ARLINGTON, Va. - The Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) released new standards that will allow sharing of data and key information between different construction programs. This new tool, known as agcXML, is projected to save construction companies up to the $15.8 billion a year currently spent in lost productivity due to lack of compatibility.

“The most expensive walls in some construction projects are the ones that divide essential software programs,” said Stephen Sandherr, AGC’s CEO. “This new tool will deliver significant savings by making the industry more efficient and productive.”

Data that architects, engineers, contractors, subcontractors, material suppliers, and building owners typically exchange during the building design and construction process is still commonly shared in paper documents, or their electronic equivalent, which often leads to costly delays and inefficiencies.

“The new agcXML will allow all parties to exchange information more efficiently, including documents such as owner/contractor agreements, schedules of values, and requests for information,” said Sandherr. “While the association developed agcXML to meet the needs of its 33,000 member companies, the tool is available to anyone at no cost to support the exchange of construction data.”

For more information, visit www.agcxml.org.

Publication date: 03/16/2009