Questions and Answers

The Autodesk Buzzsaw service helps you keep your
projects on schedule and within budget. As the leader in
online project collaboration, Buzzsaw enables you to
communicate, share, and track project information and
drawings throughout your teams. Whether you manage
building, manufacturing, or infrastructure projects, you
always have complete control
® ®
.
Contents
Autodesk Buzzsaw
speeds time to market,
increases team
accountability, and
helps keep projects on
time and on budget
Product Information ..........................................................................................................2
Industry Information .........................................................................................................4
Reporting Information.......................................................................................................5
Autodesk Buzzsaw 2005: Frequently Asked Questions
Product Information
1. What is Autodesk Buzzsaw?
The Autodesk® Buzzsaw® project collaboration service is the leader in providing
unprecedented visibility and control across an entire portfolio, allowing industry
professionals to proactively manage, optimize performance, and accelerate time-toprofitability
at each stage in the project lifecycle.
By facilitating better management and administration of processes and tasks through all
phases of the project lifecycle, Autodesk Buzzsaw helps speed time to market, increase
team accountability, and keep projects on time and on budget. Recently updated and
improved, Autodesk Buzzsaw has added new dashboard and reporting capabilities that
provide even greater visibility into project status and processes. In addition, enhanced
workflow rules, roles, and templates help team leaders to identify and resolve issues and
discrepancies faster than ever, boosting productivity across teams and the entire project
portfolio.
2. How can Buzzsaw help me monitor the status of my projects?
Buzzsaw Executive - and Project-level dashboards allow managers and team members to
monitor progress and quickly identify potential problems and discrepancies. The Project
Portfolio Dashboard and Reports provide project status, schedule, and budget information
for all of your projects. In addition, activity logs provide a complete listing of all site and
project activity, including who accessed what and when. Automatic notifications keep
project team members informed of important changes and updates.
3. How can Buzzsaw help my project team members address action items in time?
Buzzsaw tracks the assignment status of any outstanding forms and tasks. Team
members have Personal Dashboards that display the current action items assigned to
them, as well as action items they assigned to other team members. All actions and
responses are tracked in central logs and in the form history and are displayed on project
and site dashboards. In addition to displaying status in dashboards and reports, Buzzsaw
also sends automatic email reminders and overdue notices so that team members can
respond in a timely manner.
4. How can my team use Buzzsaw during the design phase of a project?
With Buzzsaw, all project team members get instant, anytime access to the latest project
documents and designs. Buzzsaw design collaboration features include version control,
locking, check-in and check-out notifications, and automatic xref scanning of all AutoCAD®
drawings during upload and download. You can post background drawings for your
consultants and verify who has accessed the drawings and when. The Buzzsaw design
review and approval workflow expedites design review by facilitating faster approvals, so
team leaders and clients can make decisions more quickly and identify potential issues
sooner rather than later.
5. How do external consultants, suppliers, and contractors benefit from Autodesk
Buzzsaw?
Buzzsaw provides enhanced control over project processes and improved communication
and collaboration for all project team members, throughout the project lifecycle – from
design through bidding, procurement, and construction. All project documents, including
design drawings, bid documents, construction RFIs, submittals, and meeting minutes are
stored and managed centrally for easy team access. All team members get the right
information at the right time. Having the entire project team working on Autodesk Buzzsaw
enables consistency across the board, saves money on printing and distribution costs,
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Autodesk Buzzsaw 2005: Frequently Asked Questions
reduces the need for travel, and lowers the incidence of planning and construction errors
that can be attributed to outdated information.
6. If I work with external consultants, suppliers, and contractors, do they have to
purchase Buzzsaw, too?
Your consultants, suppliers, and contractors do not have to purchase Buzzsaw to
participate in your projects. Your subscription includes licenses that provide your
extended team members with access; when you invite your consultants and contractors to
your Buzzsaw site, the Buzzsaw software is automatically downloaded.
7. How can I control access to individual files or documents?
Autodesk Buzzsaw provides a flexible, multilevel system for managing user access to
project data. Each new team member is assigned one of eight (8) permission levels
ranging from full “administrative” access to “no access” at the project, folder, and
individual file level. Site and project administrators can use the permissions matrix to
quickly and easily view and change permissions.
8. How can I share the cost of the Buzzsaw service with my client (as I do for
other reimbursable costs such as printing and shipping?
