Design communication within fast-track building projects

The factor time within building projects is on high pressure because the need for faster delivery of buildings is rising. Within fast-track, complex building projects the design process is an important key to fast-tracking. Based on case analyses of fast-track design processes (den Otter, Prins 2001) it became obvious that design processes function poorly within fast-track projects. Improvement of design methods, techniques and instruments is needed to facilitate these high-pressure design processes as well as high professional skills of the design team members to collaborate and communicate effectively. Solutions might be found in integral design methods with an increased level of collaboration and communication facilitated by electronic media for design information flows. In this paper, design communication facilitated by extranets within fast-track, integral design processes is analysed and modelled. Special attention is given to electronic mediated communication of design teams facilitated by reflection and action learning to increase the inter-activity of these design teams.