August 04, 2008 -
Front Section
Q: Tell us a little about IES?
A: Innovative Engineering Services, LLC is a full service multi-disciplined consulting engineering company which applies the skills of structural, mechanical, electrical, plumbing, fire protection, construction administration and property management. From design to construction administration management and property management, our broad array of integrated services keeps us diversified, growing rapidly, and on the cutting edge of technology. We set ourselves aside from the competition with a highly talented and dedicated staff. Our seasoned professionals are able to dominate the healthcare, educational, retail, commercial, municipal, industrial, and high end residential data centers genres of design. The IES commitment to green design and LEED certification enables us to offer our clients an alternative design. We have combined our engineering expertise with emerging technologies to provide an inspection and assessment system that has enormous value and practical applications. This combined integrated technology approach had created Innovative Engineering Systems, LLC.
Q. Describe the NEW product/technology that you are bringing to the market for building inspectors.
A. Innovative Engineering Systems, LLC. has partnered with applications developer Kluso Systems. Together, IES & Kluso team up to bring a field inspection solution to the fingertips of any inspector. This tool enables inspectors to digitally document their inspections, incorporating a digital photo and automatic date & time stamp. The digital report can be placed on drawings or site plans for future reference and retrieval. The system utilizes industry recognized reporting and applications such as excel and Microsoft Mobil 6.0. Through a series of smart fields and drop down menus, the inspector can also reduce the number of paper forms they need to have available in the field. These can be preloaded on the handheld device. Handheld devices can range from PDAs to "Smart Phones" further increasing efficiency.
Q. How does this "new way" of inspecting save time and money for inspectors?
A. By decreasing report writing time and increasing report accuracy, our inspection tool makes virtually any inspector extremely more efficient. Decreased report writing time also means more time in the field for evaluations. Based on current users, we have experienced a minimum of 4-5 hours a week savings in report writing per inspector.
Q. Do you have any patents for the software you developed? What are those patents? What does it mean for IES and their clients?
A. There is one patent for the simultaneous data-photo capture built in to our inspection system. The patent is held by Kluso. The patent, combined with the total solution from IES, allows us to gain increased market share and send a message to our clients that we are incorporating leading edge technology into our products and services.
Q. Can any other group benefit from this new product / technology other than building inspectors?
A. Any process that requires digital documentation with a photo can reap the benefits of using our system. Our solution has reached many different vertical markets. Some of these markets include auto insurance claim adjusters, façade inspectors, safety and health inspectors, building and maintenance inspectors, security incidents and investigations, real estate management companies, data center managers, parks and game officials and many more.
Q. Green building and LEED certification is a hot topic in the industry. How is this technology related to LEED?
The system can be utilized as a field verification tool for LEED credits and the required documentation. Incorporating the necessary LEED matrix records into our system, this provides a true paperless solution.
Dennis Pyskaty is facility administration manager for IES, North Haven, Conn.