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Classifying documents is probably not something we think about a great deal, but it's important to the success of a project. Different words are used to describe the information stored in the document fields. Criteria, tags, and metadata are common examples. But whatever the term, they allow us to associate additional information to each document, and this is essentially classification. We're using this additional information to group together or classify documents to make them easier to find later.

There are some mandatory tags that every project must use, and these ensure a minimum amount of classification for each document. Then, each project can add additional fields to meet their own classification requirements. Remember that the more fields you have, the greater the risk of them being used incorrectly. Everyone must make the effort to ensure the relevant information fields are used correctly when uploading a document. Get it wrong, and it'll make it difficult to find the document later. Poor classification is the most common cause for not being able to find documents.

Here are the fields that are standard across all projects. So it begs a question, doesn't it-- where can we find this information that we use for classifying the documents in Aconex. Let's have a look at a couple of different documents to explain, starting with a drawing. These form the greatest percentage of total documentation for projects, so it's important to classify them correctly.

Drawings almost always have a title block, and this will contain the information you need. Now, these title blocks will vary from company to company, but they tend to have the same basic information that we need. With documents, it can get a bit trickier. The most common places to find the details are in the footer of the document, or maybe the document has a cover page with the information. Now, not all the information is necessarily there, but the important details should be.

The last thing we'll discuss is the document number. Now, the document number must be unique within the project and is the one true identifier for a document. Drawings almost always have a number, but other documents may not. And this is something a team should decide on, so that everyone knows how to number documents being uploaded to the project.

Here are two examples of document numbering conventions. The first one is a simple one, and it uses three parts-- organization prefix, a document type, and then a sequential number. A more complex one adds a project ID and a discipline, and this convention is quite typical of those used on larger, more complex projects. Numbering conventions will vary from project to project, but the key to success is knowing what conventions are in use and sticking to them. Ultimately, a single, unified convention is best.

You now understand that good, consistent classification of documents is important, especially if you want to find them later. But if it's not obvious as to what you should be doing, here are some suggestions-- first, check any policy or manuals for the project. These could provide at least basic guidelines as to what is expected. Next, ask the document controller or document control team, or maybe check with the project administrator or other project team members.

Unfortunately, it's all too common for everyone to assume that everyone else knows what they need to do when managing the project information. But make the effort to find out what is actually required and help that collaboration on the project run more smoothly.