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The AASHTOWare Project™ 3.00 software was released into production last month. This is the culmination of years of work for agencies, the AASHTOWare Project Task Force, Technical Review Teams (TRTs), AASHTO staff, and the software contractor Info Tech, Inc.

The AASHTOWare Project 3.00 software includes the first release of the AASHTOWare Project Construction & Materials™ software and the AASHTOWare Project Estimation™ software. The construction, materials and estimation functionality have been much anticipated, and make the web-based suite of software a more complete offering to agencies. The release also includes new and enhanced functionality for the AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction™ software and the AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor™ software.

To ensure that quality software was delivered to agencies, thorough beta testing was performed by the transportation agencies of Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, and Nebraska. During this testing period, the software also went through a security audit by independent third parties Secure Ideas and SLI Global Solutions. Minor issues that were identified during the security audit were addressed and then verified by SLI. The final security audit report stated “Authentication and authorization controls

are consistently following security best practices and there are controls in place for other vulnerabilities listed in the Open Web Application Security Project (OWASP) top-ten.”

The mid-beta release was on display at the Project Users Group (PUG) meeting in September in Essex, Vermont. Several demonstrations and training sessions were held so that agency representatives at the conference could see the software in action.

Agencies not planning to implement the new construction, materials or estimation functionality at this time will still benefit from the upgrade to AASHTOWare Project 3.00. Global changes to the software include draft report watermarking, font size reduction allowing more information to fit on a screen, a responsive page layout allowing for various screen sizes and resolutions, and enhanced issue tracking. There are also specific enhancements to both the AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction software (proposal funding, item-pricing worksheet, grid layout, improved speed on adding projects and bid lettings) and the AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor software (track contract changes and claims dispute management). To get more details about these features, visit the Cloverleaf™ website, login, select the Support page, and choose “AASHTOWare Project FAQs” (under the Research Reported Items heading).

As your agency begins implementing the AASHTOWare Project 3.00 software, there are several tools available to assist you. • The AASHTOWare Project 3.00 Business

Planning and Training Guides for the new estimation, construction, and materials functionality available with the AASHTOWare Project Estimation and AASHTOWare Project Construction & Materials software can aid agencies with your AASHTOWare Project 3.00 business implementation and migration activities, as well as provide end-users with accessible

AASHTOWare Project™ 3.00 software released to productionby Brigitte Codling, Vermont Agency of Transportation and Russ Barron, Info Tech, Inc.

3 New offering for data transfer: AASHTOWare

Project SYNC Service™

4 How does an agency benefit from

participating as a beta testing site?

7 AASHTOWare Project™ enhancement process

policy

6 On the horizon: AASHTOWare Project™

3.01

Project™

NewsNews about AASHTOWare Project™ software • January 2015

AASHTOWare

5 Envisioning the AASHTOWare Project

Decision Support™ software

AASHTOWareProject™ News

January 2015

AASHTOWare Project™ 3.00 software

released to production ........................1

Message from the Chair ......................2

New offering for data transfer:

AASHTOWare Project SYNC Service™ ..3

How does an agency benefit from

participating as a beta testing site? ...4

Envisioning the AASHTOWare Project

Decision Support™ software................5

On the horizon: AASHTOWare Project™

3.01 .....................................................6

AASHTOWare Project™ enhancement

process policy ......................................7

Cost estimators gather at 2014 TEA

conference ...........................................8

Successful PUG Conference wraps up

in Vermont ...........................................9

AASHTOWare Project™ calendar ........10

Key AASHTOWare Project™ contacts ...10

AASHTOWare Project™ licensing

status .................................................11

MSE status report..............................12

Implementation status report ..........14

AASHTOWare Project TRACER™ .NET

upgrade underway ...........................16 Produced and published by the AASHTOWare Project™ Task Force

AASHTOWare Project™ is a trademark of theAmerican Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials

AASHTOWare Project™ News January 20152

continued on page 15

DesignValerie Riley

Info Tech, Inc.

EditorTony Bianchi

AASHTO

Message from the Chairby Todd Bergland, Minnesota Department of Transportation, PTF Chair

Once again, AASHTOWare Project™ and the AASHTOWare Project Task Force (PTF) have a lot going on. First and foremost is the greatly anticipated release of the AASHTOWare Project 3.00 software which includes the two new modules: AASHTOWare Project Construction & Materials™ and AASHTOWare Project Estimation™. Now that the new software is available, it is time for agencies to work towards implementation. AASHTOWare Project 3.00 webinars, FAQ documents, Support/Status Planning information and the AASHTOWare Project Preview Site are accessible through the Cloverleaf™ website and provide a wealth of information for agencies. For more information on the AASHTOWare Project 3.00 software release, see the article AASHTOWare Project™ 3.00 software released to production on page 1 of this newsletter.

On behalf of the PTF, I would like to take this time to thank the AASHTOWare Project 3.00 beta agencies. • Kentucky Cabinet of Transportation• Michigan Department of

Transportation• Minnesota Department of

Transportation• Nebraska Department of Roads

The time and effort these agencies put forth in to the testing of the software has

resulted in the quality software AASHTO released last month. Make sure to review the article How does an agency benefit from participating as a beta testing site? on page 4 of this newsletter.

Additional development efforts are underway with the AASHTOWare Project Bids™ software, scheduled for release in

December 2015. Efforts are also underway for AASHTOWare Project 3.00 Product Update 1, Product Update 2 and AASHTOWare Project 3.01. Please see the article on page 6, AASHTOWare Project™ 3.01 software future release planning, for additional information on this work. The PTF is laying the ground work for the development of the AASHTOWare Project Decision Support™ module, with research and

proof of concept taking place. Please see page 5, Envisioning the AASHTOWare Project Decision Support™ software, for more information.

Another hot topic I would like to highlight is mobile applications. In February 2015, AASHTO will begin licensing the AASHTOWare Project SYNC Service™ which works with the Info Tech Mobile Inspector app that is used to collect field


New offering for data transfer: AASHTOWare Project SYNC Service™

by Bob Lewis, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet and Chad Schafer, Info Tech, Inc.

