Showing a strong commitment to investing in dynamic and powerful software tools to fuel major infrastructure projects, Ontario’s Ministry of Transportation (MTO) has extended its partnership with Aurigo Software for an additional two years. MTO and Aurigo have worked together since 2014 on contract management. Aurigo’s Masterworks platform powers construction management, engineering and lab and materials testing contracts on annual transportation projects totaling over CAD$3 billion.
The contract extension will allow MTO to upgrade to Aurigo’s Masterworks 2021 edition. Aurigo Masterworks is a powerful collaboration platform designed with cities, counties and state transportation bureaus and agencies in mind along with their unique capital planning and construction needs. The 2021 edition of Masterworks has been upgraded with a sleek and modern UI that is mobile friendly, making the platform easier to use in the field. Remote conferencing through Zoom has also been integrated into the platform, while partnerships with Autodesk, Esri and DocuSign have been expanded to provide additional functionality.
“Capital infrastructure owners are increasingly moving to cloud-based platforms that are reliable and scalable to manage their contract data and execute their complex programs successfully,” said Balaji Sreenivasan, CEO and founder of Aurigo Software. “We are delighted to continue our partnership with the Ministry to help deliver vital infrastructure to the residents of Ontario.”
As state and provincial budgets continue to take a hit for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, investment in innovative software platforms like Aurigo’s Masterworks will be key to finding the most optimal uses of transportation and infrastructure funding. With Aurigo, users can confidently plan their budgets out years in advance as well as ensure that they are able to maintain their bridges, highways, tunnels and local road networks through all stages of their life cycles.
Masterworks features reporting, analytics and AI tools that improve capital planning and project management for agencies managing large portfolios of infrastructure projects. Highlights for the transportation industry include long-term planning using what-if analysis, centralized budgeting and scheduling across departments, construction management tools, materials testing and laboratory contract management, and safety compliance.
In addition to capital management and project management, Aurigo Masterworks also offers full life cycle construction management, safety and quality maintenance, and business operations support. The construction management product line empowers users to deliver their projects on time and on budget with fully automated estimation and bidding tools, includes land acquisition management tools, and makes it possible to implement agency-wide sourcing programs for contractors and services to guarantee consistency across a diverse project program.
The extended partnership between MTO and Aurigo is just one example of many government transportation agencies seeking to modernize their capital planning and project management processes. This movement into cloud-based contract and project administration by transportation agencies is an exciting trend for the industry and engineering community, as it will allow for more efficient deployment of capital and create more opportunities for investment in infrastructure upgrades thanks to cost savings and better identification of which projects will offer the most value to the community. With billions of taxpayer dollars at stake and crumbling infrastructure across the world in need of upgrade, turning to software like Aurigo is the smart move for transportation agencies looking to help lead the industry into the future.