SECTION A

$[40$ MARKS$]$

Read the case study below and answer ALL the questions that follow.

Construction company improves job$-$site speed and quality with Surface Go and Azure application

Founded in $1961$ in Komatsu, Japan, COMANY is a leading partition construction and manufacturing company. Recently

COMANY set out to boost productivity and ensure high$-$quality work by enabling employees to collaborate and share

precise information in real time at job sites. By introducing Microsoft Surface Go and a document utilisation solution

hosted on Microsoft Azure, COMANY standardised processes and reduced mistakes from paper$-$based, manual

practices. The ruggedised, digital solution also helps attract and retain talent in sales, engineering, and construction

contractors.

Reducing waste and cost from redone work

Partition manufacturer COMANY Inc. supplies products like office and bathroom partitions that create comfortable,

functional spaces. The firm takes on jobs that integrate design, manufacturing, construction, and maintenance. With so

much to coordinate, Executive Officer Kazuaki Matsushita looked for a solution to reduce time spent on projects.

COMANY began to rethink process administration. On a conventional construction site, information traditionally moved

from place to place as print instructions, like paper drawings and procedure manuals. This meant that work sometimes

had to be redone due to human error in relaying information. The company wanted a way to digitise access to project

information and make it available at construction sites through durable mobile devices.

Cloud$-$hosted job$-$site application meets rugged Surface device

COMANY digitised its paper documents, such as drawings and procedure manuals, and deployed an app for accessing

these files from construction sites. It built its cloud$-$based document utilisation application and uses it to manage data in a

variety of formats, including Word, PDF$,$ and video files, within a single platform, so workers can view the data without

starting up individual apps. Thumbnails of document covers display on the viewer screen, making it easy for workers to

locate files.

Workers can write on documents with a stylus and use a QR code to access the critical files they need from the field,$$

says Fumihiko Ido, Technology Sales Administration Executive Officer at COMANY.

Hideyuki Yamaoka, Supervisor in the Information Systems Department in COMANY$$s Management Control Division,

recalls why the company proposed a Surface Go solution. $"$We wanted a device for job$-$site convenience, Windows for

efficient IT management, and an accurate, easy$-$to$-$use stylus so that people on the job site would want to use it$.$ Surface

Go met all these requirements$$ it was a powerful choice among the devices that we looked at$.$ Surface Go also has long

battery life, to keep pace with workers throughout their day.

Improved work quality as well as standardised and optimise work style operations

COMANY already sees the benefits of a device and software combination that offers sustained and more secure remote

access to critical data. The new solution eliminated the need for many paper documents, an important step toward the

ultimate goal of increased work quality on construction sites and standardised operations.

Kawa says, $"$At job sites, we face obvious problems like construction defects and deadline delays, along with less visible

problems, like operational losses and mistakes. Engineers, to give one example, visit all their construction sites to keep

projects on track. Since each engineer is responsible for multiple job sites, they might spend most of the day in transit. In

the future, digitisation should decrease work mistakes as people share information, such as drawings and procedure

manuals, accurately from anywhere. Contractors can complete more work independently, which should reduce our losses

to transit time and redo costs.$$

Employees use the report function to create reports inside the system and to pull them up on the viewer. $$Thanks to this

function, we don$$t need to return to the office to write reports anymore. That allows us to make better use of our travel

time,$$ says Ido.

QUESTION $1(20$ Marks$)$

COMANY wanted a way to $$digitise access to project information and make it available at construction sites through

durable mobile devices$.$ Of the many available options for project software and devices, the company considered

Microsoft Surface Go as a $$powerful choice$.$ Deliberate on what made Microsoft Surface Go a $$powerful choice$$ by

interrogating the results of introducing Microsoft Surface Go from a project management perspective.

QUESTION $2(20$ Marks$)$

Based on the case study, compare and contrast some of the tasks $($at least FIVE $(5))$ and their sequencing involved within

a conventional project for COMANY before and after the implementation of the new system. Show justification to confirm

that the new system was indeed the correct choice.