As part of AASHTO’s commitment to stay abreast of technology, the AASHTOWare Project™ suite has a new service that accommodates secure data transfer from agency computers to mobile devices: the AASHTOWare Project SYNC Service™.

To use the service at this time, agencies must be in production with either AASHTOWare Project SiteManager™ 3.13a or newer, or AASHTOWare Project FieldManager™ 5.0b or 5.1a, and the agency’s users of mobile devices must download Info Tech’s Mobile Inspector application (available at no cost in the Apple iTunes and Google Play stores). A Bridge program is available for download, which is a plug-in to either the AASHTOWare Project SiteManager or AASHTOWare Project FieldManager software which allows for communication with the AASHTOWare Project SYNC Service.

Agencies can license the AASHTOWare Project SYNC Service through the AASHTOWare® Catalog. The license is structured on a per device basis, allowing agencies to move forward at varying levels of usage to test the service and app and determine their future mobile direction. AASHTO is offering a 90-day, no-cost evaluation license to agencies that wish to evaluate the service.

Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) recently conducted a beta test of the AASHTOWare Project SYNC Service with the AASHTOWare Project SiteManager software using the

Mobile Inspector app. During the beta period, there were 13 end-users working on three different contracts using iOS and Android devices. The users found that the software was very easy to use and that it reduced office time and increased field presence for inspectors. KYTC users were able to identify some usability issues and provided enhancement suggestions to the development teams.

Once the use of the AASHTOWare Project SYNC Service was established with AASHTOWare Project client/server applications, the AASHTOWare Project Task Force (PTF) initiated a proof-of-concept to use the service with the web-based AASHTOWare Project software.

During the proof-of-concept, it was recommended that an additional Bridge program not be added; instead it was

recommended to build the Bridge program functionality into the web-based AASHTOWare Project software. A successful pass of contract data from web-based AASHTOWare Project software to Mobile Inspector and daily report data from Mobile Inspector to the web-based AASHTOWare Project software was accomplished using the AASHTOWare Project SYNC Service. The proof-of-concept proved very valuable and no ‘show stoppers’ were identified.

The same Mobile Inspector app can be used to pass data to all construction management systems. The app detects what system the data is coming from and displays different options for data entry as a result. This aspect will make the conversion from the client/server software to the web-based software

more seamless.

The PTF will continue to update the AASHTOWare Project user community on the progress with this exciting new service that facilities the use of mobile devices in the field.

Diagram showing the data flow through the AASHTOWare Project SYNC Service from mobile devices to the AASHTOWare Project software.


There are numerous benefits to the process of joint development. The ability to use world-class software at reduced ongoing costs for maintenance, support, and enhancements represents an enormous value. When agencies elect to participate in the beta testing of new software, they take a more active role in the joint development process. While beta testing can represent a significant commitment, the agencies also reap many benefits. Several agencies took part in the recent beta testing effort for the AASHTOWare Project™ 3.00 software.

Matt Looney from the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet identified several benefits from his agency’s recent beta testing experience. He noted that having team members from Info Tech onsite to help with environment setup and installations was great, and gave the agency a head start on what is needed upon production implementation. He also said that having the staff trained on the software well in advance of going into production was a benefit.

“The more time your people have to become familiar with the navigation and setup of the program, the less painful the transition to production will be,” he said. “Of course, you have to have the necessary resources to perform the testing so that it does not become a burden on just a few people.”

Mr. Looney also noted that while the agency was unable to test the software using its customizations to the extent that they would have liked, the beta process provided “good lead time to figure out problems caused by customizations and respective solutions.”

Greg Johnson from the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) said that beta testing in his agency provided a preview of the emerging software, and an opportunity to make recommendations for improvements on a user level.

“MnDOT was able to combine beta testing with preliminary user acceptance testing for the modules we tested,” Mr. Johnson said. “This, and the number of useful references provided for the beta testing sessions, helped us develop our own training plan when it came time to roll out the various applications.”

He also noted that beta testing “provided opportunity to meet with Info Tech staff, who we found knowledgeable and helpful, not only of the product, but of the business side as well.”

The Nebraska Department of Roads (NDOR) was also a beta testing site, and Devin Townsend was the coordinator. He said that beta testing allowed the NDOR administrators to become familiar with the new software and its functionality, which allowed them to do some “pre-planning” for their own implementation.

“NDOR IT gained familiarity with the software from an environment set-up perspective,” he said. “Working

through the setup, troubleshooting some of the issues, and taking ‘lessons learned’ eases the setup of other [AASHTOWare Project] 3.00 environments in the future.”

He also noted that the process was a learning experience for other NDOR staff who might not be involved in Technical Review Teams for AASHTOWare®. “It allowed them to become familiar with some of the practices of other state transportation agencies as they relate to the software.”

Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) was also a beta test site and Marty Foster provided insight into their experience. “Michigan had 17 end-users

from MDOT, local agencies and engineering consultants from across the state participate in beta testing,” he said.

Input from Greg Johnson, Minnesota Department of Transportation; Matt Looney, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet; Marty Foster, Michigan Department of Transportation; and Devin Townsend, Nebraska Department of Roads. Compiled by Valerie Riley, Info Tech, Inc.

How does an agency benefit from participating as a beta testing site?

“MnDOT was able to combine beta testing with preliminary user

acceptance testing for the modules we

tested.” Greg Johnson

Minnesota Department of Transportation

continued on next page

Michigan DOT beta testers confer with Info Tech staff.


The envisioned AASHTOWare Project Decision Support™ software functionality represents the final piece of the puzzle for completing the re-architecture from client/server to web-based software for the AASHTOWare Project™ suite. Initial steps for this effort began in the fall of 2012 when the AASHTOWare Project Task Force (PTF) took action to lay the groundwork for the foundation of decision support functionality within the AASHTOWare Project software. This action involved formation of a Technical Review Team (TRT) to oversee requirements gathering and analysis for a portion of the existing analysis models from the AASHTOWare Project BAMS/DSS™ software, and culminated in a complete set of approved artifacts for those models in August of 2013.

The scope of the work for the initial requirements gathering project was confined to the models designated as belonging to the Trns•port BAMS/DSS Standard™ software; the portion of the analytics not considered to be related to competitive market analysis. The remaining models will undergo a similar process of requirements gathering and analysis of those requirements in order to then prioritize the order in which the analytical functions will be developed.