Autodesk Buzzsaw has teamed up with Sepialine, the leader in cost recovery for design
professionals, to offer you the Argos Data Exchange - Buzzsaw Edition software, which
gives you a powerful way to capture, report, and bill your clients quickly and easily. This
is included, at no extra charge, with your Buzzsaw subscription. Alternatively, you can
use the Statistics tab in the Site Administration dialog box, which shows you how much
storage space is taken up by each project within your site.
9. How can my project team members view or mark up drawing files if they don’t
have AutoCAD software?
The Buzzsaw service integrates the latest viewing technology from Autodesk. This allows
project members to view and revise drawings in DWG, DWF™, and DXF™, as well as
Microstation® DGN files, and then automatically bring back those comments into the
original CAD file.
10. Can I use Autodesk Buzzsaw effectively for projects where team members
speak multiple languages?
Yes, Autodesk Buzzsaw is available in English, German, Japanese, Korean, and
Simplified Chinese. The interface appears in the native language for each user
(commands, dialog boxes). To ensure data integrity, the project documents and form data
are not translated.
11. Who can customize forms, reports, and dashboards? Can I use my company’s
forms?
The Autodesk Consulting team customizes forms, reports, and dashboards to fit your
company’s specific needs. An Autodesk consultant converts your forms, reports, and
dashboards to a format that the Autodesk Buzzsaw system database can read, and then
safely and securely configures your site with the custom forms, reports, and dashboards.
12. Can I customize Autodesk Buzzsaw myself?
To protect site security and integrity of the forms-processing engine, only the Autodesk
Consulting team can customize and configure forms.
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Autodesk Buzzsaw 2005: Frequently Asked Questions
13. What do I need to run the Autodesk Buzzsaw service?
Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 or higher is required to use the Autodesk Buzzsaw service.
A modem connection speed of 56K or higher is required (a faster connection, such as
DSL, Cable Modem, or T1, is recommended).
There are ways to access Buzzsaw:
• Buzzsaw client software: In order to access all of the administrative features of
Buzzsaw, you will need to install the Buzzsaw software, which requires a PC with
Windows 98 or higher operating system.
• Buzzsaw Web Access (NEW!): Gives full access to project data, including projects,
folders, files, and forms, without the need to install the software. This is available
from any Internet connection (Internet Explorer 5.5 or higher is required for Buzzsaw
Web Access).
14. How do I get started using Autodesk Buzzsaw?
Call 866-815-3501. To start a trial site, go to www.autodesk.com/buzzsaw-freetrial,
register, set up your site, and start adding team members, projects, workflows, and files.
Your entire team can begin working online almost immediately. If you have been invited to
an Autodesk Buzzsaw site, just click the URL in your invitation email; you will be prompted
to change your password immediately upon login.
15. What if I need help using Autodesk Buzzsaw?
Support: You can get customer support by sending email to bcs.support@autodesk.com
or by calling 800-892-0449.
Training: Autodesk also hosts live free weekly training sessions online. Autodesk also
offers training and implementation consulting services tailored to your specific
requirements, to help you quickly and easily take full advantage of the Autodesk Buzzsaw
service. For details visit the Support Center at www.autodesk.com/buzzsaw-support.
16. How much does Autodesk Buzzsaw cost?
Autodesk offers annual subscriptions at various levels designed to meet the needs of your
business. Call 866-815-3501 to discuss your specific needs.
Industry Information
17. How do I benefit from Autodesk Buzzsaw if I am a Building Owner or
Homebuilder?
For owners and project managers, the Buzzsaw service provides heightened project
visibility, which enables more timely decision making and can directly translate into faster
time to market and optimized profitability. Moreover, the ability to create flexible and
customizable views that adapt to your processes and integrate with your company’s data
makes it easier to oversee and manage multiple projects simultaneously. For team
members, up-to-date summaries of project contents, task lists, and action items all
enhance accountability and help to reduce errors.
All project team members get instant, anytime access to up-to-date project documents
and designs. This access provides superior insight into projects for all team members. As
a result, this access helps to save money on document printing and distribution, reduces
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Autodesk Buzzsaw 2005: Frequently Asked Questions
travel expenses, and minimizes planning and construction errors due to outdated
information. Buzzsaw provides enhanced control over project processes and improved
communication and collaboration for all project team members, throughout the project
lifecycle – from design through bidding, procurement, and construction.
