user skills, the company's
running system, and CODESO CVM consultants with certified expertise to have a
successful system implementation.

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5.3. The Process of CODESO CVM Implementation
The following chart explains all of the processes and deliverables of the system
implementation.

Figure 2

The Processes and Deliverables of the Implemented System

Delivarables System Implementation

Analysis of company process

Blue print Analysis
Impelmantation schedule
Master Data Implementation
User Training
Alpha & Funtional testing
Security testing Testing
Go-live
Deployment to cloud server
Deployment
User Mannual

CODESO CVM

Source: CODESO CVM Blueprint of XYZ

Phase 01: Analysis

As the first step the following task were scheduled in the analysis phase of the system
implementation.

• Analysis of the company’s existing Process and Documents.

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• Documenting of the company’s existing formal processes, workflows, roles and
responsibilities.
• CVM Implementation Schedule planning.
• Formalizing and finalizing the business process workflows based on the analysis.

Phase 02: Implementation

This is the most challenging phase and it is required to deploy full effort to bring the
system to go-live level and the following tasks were included in the 2nd phase of the
implementation.

• Creating a module wise ERP trial.

• Master data preparation & configurations.
• Migrating data to the new system if exists.
• Formalizing and finalizing the business process workflows based on the ERP trial.
• Training the ERP user base.
• Testing the ERP and going live.
• Go-live activities planning.
• Evaluating the success of the project.

Phase 03: Testing

The changes made in the realization phase need to be tested in isolation as well as in a
consolidated manner using real-time data. This is done in the testing phase.

• Alpha testing.
• Functional testing.
• Non-Functional testing.
• Security testing.
• Go-live Client.

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Phase 04: Deployment
This is the final phase of the system implementation and in this stage; the final
product is released to the end-users. The following tasks were included in the final phase
of the implementation.

• Deployment to cloud server.

• Providing user manuals.
• Sustain and support.

6. The Challenges Encountered During the Implementation.

Several challenges were encountered during the implementation of the Information
System.

6.1. Complexity in Mapping out the Construction Process

Construction is a complex process which consists of several sub processes such as
tendering, budgeting, procurement, etc. Also, the process is not carried out as a single unit
but under multiple project categories making it more complex. Also, it includes human
involvement throughout the process. Therefore, construction process is extra complex to
simplify and to map out. Therefore mapping the construction process which includes
unique features which are identical for the company was a huge challenge.

6.2. Making the Service Provider Understand the Requirements

Communicating with the service provider and to make the service provider
understand the construction sensitive features which is challengeable to add to an IS was
another challenge.

6.3. Acquiring the New Technology

The company was practicing the traditional process of building construction
activities throughout years and the staff was consisted of not only millennial but also
employees of different generations and age groups. Therefore the attitude for acquiring
this new technology instead of the traditional process was not positive among all the
employees. Hence, training the employees to use the IS was also another considerable
challenge.

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6.4. Complexity in the Development Process
Launching the IS was consisted of launching different MVPs (Minimum Viable
Products) throughout a long period. This was because of the complexity of the process,
some features of the IS were redesigned, totally removed and added different process
after several testing.

6.5. Input of Old Data to the New IS

Moreover, in order to work on the newly installed IS, it was required to input the
old data such as cash flow, budgets, data of raw material etc. In order to achieve a high
accuracy, this old data was input with proper care and took a considerable time and
human hours which was also highly challenging.

7. Benefits of Using the CODESO CVM for Project Management

7.1. Optimize Planning
The CODESO CVM helps the company to plan the projects properly such as
Planning for the raw materials required, use the labor effectively, plan architectural
design, and schedules in order to mitigate the heavy losses, which might incur in the form
of labor costs and loss of clientele due to untimely completion of targets.

Further, the CODESO CVM can be used to make provision for controlling expenses
and budgetary allocation. It also helps avoid unnecessary downtime and contractual issues
with clients throughout the duration of the project.

7.2. Streamlining Project Management

With the help of the CODESO CVM, construction managers can easily monitor the
status of each project, create milestones, delegate assignments to the right staff, and keep
track of staff timesheets with just a few clicks. Real-time data enables contractors to track
the time each staff spends on each task, making it easier for them to bill clients.

7.3. Facilitating Cost & Revenue Estimation

Before acquiring a tender for a project, it is required to bid on the project with the
estimated costs. CODESO CVM helpful in determining the accurate estimation required
for designs, raw materials, labor, and the duration to carry out the project, so that the
actual costs will not deviate much from the projected costs.

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In addition to cost estimation, the CODESO CVM also allows contractors to find
out how much revenue and profit/loss the company will be able to get from each project.

7.4. Simplifying the Exchange of Information

Since the Company handles more than one client at a time, the exchange of
information within the company is tedious and confusing.

However, the CODESO CVM makes the data exchange easier through resources
and firewalls that support optimal data security. Further, via this platform, the company is
able to control which information to be shared with the clients and which to be shared
with the employees.

7.5. Improving the Decision-Making Process

A centralized system helps improve efficiency by providing a comprehensive view
of a particular situation prior to making decisions. Whenever staff is required to correlate
information from different sources, the CODESO CVM assists in extracting data and
providing relevant criteria that require adjustments before fulfilling a request.

For example, before making a purchase order for certain raw materials, the budget
report has to be submitted to the project manager, based on what they refer to the
engineering team and the formulate construction design and then the purchasing manager
creates the purchase order which must then be screened by the accounting department
before getting approved. This entire process is now being able to perform through the
CODESO System, which also saves time and increased accuracy.

7.6. Increasing ROI

The ROI of the company has increased since the inception of the CODESO CVM
as it facilitates the company to eliminate manual, time-consuming and labor-intensive
processes. Also it helps to reduce the raw material expenditure, and meet project
deadlines.

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References
Solutions Review. (2020). The 9 Best ERP Solutions for Construction Companies.
https://solutionsreview.com/enterprise-resource-planning/the-best-erp-solutions-
for-construction-companies/
Codeso | Products. (2020). Codeso.lk. https://codeso.lk/products/
DANAOS Projects Software Solutions. (2021). DANAOS Projects Software Solutions.
https://danaos-projects.com/

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