In order to frame a vision for the future of data needs for the decision support functionality, the PTF recently directed Info Tech to perform research related to historical data preservation. The research culminated with a presentation to the PTF at their October 2014 meeting. The presentation established a goal of ensuring the AASHTOWare Project software becomes the repository for all historical

data pertaining to each respective business area (e.g. preconstruction, construction, materials). To meet this goal, a recommendation was made to migrate all historical data currently housed in the AASHTOWare Project BAMS/DSS software to the AASHTOWare Project unified environment. The manner in which data will be stored and accessed in that environment after migration has not yet been determined. The intent is that the technical solution will be seamless to the end user executing the various analytical processes,

regardless of whether those processes access production data, historical data or a combination of both. The research examined the complexities of a migration involving merging sources and provided recommendations into how those merges could be addressed, as well as the importance of being able to migrate the large data volumes in small subsets defined by the agencies.

In addition to the historical data preservation research task, an AASHTOWare Project BAMS/DSS usage survey was conducted in August/September. The survey focused on several areas, including reporting against the historical database, query methods, data access needs and methods, input about additional decision support functions envisioned by the agencies, existing model usage questions, and various output formats for analysis results and reports.

It is anticipated that a TRT will be formed in the future to oversee the requirements gathering phase for the remaining AASHTOWare Project BAMS/DSS models. This will continue to lay the groundwork for future decision support development.

Envisioning the AASHTOWare Project Decision Support™ softwareby BethAnn Wieder, Colorado Department of Transportation and Jennifer McAllister, Info Tech, Inc.

How does an agency benefit from participating as a beta testing site?, continued

Mr. Foster indicated that having the testers become familiar with the software and allowing them to provide suggestions for improvement generated “ownership, interest and enthusiasm” by end-user community leaders.

From a practical standpoint, being a beta site also allowed MDOT to confirm that the software operates in the agency’s environment. This includes the ability to load and test with the agency’s own data.

Several of the above agencies noted that beta testing is a great way to provide a service to the greater AASHTOWare community by finding and correcting errors in the software prior to the production release.

“Beta testing helps ensure software is production ready for all agencies,” Mr. Foster said.


On the horizon: AASHTOWare Project™ 3.01by Todd Bergland, Minnesota Department of Transportation, PTF Chair, and Monelle McKay, Info Tech, Inc.

6

While agencies are beginning to implement the newly released AASHTOWare Project™ 3.00 software, work is already underway for the next major release, AASHTOWare Project 3.01. This continues the AASHTOWare Project Task Force’s commitment to ensuring that the software continues to evolve and grow with agency needs.

The release will include additional functionality for the AASHTOWare Project Estimation™ and AASHTOWare Project Construction & Materials™ software. It will also include enhancements to the AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction™ software, the AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor™ software and global features to continue to improve the user experience and software integration.

Specific planned enhancements include cost-based estimating methodologies, new project funding options, force accounts, improved navigation, conditional formatting, metadata structure documentation, storm water environmental compliance report, meeting records, materials grid, prime/sub payroll submittal improvements, configure payroll exceptions, and more. Some key architecture items that will be included in the release are Open Data Protocol (OData) support, Crystal Reports integration, and the AASHTOWare Project SiteManager™ Materials and Daily Work Reports templates and associated data migration.

As referenced in the article on page 1, Production Release of AASHTOWare Project 3.00, the AASHTOWare Project 3.01 release will also encompass enhancements to the DBE Uniform Report, including the recently revised federal reporting standards.

AASHTOWare Project 3.01 development began in July 2014. The beta testing period for AASHTOWare Project 3.01 is anticipated to start in April 2016, with plans for beta testing will be conducted by six agencies in hosted environments. The production date for the AASHTOWare Project 3.01 software is September 2016.

There are some changes to the Technical Review Team (TRT) structure for this release. A TRT comprised of 10 members from the existing functional TRTs plus the full AASHTOWare Project Task Force is guiding the development process. Smaller groups, called Feature Package Groups, are being assembled as needed to review and provide feedback on a specific set of enhancements, ensuring all requirements are met and needs are addressed related to the work plan package. The Feature Package Groups consist of TRT members from the existing functional TRTs (AASHTOWare Project Construction TRT, AASHTOWare Project Materials TRT, AASHTOWare Project Estimation TRT, AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction TRT and AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor TRT).

In September 2014, AASHTO released a project proposal for the enhancement of the comprehensive web-based software called "AASHTOWare Project 3.01," under the

AASHTOWare® Cooperative Software Development Program. Any questions about this project solicitation, the proposed system, or the AASHTOWare Cooperative Software Development Program may be directed to Melanie Douglass, AASHTO Project Manager, at [email protected].

Development start date: July 2014Beta period start date: April 2016

Production release: September 2016

TIMELINE:


AASHTOWare Project™ enhancement process policyby Todd Bergland, Minnesota Department of Transportation, PTF Chair

“How can an agency ensure an enhancement is included in the AASHTOWare Project™ software?"

This question is asked often. The AASHTOWare Project Task Force (PTF) recognizes that member agencies may want specific additional development included or may desire to accelerate development of an AASHTOWare Project enhancement, and may be in a position to fund such development. The practice of individual and/or groups of member agencies funding specific development/enhancement work through AASHTO’s contracts with its software contractors has been an acceptable means of accomplishing such work almost since the start of the AASHTOWare® program.

A policy and process has been in place for the funding of additional enhancements and is outlined in the AASHTOWare® Catalog. With the release of the new web-based software, this is an opportune time to review the process that is in place since the inclusion and funding of enhancements is applicable for both the client/server and web-based AASHTOWare Project modules.

Process for funding additional enhancements:Any agency or group of agencies that desire to fund enhancement work to one or more AASHTOWare Project modules that will not be addressed in the current work plan(s) should follow the process outlined below:

• Submit a request to the PTF describing the desired enhancement(s). This request should also indicate which member departments are considering or are prepared to fund the additional enhancement work, as well as an indication of how incorporating the desired enhancement

will benefit the AASHTO community of users as a whole; Note: AASHTO Staff is available to assist agencies to identify and work with other agencies to seek funding and collaborate on the enhancement.