18. How do I benefit from Autodesk Buzzsaw if I am an Architect or Engineer?
Many architects and engineers use Buzzsaw for project collaboration with their clients and
consultants. All project documents, including design and construction drawings, are
centralized for easy team access at any time, so that all team members get the right
information at the right time. Autodesk Buzzsaw maintains detailed activity logs at
multiple levels: site, project, file, and user, so you can keep an audit trail of all document
changes and user actions. The Buzzsaw service includes viewing and markup tools for
design files, including DWG, DWF, DXF, and DGN file formats, so your clients can review
your designs without AutoCAD.
19. How can my team use Buzzsaw for construction administration and
management?
With Buzzsaw, you can manage all of your construction project drawings, documents, and
processes. Buzzsaw also features a wealth of standard construction administration and
management forms—including RFIs, submittals, change order requests, correspondence,
daily reports, and meeting minutes. Project managers can assign specific routing rules for
each form and process, with configurable timers, reminders, and tracking features. Using
standardized forms for all construction processes makes it easier to track and report
progress to everyone involved.
20. How can my team use Buzzsaw for bidding and procurement?
With Buzzsaw, you can manage your bidding process more effectively and drastically
reduce your shipping and printing costs. Post your project drawings--we recommend
using the Design Web Format™ (DWF) functionality, specifications, and instructions to
bidders on your Buzzsaw site. Create a private group for your bid participants using the
Buzzsaw service’s group management features, and create a folder with the “Deposit”
permission for your bidders to securely, submit proposals electronically, to provide you
confidentiality and control over bid document distribution and review.
21. What is Autodesk Buzzsaw for Retail?
The Autodesk Buzzsaw retail solution offers retailer owners improved visibility across the
store portfolio and greater control over the management of multiple, simultaneous building
projects. Autodesk Buzzsaw for Retail helps retail owners build stores faster, easier, and
more cost effectively. The retail solution package adds retail-specific forms, logs,
dashboards, and reports to the Buzzsaw service.
Reporting Information
22. What Dashboards are available with Autodesk Buzzsaw?
Autodesk Buzzsaw offers both standard and custom dashboards. The standard
dashboards provided follow:
• Site Level Executive Dashboards
o Project Portfolio Dashboard (Site Level) – high level summary of the status
of all projects, by region, by status (Green, Yellow, or Red) and by project
type
o Executive Summary - high level view of important data at across all projects
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Autodesk Buzzsaw 2005: Frequently Asked Questions
o Site Details – A list of all action items for all site members (across all
projects)
• Project Level Executive Dashboards
o Executive Summary – high level view of important project information
o Project Details – a list of all action items for all project members
• Personal Dashboards
• Site Personal Summary – a view of all action items and important information for the
individual team member.
• Site Details – Personalized list of all action items across all projects.
• Project Personal Summary – a view of all action items and important project information
for the individual project team member
• Site and Project Information – Administrators can configure multiple Information Pages
for the site as well as for each project. This can include published schedules and
calendars, project photos, and other important information all site and project members
should see
• Custom dashboards can also be created for your specific business and project
requirement
23. Who can access Executive Dashboards and other Dashboards?
Access to Executive dashboards, as well as all other dashboards, is controlled by the Site
and Project Administrators using “Site Setup” and “Project Setup” functions.
24. What types of reports can be generated with Autodesk Buzzsaw?
Autodesk Buzzsaw tracks and reports detailed information on all users, folders,
documents, logs, and forms within a site. You can run reports across your entire portfolio
of projects, within individual projects, and within individual logs to get thorough project
tracking and information on open or outstanding items and gain clear visibility into
schedules, budgets and project status. Standard reports include summary reports,
detailed reports, and overdue action items. The Autodesk Consulting team can customize
reports to meet a project’s or team’s specific data-reporting requirements.
Occasionally, Autodesk makes statements regarding planned or future development efforts for our existing or new
products and services. These statements are not intended to be a promise or guarantee of future delivery of
products, services, or features but merely reflect our current plans, which may change. Purchasing decisions should
not be made based upon reliance on these statements. The Company assumes no obligation to update these
forward-looking statements to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist or change after the date on which
they were made. Autodesk is not responsible for typographical or graphical errors that may appear in this document.
Autodesk, AutoCAD, Buzzsaw, Design Web Format, DWF, and DXF are registered trademarks or trademarks of
Autodesk, Inc. in the USA and/or other countries. All other brand names, product names, or trademarks belong to
their respective holders.
© 2005 Autodesk, Inc. All rights reserved.
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