2005 INNOVATIONS AWARDS PROGRAM
APPLICATION
Deadline: April 4, 2005
INSTRUCTIONS: Complete and submit this document electronically if possible, preferably in
Microsoft Word format (.doc or rtf). This application is also available at www.csg.org, in the Programs
section. Determine the appropriate “Change Driver” from the enclosed matrix and indicate that in the
appropriate space listed below. Keep in mind that the matrix is only meant to show potential relationships
between change drivers, trends and issues, and is not exhaustive. Be advised that CSG reserves the right
to use or publish in other CSG products and services the information that you provide in this
Innovations Awards Program Application. If you object to CSG potentially using or publishing the
information contained in this application in other CSG products and services, please advise us in a
separate attachment to your program’s application.
ID #: 05- MW-08-MI______________________
Change Driver: Role of Government for Transportation and Infrastructure
State: Michigan
1. Program Name:
FieldManager. FieldManager components are: FieldManager (which is the managing
office module), FieldBook (inspector laptop module), FieldPad (inspector hand held
module), FieldBuilder (local agency/consultant/contractor module for initiating
contracts let outside of MDOT) and FieldNet (electronic messaging module).
2. Administering Agency:
Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) and Michigan Department of
Information Technology (DIT)
3. Contact Person (Name and Title):
C. Douglass Couto, Information Officer
4. Address:
Michigan Department of Information Technology
Agency Services
P.O. Box 30050
425 W. Ottawa Street
Lansing, MI 48909
5. Telephone Number: (517) 241-2899
6. FAX Number: (517) 335-4239
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7. E-mail Address: coutod@michigan.gov
8. Web site Address: www.michigan.gov/mdot , www.fieldmanager.com
9. Please provide a two-sentence description of the program.
FieldManager is an innovative suite of software tools used to manage and track fieldlevel progress of road and bridge construction projects. It can be used by State
Department of Transportation field offices, local government agencies, engineering
firms, and construction contractors.
10. How long has this program been operational (month and year)? Note: the
program must be between 9 months and 5 years old on May 1, 2005 to be
considered.
Phase 1 implementation was launched in late May of 1999 with several subsequent
phases released on a regular basis. Release 3.4 is currently operational with the next
major implementation expected in 2006.
Field Manager is currently implemented and supported at 288 facilities in Michigan.
These include: 41 MDOT offices, 131 local agencies (cities and counties), and 116
private firms.
11. Why was the program created? What problem[s] or issue[s] was it designed to
address? Indicate how the program applies to the “change driver” that you listed
above.
The program was created to eliminate an error prone, slow and intensely manual
process. It is the role of government to operate as effectively as possible and, in our
case, not only provide an excellent tool for our users, but at the same time to provide
the tax payers of Michigan a savings in excess of $22 million (documentation on file)
annually in the Transportation and Infrastructure category.
12. Describe the specific activities and operations of the program in chronological
order.
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A contract cycle begins in FieldManager with the import of an electronic
contract file that is produced by the AASHTO Trns●port Construction
Administration System (CAS).
From that point the contract information is transferred to FieldBook which is
used by inspectors to gather contractor progress data at the construction site.
This data is displayed on a document called an Inspector’s Daily Report (IDR).
These IDRs are exported from FieldBook and then imported into FieldManager.
FieldManager runs a host of data integrity edits, then posts the data to its
database.
A refresh file is produced by FieldManager and sent back to FieldBook.
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FieldManager then manages contractor payments, contract changes, and makes
summary data available through various lists and inquiries.
Payment and contract change data is transferred electronically from
FieldManager to CAS. See attached flow diagram.
13. Why is the program a new and creative approach or method?
The program was used to standardize these functions at all levels of government
throughout Michigan. This approach is considered an industry first for the user
community, attaining a significant strategic impact on the way this business is
performed, creating a powerful financial impact, and realizing outstanding user
acceptance through technical excellence. Additionally, FieldManager has been
developed under a unique 50/50 ownership agreement between state government
(State of Michigan) and private industry (Info Tech, Inc. of Gainesville, FL). This
ownership agreement provided a way for other governments to license the tools and
contribute ideas to the products growth without having to undertake a full scale
development project. FieldManager is now being used in seven different states.
14. What were the program’s start-up costs? (Provide details about specific
purchases for this program, staffing needs and other financial expenditures, as
well as existing materials, technology and staff already in place.)
Start-up costs prior to the 1998 partnership agreement between MDOT and Info Tech,
Inc. total $5.1 million. This includes $3.4 million from MDOT plus $1.7 million
invested by Info Tech, Inc. and other state DOTs. MDOT staff included an IT
specialist, a road construction business engineer, and a database specialist all of
which were already in place. Hardware costs were not calculated as part of this cost
as those costs were absorbed through standard MDOT infrastructure support in place
for other applications. There were no additional hardware costs. MDOT licenses
Sybase SQL Anywhere for networked environments at a cost of $25,000 annually.