• If the desired enhancement is acceptable to the PTF, the PTF will direct the AASHTOWare Project contractor to develop system requirements and a cost estimate for the specific enhancement(s) and notify the requesting

agency(ies) of the direction. If the desired enhancement is not accepted by the PTF, the PTF will provide the requesting agencies with their specific areas of concern.

• Based upon the work plan developed by the AASHTOWare Project contractor, the requesting member agency or agencies will be notified of the total cost to accomplish the desired enhancement activity.

• The requesting agency or agencies should submit a written funding commitment to AASHTO via Tony Bianchi, the Associate Project Director, at [email protected].

• Upon receipt of sufficient commitment(s) for funding, AASHTO will begin the process to initiate a new contract or to approve and execute a contract modification to incorporate the approved enhancement activities.

As always, if you have questions regarding any AASHTOWare Project related items, please contact the PTF ([email protected]) or Tony Bianchi, the AASHTO Associate Project Director, ([email protected]).

7

“How can an agency ensure an enhancement is included in the

AASHTOWare Project™ software?”


Cost estimators from around the country met in Essex Junction, Vermont on September 5th and 6th for the 26th annual Transportation Estimators Association (TEA) Conference. There were 36 attendees representing 20 state agencies, AASHTO, the Federal Highway Administration, and three vendors.

The conference began with a roll call of attendees that was followed by a welcome to the state of Vermont by Kevin Marshia, Deputy Chief Engineer, Vermont Agency of Transportation (VAOT). Following the welcome address, Chris Wilson of Utah led a discussion about constructability reviews and the effect of risk, price and competition. The morning session continued with a presentation by University of Vermont Professor Rich Sicotte on the results of an economic analysis of change orders which had been done for VAOT. Greg Davis of Florida finished the morning with a presentation on risk contingency and management.

The afternoon session began with a panel discussion on where states that use cost-based estimating find their information. It was led by Troy Patterson of Georgia and Valerie Svensson of Minnesota. Following this panel discussion, Lesly Tribelhorn of Montana provided a recap of the Technical Committee on Cost Estimating conference. Ms. Tribelhorn teamed with Melanie Douglass of AASHTO to provide an update on the AASHTOWare Project Estimation™ software and the work of the Technical Review Team.

The first day ended with the contractor’s panel. Three contractors from the host state were invited to discuss their thoughts and opinions on the contracting process and provide insight about how a contractor bids on and

constructs a project. The TEA business meeting was held in the morning on the second day of the conference. The business meeting included approval of the minutes from the 2013 conference, approval of the treasurer’s report, a presentation about the 2015 conference to be held in Maine (September 17 -18, 2015), and the election of officers for 2015. The hosts for the 2016 meeting, Michigan, also gave a short presentation.

After the business meeting, Oman Systems representative Brad Towe gave a presentation on the Oman software. Next, Ms. Tribelhorn led a panel discussion on preliminary estimates and tools. The final morning discussion was led

by Mark Richter of the Vermont FHWA office. He presented on what FHWA looks for when doing a bid analysis.

Chris Wilson and John Henry of Utah started off the afternoon session with a training/workshop session on negotiation for change

orders and innovation. The final afternoon session was a discussion lead by Chairman Alan Ellis on lessons learned when using the Construction Management General Contractor method on projects.

All of the panels and presentations generated a great deal of discussion. The attendees were able to gather information and ideas that they can take back and use to improve their agencies’ processes. The new board is already working to make the 2015 conference as successful as the 2014 conference was.

Thank you to the Vermont AOT for their excellent job in hosting the conference.

Cost estimators gather at 2014 TEA conference by George MacDougall, Maine Department of Transportation, 2015 TEA Chair

2015 TEA BoardChair George MacDougall, Maine DOT

Vice-Chair Jason Vanderfeltz, Missouri DOT

Treasurer Troy Patterson, Georgia DOT

Secretary Douglas Jenson, Wyoming DOT

Past Chair Alan Ellis, Vermont AOT


This year’s Project User Group (PUG) conference was well attended and very successful due to both the hard work of the Vermont Agency of Transportation personnel and to all the participants from throughout the U.S. and Canada.

As in past years, the conference began with the PUG Primer on Sunday evening. This year we held a trivia presentation about past conferences, products and terms. This was a great way to learn about where the group has been and about terms/applications used which to some could be confusing. It was a good refresher for those of us who have attended in the past, but was also a fun way for the many new participants to learn more about the PUG.

On Monday morning, Janet Wasteney, 2014 PUG Chair, gave opening remarks followed by a welcome from the State of Vermont by Brian Searles, VTrans Secretary. After the official roll call of agencies, Todd Bergland, Project Task Force (PTF) Chair, presented the Project Task Force report.

The late morning session theme was “Back to the Basics,” with representatives from the various groups and contractors discussing each group’s role in the process, the functionality of the modules they represent, and what changes are coming or future enhancements being proposed. This was followed by a very good presentation on the Mobile Inspector app.

The Technical Advisory Group (TAG) meetings began Monday afternoon. Some TAGs held pre-conference calls so they could spend more time discussing and/or testing the web-based versions of the software. There was a large focus on the AASHTOWare Project Construction & Materials™ software as beta testing was wrapping up at that time.

The Tuesday morning session started with the annual contractors’ reports given by Tom Rothrock and Teresa Ferguson of Info Tech, Inc. and Sara Edson of AECOM, Inc.

The next presentation was by representatives from each of the beta agencies, along with help from Info Tech, on the AASHTOWare Project 3.00 beta testing: “The Good, The Bad, The Ugly, and the Beautiful.” The Tuesday afternoon outings were to historic downtown Burlington and then a dinner cruise on Lake Champlain. Wednesday was fully dedicated to TAG meetings and joint TAG meetings to discuss joint functionality.

The Thursday morning PUG session was filled by six very good presentations: "Electronic/digital Signatures," presented by Danica Stovall-Taylor of Missouri, "Totally Paperless

Projects," presented by Cliff Farr of Michigan, "Preconstruction Implementation Process," presented by Melissa Horne of Mississippi, "Stockpiles the Florida way," presented by Steve Carter of Florida, "Hosted Services and AASHTOWare Project," presented by Marty Provost of Info Tech and

"Web Implementation Tips & Tricks," also presented by Marty Provost.

The annual PUG business meeting started in the afternoon. The Maine Department of Transportation was presented as the host agency for the 2015 PUG conference, and Michigan Department of Transportation was selected to host in 2016. Elections were held for 2015 PUG board positions.

I want to express my thanks to all who participated in the TRTs and TAGs. The more you put into something and participate, the more you’ll get out of it. I believe that is why our TRTs and TAGs are so productive. Thanks to last year’s PUG Board – Janet Wasteney, Joel HySmith, and Vonda Lane.

Thanks again to everyone for attending, to Vermont for their hospitality and for making the PUG 2014 a success. I hope to see you all in Maine for the 2015 PUG conference, September 19 - 23, 2015.

Successful PUG Conference wraps up in Vermontby Charles Groshens, Minnesota DOT, PUG Chair

2015 PUG BoardChair Charles Groshens, Minnesota DOT

Vice-Chair Danica Stovall-Taylor, Missouri DOT

Secretary/Treasurer Vonda Lane, Tennessee DOT

Past Chair Janet Wasteney, Iowa DOT


Project Users Group Charles Groshens, Chair, Minnesota DOTPhone: 651-366-4209Email: [email protected]

NDOR AASHTOWare Project Section, TEA/PUG WebmasterNebraska DORPhone: 402-479-4457E-mail: [email protected]

Info Tech, Inc.Tom Rothrock, PresidentPhone: 352-381-4400Email: [email protected]

Teresa Ferguson, Director, AASHTO ProgramPhone: 352-381-4400Email: [email protected]

Terry Sullivan, Vice President, Marketing & SalesPhone: 352-381-4400Email: [email protected]

AECOM, Inc.Sara Edson, Product ManagerPhone: 303-228-3000Email: [email protected]

AASHTO Tony Bianchi, Associate Project DirectorPhone: 202-624-5821Email: [email protected]

Melanie Douglass, Project ManagerPhone: 202-624-8489Email: [email protected]

Patrick Yaroch, Associate Project ManagerPhone: 202-624-5254Email: [email protected]

Jim Johnson, AASHTOWare Project™ ConsultantPhone: 850-570-4935Email: [email protected]

Jeff Hisem, SCOJD LiaisonOhio DOTPhone: 614-644-6388Email: [email protected]

Donald Grayson, SCOJD LiaisonMississippi DOTPhone: 601-359-7424Email: [email protected]

Dan Belcher, T&AA Liaison, Michigan DOTPhone: 517-749-8813Email: [email protected]

Missy Anverse, T&AA Liaison, Ohio DOTPhone: 614-752-8859Email: [email protected]

AASHTOWare Project™ calendarRelease Schedule

February 2015 AASHTOWare Project BAMS/DSS™ 6.9bAASHTOWare Project SiteManager™ 3.15b

June 2015 AASHTOWare Project BAMS/DSS™ 6.9cAASHTOWare Project Estimator™ 2.14aAASHTOWare Project FieldManager™ 5.2aAASHTOWare Project FieldNet™ 3.5aAASHTOWare Project SiteManager™ 3.16a

Project Task Force Meetings

April 13-17, 2015Baltimore, Maryland

July 20-24, 2015Madison, Wisconsin

October 26-30, 2015Colorado Springs, Colorado

January 26-29, 2016San Antonio, Texas

Key AASHTOWare Project™ contactsProject Task Force Todd Bergland, Minnesota DOT, Chair Phone: 651-366-4608 Email: [email protected]

Brigitte Codling, Vermont AOT Phone: 802-748-8015 Email: [email protected]

Kevin Fox, Michigan DOTPhone: 517-322-6223Email: [email protected]

Jeremy Kampeter, Missouri DOTPhone: 573-751-4314Email: [email protected]

Bob Lewis, P.E., Kentucky Transportation CabinetPhone: 502-564-3730Email: [email protected]

Douglas Martin, Florida DOTPhone: 850-414-4144Email: [email protected]

BethAnn Wieder, Colorado DOTPhone: 303-757-9541Email: [email protected]

Rich Williams, Georgia DOTPhone: 404-631-1612Email: [email protected]

Meetings & Events Technical Committee on Cost Estimating (TCCE) Annual MeetingSeptember 15-16, 2015 - Portland, Maine

Transportation Estimators Association (TEA) Annual MeetingSeptember 17-18, 2015 - Portland, Maine

Project Users Group (PUG)Annual MeetingSeptember 19-23, 2015 - Portland, Maine


AASHTOWare Project™ licensing status

AL

AR

AZ

CO

CA

CT

DC

DE

FL GA

IA ID IN KS

KY

LA

1 - New Brunswick2 - Nova Scotia

AASHTOWare Project BAMS/DSS™

AASHTOWare Project Cost Estimation™

PES®/LAS®

AASHTOWare Project Construction Administration™

AASHTOWare Project Expedite™

AASHTOWare Project Estimator™

AASHTOWare Project SiteManager™

AASHTOWare Project SiteXchange™

AASHTOWare Project FieldManager™

AASHTOWare Project FieldNet™

3 - Pennsylvania Turnpike4 - NY State Thruway5- NJ Turnpike Authority

MD

ME

MI

MN

MO

MS

MT

NC

ND

NE

NJ

NM

NY

OH

OK

OR

PA SC

TN TX VA VT

WI

WV

WY

NB

1 2N

S3

PT

AASHTOWare Project TRACER™

4N

YS

T

AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction™

AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor™

WA

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At the midpoint of the 2014-2015 AASHTOWare Project™

Maintenance, Support and Enhancement Work Plan (MSE), we have completed several key milestones and are striving toward remaining goals. All MSE product updates and releases are progressing on schedule with all of the objectives met as approved by the AASHTOWare Project Task Force (PTF).

After successful completion of the 2014 Project Users Group (PUG) conference in Vermont this past September, users participated in the annual automated ballot process to vote on potential enhancements to AASHTOWare Project software. The PTF will use the results of the 2014 PUG ballot and other key factors (e.g., funding, technology) to select enhancements in conjunction with any planned new development and maintenance. Throughout the fiscal year, support is provided to AASHTOWare Project Technical Advisory Groups (TAGs) as approved by the PTF, such as for the ballot review process and meeting facilitation.