15. What are the program’s annual operational costs?
Annual operational costs are approximately $607,000 in Michigan. Users in other
states also contribute to annual maintenance of the product through their license fees.
A user group meets annually to prioritize requirements and enhancements to the
product. MDOT receives about $100,000 annually in royalties from sales to non-state
DOT’s.
16. How is the program funded?
Eighty five percent of AASHTO license fees go back into the product. Additionally
new enhancements can be and are funded by MDOT, other participating state DOTs,
and Info Tech. MDOT gains from the code provided by customers and partners. The
estimated value for 2001 was $1.1 million.
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17. Did this program require the passage of legislation, executive order or
regulations? If YES, please indicate the citation number.
While this program did not require the passage of legislation, etc., it did require a
significant ground-breaking effort to develop the owner partnership relationship
which is believed to have been the only one of its kind at that time. To a large extent,
it is the synergy between the system itself and this innovative business partnership
behind it that has resulted in the business value we have achieved. The challenge was
creating an agreement that provided value to all partners. We have definitely created
a model for others to emulate.
18. What equipment, technology and software are used to operate and administer
this program?
FieldManager is a PowerBuilder application that runs on standard hardware.
Sybase’s SQL Anywhere or ORACLE must be used in a networked environment.
19. To the best of your knowledge, did this program originate in your state? If YES,
please indicate the innovator’s name, present address, telephone number and email address.
Yes. There are three innovators: Please contact Doug Couto (517.241.2899) for
management/CIO related questions, Kevin Fox (517.322.6223) for IT related
questions, or Cliff Farr (517.322.6039) for construction business related questions.
The addresses are:
C. Douglass Couto
Kevin Fox and/or Cliff Farr
VanWagoner Bldg.
C&T Building
425 W. Ottawa
8885 Ricks Rd.
P.O. Box 30050
P.O. Box 30049
Lansing, MI 48933
Lansing, MI 48909
20. Are you aware of similar programs in other states? If YES, which ones and how
does this program differ?
Yes, the impetus of FieldManager innovation has driven changes in the industry. The
“AASHTOWare” software catalog of the American Association of State Highway
and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) now includes a product called SiteManager
that has a field module.
(See http://www.aashtoware.org/?siteid=28 )
The primary difference between the two products is that FieldManager is architected
as a thin client making it easy to implement and support at field-level offices.
Additionally, FieldManager was designed for implementation in different
jurisdictions and includes an agency configuration modulation making it easy to turn
on functions added/desired and turn off functions not needed.
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21. Has the program been fully implemented? If NO, what actions remain to be
taken?
FieldManager is fully implemented. It is being used by some 2,500 users at 280 sites
in Michigan. The DOTs of Iowa, Maine, Wisconsin and Oklahoma license
FieldManager. Federal Lands (for road construction in our National Parks) and
numerous agencies and private firms in 14 states license FieldManager. Other
examples of non-DOT agencies licensing FieldManager include the cities of Detroit
Michigan, Lincoln Nebraska, Des Moines Iowa, Little Rock Arkansas, the city/county
of Honolulu Hawaii, and Washington DC. In Michigan alone, FieldManager has
been used to manage contracts that total in excess of $6.6 billion since its
introduction.
22. Briefly evaluate (pro and con) the program’s effectiveness in addressing the
defined problem[s] or issue[s]. Provide tangible examples.
Pros include FieldManager continually meeting its goals of being on time and on
budget, and achieving a high degree of user satisfaction through system integrity,
stability, efficiency and ease of use. In addition, FieldManager provides an
exceptional return on the investment of Michigan’s tax payers. Tangible examples
include far more prompt and accurate contractor payments, elimination of manual
handling of data multiple times, elimination of manual calculations required for
payment and material tracking, the elimination of some manual forms plus the
automation of others. These efficiency gains by FieldManager are saving taxpayers
over $22 million per year.
A major challenge is created by the acceptance around the product. We are working
to reduce the cycle time for handling simple enhancements.
23. How has the program grown and/or changed since its inception?
FieldManager has continued to improve processes for various business areas through
several major product updates, offering ever-expanding functionality while building
on successful core capabilities. The program team and users are committed to
continuous improvement, have identified other business units that can use these tools,
are testing use in a wireless environment and on hand-held devices, and are seeking
new ideas from a growing user base.
24. What limitations or obstacles might other states expect to encounter if they
attempt to adopt this program?
Working across organizational and political boundaries are by far the great obstacles
to implementing this product. The creation of a user group that collects and
prioritizes new ideas and functions has improved acceptance of the FieldManager
tools by users at all levels. The agency configuration program allows for easy
configuration to support the needs of jurisdictions outside of Michigan. This is an
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extremely successful software program and provides a model for a public/private
partnership that produces exceptional value for all partners.
Add space as appropriate to this form. Return to:
CSG Innovations Awards 2005
The Council of State Governments
2760 Research Park Drive, P.O. Box 11910
Lexington, KY 40578-1910
innovations@csg.org
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