So far this fiscal year, while analyzing and engineering planned Ticketed Modification Requests (TMRs), we have also worked on addressing 14 urgent/critical web-based and nine urgent/critical client/server maintenance TMRs approved by the PTF based on agency impact and funding. Approved urgent or critical TMRs are initially resolved as emergency fixes (software patches) to the production version of the impacted agency or a more recent version based on implementation plans. After a two-week validation period, the patches are made available to all licensees. These TMRs are subsequently integrated into a future production release based on the scheduled release of the module.

In conjunction with the AASHTOWare Project software milestones, improvements to the Cloverleaf™ website were completed. For example, full software can now be downloaded for client/server releases in addition to the existing web-based release downloads. The license validation of the software download page was also streamlined. We are working with the PTF to further expand the Cloverleaf website download functionality to allow for access to more product information (e.g., training guides, webinars) and tools that support client/server software with mobile software (e.g., Mobile Inspector). Keep in mind that there are several features available through the Cloverleaf website to support the user community.

The web-based AASHTOWare Project software continues to gain momentum as agencies implement and use the current production software, web Trns•port™ 2.02 (AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction™ and AASHTOWare Civil Rights & Labor™) and plan for upgrading and implementing the next version of the software, AASHTOWare Project 3.00. Patches are being provided as needed for the current production software. With the AASHTOWare Project 3.00 software now available, agencies should start planning for upgrading to this release. Please see page 1 of this newsletter for details on the AASHTOWare Project 3.00 release.

The AASHTOWare Project Payroll XML Resource Kit and AASHTOWare Project Payroll Spreadsheet and Conversion Utility continue to be enhanced as agencies use them in conjunction with the AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor software. The PTF recently announced the availability of field definition documentation on the Cloverleaf website to support payroll vendors and contractors using the AASHTOWare Project Payroll XML Resource Kit. This new documentation is available at https://xml.cloverleaf.net/resourcekit/ under the “schemas” section.

Please refer to the Cloverleaf website’s Status and Planning page for a list of TMRs scheduled for the 2014-2015 fiscal year product updates and releases. For client/server and desktop AASHTOWare

Project software, the maintenance, enhancement, and support efforts are being completed as approved.

In addition to several maintenance TMRs, the AASHTOWare Project FieldManager™ software will include two enhancements in the June 2015 release (5.2a): the abilities to create an audit trail between estimates and item postings and to automatically include contractors in the read-only distribution list. A full release of the AASHTOWare Project FieldNet™ software (3.5a) is also scheduled for June 2015, the first release required since September 2013. Two enhancements will allow association of contractor FieldNet IDs to reference vendor list and will warn a user when assigning a contract to an AASHTOWare Project FieldNet account that is not active.

The AASHTOWare Project BAMS/DSS™ and AASHTOWare Project SiteManager™ software will receive mid-year

continued on next page

Reaching the midpoint of the fiscal year MSE STATUS REPORT

by Teresa Ferguson and Monelle McKay, Info Tech, Inc.


maintenance releases (versions 6.9b and 3.15b respectively). These full releases will deliver a warranty resolution related to process estimates, which will modify the Distributed Processing Services (DPS) software. The June 2015 versions of these modules will also be full releases. At least five maintenance TMRs will be included in the AASHTOWare Project BAMS/DSS software releases.

The AASHTOWare Project SiteManager 3.16a software release will include four enhancements and at least 15 maintenance TMRs, which include increased functionality to allow zero quantity on final quantity change orders for existing contract items, identification of who authorized a DWR, warnings if Lump Sum Qty exceeds 1 on DWR Work Item tab, and a new calculated field to show the total amount subcontracted as a percentage.

The AASHTOWare Project Estimator™ 2.14a software release will include 12 enhancements and several maintenance TMRs, which include extended functionality and performance of imports/exports, as well as installation in multi-user environment, a new configuration options for labels, addition of State Project Number field, and a Web service added to facilitate data sharing with the AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction software. Import/export options will now support import of an AASHTOWare Project Estimator user table as a CSV file, reference data export to web-based AASHTOWare Project software, and saving cost sheets to the AASHTOWare Project Estimator Cost Sheet Catalog.

We look forward to agency beta testing later in the fiscal year for AASHTOWare Project SiteManager and AASHTOWare Project Estimator.

As technology, business features, and installation platforms evolve, the PTF reviews the platform combinations and works with Info Tech on revisions to the Release Test Platform Plan and Platform Component Status documents on the Cloverleaf website, typically updated after the end of each fiscal year and in the November/December time frame. These documents provide information on approved test platform combinations for the current fiscal year and platform component support/test status for two consecutive fiscal years.

We strive to provide excellent customer service. The Customer Support team continues to refine and adapt the services provided for agencies implementing the AASHTOWare Project software. On average this fiscal year, 140 call tickets have been logged each month (79 for client/server and 61 for web-based AASHTOWare Project software), addressing a variety of questions and needs. Typically, less than 25% of the call tickets result in net new TMRs. In general, customer support is provided through the MSE for base (generic) functionality. Agencies have the opportunity to obtain support beyond MSE support scope and funding, such as through implementation services.

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AASHTOWare Project™ 3.00 software released to production continued

procedural material to help them with common tasks in the application. The guides are posted to the Cloverleaf website.

• There are nine recorded webinars for the AASHTOWare Project 3.00 software designed to aid agencies with their business implementation activities, as well as provide end-users with accessible procedural material to help them with common tasks using the application. The recorded webinars will be posted to the Cloverleaf website by January 30, 2015.

• The preview site, a place where users utilize the actual software and work with test data, was updated to AASHTOWare Project 3.00. You can find it by visiting the Cloverleaf website, logging in, selecting Status and Planning, and choosing “AASHTOWare Project 3.00 Preview Site” under the AASHTOWare Project heading. The preview site contains the same data used in the product webinars, in the PUG demonstrations, and entered during the PUG training sessions.

• Agencies are also encouraged to review the Implementation Planning Guide and Technology Overview documents. These are all available on the

Cloverleaf website. • Agencies can request a 180-day evaluation license for the

software at no cost.

There is even more on the horizon. Requirements analysis and design has been completed by the TRT and development is underway for the key enhancements to be included in AASHTOWare Project 3.00 Product Update 2. The schedule for the AASHTOWare Project 3.00 Product Update 2 release includes a one-month beta period during the month of June 2015 with the product update to be issued in August 2015. The Enhancement Ticketed Maintenance Requests (TMRs) that are being included in the update focus on civil rights, contract material exceptions, and reports. Other critical items may also be included. Refer to the June 2014 issue of the AASHTOWare Project News for a list of the enhancement TMRs. Note that due to the recently revised federal ruling amending the Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) program at 49 CFR part 26, TMRs 13135 and 13636 dealing with the DBE Uniform Report have been moved to the AASHTOWare Project 3.01 software release.


It has been a very busy season in the AASHTOWare Project™ community. A number of projects are in the planning stages or underway. Let’s take a look at what some of the agencies have been up to lately.

Mississippi Department of Transportation

The Mississippi Department of Transportation (MS DOT) went to production with the AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction™ software in December of 2014. The initial rollout included the agency’s Construction and Contract Administration Divisions, and all Mississippi districts. In early 2015, the agency anticipates adding users from the Roadway Design and Bridge Divisions.MS DOT has plans to upgrade to the AASHTOWare Project™ 3.00 software this winter. It will conduct a requirements analysis for the AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor™ software, and will then plan to implement in a phased approach, kicking off in the spring with DBE certification.

Michigan Department of Transportation

For many years, the Michigan Department of Transportation (MDOT) used the PES®/LAS® software to manage its projects, proposals and lettings. In the summer of 2012, MDOT began analyzing the level of effort and steps required to migrate from the PES/LAS software to the AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction software. This analysis accommodated MDOT’s desire to continue using the AASHTOWare Project Construction Administration™ software as their construction management system. As a result of this analysis, it was also determined that modifications were required in their AASHTOWare Project Construction Administration software initialization process and the data migration utility. Actual migration efforts started in September 2013 and concluded this past October when MDOT officially moved over to the Trns•port Preconstruction® 2.02 software.

Virginia Department of Transportation

The team at Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) has been quite busy with a flurry of activity in multiple areas implementing software, including the AASHTOWare

Project Preconstruction, AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor and AASHTOWare Project SiteManager™ software. During the months of October and November, VDOT conducted 19 AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction training classes throughout the state. Approximately 30 custom reports were identified and created for the AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction and AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor software. Target production for both the AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction and AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor software is slated for February. An analysis for the materials and LIMS functionality of the AASHTOWare Project SiteManager software continues; product direction decisions will be made in early 2015.

Wisconsin Department of Transportation

In late July, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) began an analysis project to determine if the AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor software could replace their current third party civil rights and labor management software. During a workshop held in September, current business process flows were documented. The resulting analysis document recommended how WisDOT's civil rights and labor compliance business functions would be performed using the AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor software. Data analysis and interfaces requirements were also reviewed. With a February completion date, the final tasks in the analysis project will provide WisDOT with a preliminary implementation plan to map out necessary tasks to implement the AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor software in its environment.

It is easy to see that multiple AASHTOWare Project software projects are happening across the country. And, with the release of AASHTOWare Project 3.00 now available, there will be no decrease in implementation activities for quite some time! For a complete snapshot of all agency activities, please refer to the Agency Status Report posted on the Cloverleaf™ website: www.cloverleaf.net.

Increased activity with web-based software implementation projectsby Cindy Bass, Info Tech, Inc.

IMPLEMENTATION STATUS REPORT


Message from the Chair, continued

data for entry in the AASHTOWare Project SiteManager™ and the AASHTOWare Project FieldManager™ applications. The AASHTOWare Project SYNC Service is available for a no-cost 90 day evaluation period to interested agencies that license the AASHTOWare Project SiteManager or AASHTOWare Project FieldManager software. The PTF continues to work with the Technical Review Teams (TRT) and Technical Advisory Groups (TAG) to determine additional mobile applications that could be beneficial for use with the existing software. Check out the article New offering for data transfer: AASHTOWare Project SYNC Service™, on page 3 for additional information.

The AASHTO Special Committee on Joint Development (SCOJD) is an AASHTO committee comprised of nine individuals that provide oversight and guidance for all of the AASHTOWare software. The SCOJD recognizes the value of the AASHTOWare products and the need for the product lines to continue to grow and keep up with technology. As such, the SCOJD has initiated a research and innovation program as a means to conduct analysis that would be beneficial to both AASHTOWare Project and the AASHTOWare program as a whole. Research and innovation proposals were evaluated on the following criteria: 1) ability to be implemented, 2) alignment with the AASHTOWare Strategic Plan, 3) cost, 4) value to transportation agencies, 5) other dependencies, and 6) flexibility (scalability and configurability). As a result of the SCOJD’s evaluation, the following AASHTOWare Project proposal is being funded in Fiscal Year 2015.

• Linking DOT Systems to Externally Hosted AASHTOWare Project – Develop a Project integration guide to assist agencies in evaluating their Project integration scenarios and choosing the best integration approach for each scenario. In addition, recommend Project enhancements that would improve Project integration.

In addition, the SCOJD has approved the funding of the following AASHTOWare Project related high-priority enhancement proposals that were submitted by the PTF for funding in Fiscal Year 2015.

• Research Simplifying External Access for Agencies and Contractors (work flows, user interface, data entry options, and business rules)

• Research and Proof-of-Concept Simplifying External Access for Agencies and Contractors (technical architecture: e.g. security, reverse proxy, etc.)

The allocation of the additional funding from the SCOJD will allow the PTF to perform additional work and further improve the product line.

I would also like to thank all of the individuals that have participated in the various surveys issued by the PTF recently. Feedback from the surveys is used to help guide the direction on software requirements and provides an insight on how the agencies are using the software.

Marlene Hengst, Delaware Department of Transportation, recently stepped down from the PTF. We would like to thank Marlene for her hard work and especially her guidance and dedication leading the AASHTOWare Project Estimation TRT. Thank you Marlene, we wish you well! With Marlene’s departure from the PTF, a member solicitation was issued in November to fill the vacancy. If you are interested in applying for a position on the PTF, please send your resume and agency approval to Tony Bianchi, AASHTO Associate Project Director ([email protected]).

This newsletter is packed full with news and updates on the AASHTOWare Project software so please take the opportunity to read all of the articles as they are full of great information. As a reminder, all communications sent out by the PTF are posted on the Cloverleaf website under the Project Task Force Announcement page. This is another great resource for keeping up-to-date on what is happening with the AASHTOWare Project software.

As always, if you have any questions, comments or feedback, please make sure you contact me or any other member of the PTF. We are here for you and value your input. Contact us at [email protected] or check out the PTF page on the Cloverleaf website (www.cloverleaf.net).

...is a semiannual newsletter designed to bring you current information about AASHTOWare Project, AASHTO’s Transportation Software Management Solution. AASHTOWare Project News provides current information about AASHTOWare Project software, the status of development activities, information on proposed enhancements, reports from the users, implementation and support issues, usage suggestions and Project Task Force news.

AASHTOWare Project News is sent to the AASHTO Users Representatives, the AASHTOWare Project Users Group mailing list and others whose names are on the AASHTOWare Project newsletter mailing list. To place a name on the AASHTOWare Project News mailing list, please send the name and mailing address to Melanie Douglass, Project Manager, AASHTO, 444 N. Capitol Street, NW, Suite 249, Washington D.C. 20001, email: [email protected]

AASHTO Trns•port, the AASHTO Trns•port logo, the AASHTOWare logo, BAMS/DSS, the Trns•port BAMS/DSS logo, CAS, the Trns•port CAS logo, CES, the Trns•port CES logo, Trns•port CRLMS, the Trns•port CRLMS logo, Trns•port Estimator, the Trns•port Estimator logo, Trns•port Expedite, the Trns•port Expedite logo, Trns•port FieldBook, the Trns•port FieldBook logo, Trns•port FieldBuilder, the Trns•port FieldBuilder logo, Trns•port FieldManager, the Trns•port FieldManager logo, LAS, the Trns•port LAS logo, PES, the Trns•port PES logo, Trns•port Preconstruction, SiteManager, Trns•port SiteManager, the Trns•port SiteManager logo, Trns•port SiteXchange, and the Trns•port SiteXchange logo are registered trademarks of AASHTO. Trns•port BAMS/DSS, Trns•port BAMS/DSS Standard, Trns•port CAS, Trns•port CES, Trns•port Construction, Trns•port Construction/Materials, Trns•port Estimation, Trns•port LAS, Trns•port Materials, Trns•port PES, Trns•port Preconstruction logo, Trns•port TRACER, the Trns•port TRACER logo, web Trns•port, AASHTOWare Project Decision Support, AASHTOWare Project Bids, AASHTOWare Project Payroll XML (AASHTOWare Project Payroll XML Resource Kit), Payroll XML (AASHTOWare Project Payroll Spreadsheet and Conversion Utility), AASHTOWare Project Worksheet, AASHTOWare Project BAMS/DSS, AASHTOWare Project BAMS/DSS Standard, AASHTOWare Project Construction Administration, AASHTOWare Project Cost Estimation, AASHTOWare Project Construction & Materials, AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor, AASHTOWare Project Estimation, AASHTOWare Project Estimator, AASHTOWare Project Expedite, AASHTOWare Project FieldBook, AASHTOWare Project FieldBuilder, AASHTOWare Project FieldManager, AASHTOWare Project FieldNet, AASHTOWare Project Letting, AASHTOWare Project Proposals, AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction, AASHTOWare Project SiteManager, AASHTOWare Project SiteXchange, AASHTOWare Project SYNC Service, AASHTOWare Project TRACER, and AASHTOWare Project are trademarks of AASHTO. AASHTO Trns•port, AASHTOWare Project, Trns•port BAMS/DSS, AASHTOWare Project BAMS/DSS, Trns•port CAS, AASHTOWare Project Construction Administration, Trns•port CES, AASHTOWare Project Cost Estimation, Trns•port CRLMS, AASHTOWare Project Civil Rights & Labor, Trns•port Expedite, AASHTOWare Project Expedite, Trns•port LAS, AASHTOWare Project Letting, Trns•port PES, AASHTOWare Project Proposals, Trns•port Preconstruction, AASHTOWare Project Preconstruction, Trns•port SiteXchange, AASHTOWare SiteXchange, AASHTOWare Project SiteManager and Trns•port SiteManager represent one or more proprietary products of AASHTO. AASHTOWare and AASHTOWare Project are registered service marks and trademarks of AASHTO. Other product and company names mentioned herein may be trademarks and/or service marks of their respective owners. © Copyright 2015 by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials, Inc. All rights reserved. This document or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form without written permission of the publisher. Printed in the United States of America.


The AASHTOWare Project™ Task Force is pleased to announce that development is underway to upgrade the AASHTOWare Project TRACER™ software to a .NET framework. The software contractor, AECOM, commenced development in June 2014 and the new release is scheduled for June 30, 2015.

AASHTOWare Project TRACER (TRAnsportation Cost EstimatoR) was first released in 2005 as a reliableand comprehensive planning-level estimate tool. Utilizing RSMeans data along with pre-engineered model parameters and construction criteria, preliminary estimates can be accurately created based on a limited amount of design information. Each year, the RSMeans data is updated to ensure agency estimates are based on the most accurate and up to date information possible.

The upgrade to the .NET framework will provide a significant enhancement to the user interface with a modernized look and feel. In addition, the updated code will provide a solid foundation for future enhancement work. One objective of the new release is to make certain that all cost models produce the same assemblies and same quantities as the previous release to

ensure a seamless transition to the new software.

If you have any questions or for more information on the AASHTOWare Project TRACER development project, please don't hesitate to contact the PTF at [email protected], or contact Patrick Yaroch, Associate

Project Manager, at [email protected].

AASHTOWare Project TRACER™ .NET upgrade underwayby Bob Lewis, Kentucky Transportation Cabinet and Sara Edson, AECOM

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