Mercury Engineering - Streamlining BIM 360 Data Management Through Bespoke Automation
Mercury Engineering - Streamlining BIM 360 Data Management Through Bespoke Automation
The Challenge
Mercury Engineering's project team was managing a live Master Tagging Tracker containing more than 792 assets across multiple disciplines, teams and commissioning stages on a large-scale data centre project.
As part of this workflow, the team needed direct hyperlinks to individual asset folders within Autodesk BIM 360 Docs. However, Autodesk's native export functionality did not include these hyperlinks and omitted empty folders from its results.
To produce the required information, the team needed to locate folders within BIM 360, copy the relevant URLs and add them to the tracker. This process was estimated to take approximately four hours per run, creating a clear opportunity to improve efficiency through automation.
The Solution
CG Business Consulting developed and deployed a bespoke Windows desktop application to automate the process from end to end.
The application securely connects to Autodesk BIM 360 and navigates the full project folder structure, including empty folders that are not captured by Autodesk's native tools. It then produces a structured Excel export containing live, clickable hyperlinks that open directly to the relevant folders in BIM 360 Docs.
The solution was also designed around Mercury's existing Master Tagging Tracker. Asset references and tag levels are extracted automatically, allowing the team to populate the tracker using a simple XLOOKUP, without the need for manual text entry or copy-and-paste.
The application was packaged as a production-grade enterprise installer and securely deployed to the end user's machine through Mercury's IT team.
The Result
The new solution delivered a significant improvement in the speed and efficiency of the process:
|
Before |
After |
|
Approximately 4 hours to generate folder hyperlinks |
Under 5 minutes |
|
Empty folders excluded |
Empty folders included |
|
Manual copy-and-paste into the tracker |
Direct XLOOKUP integration |
|
High potential for manual error |
Manual error risk eliminated |
The solution also demonstrated its effectiveness in day-to-day use. A Mercury Engineering end user reported that a process which had previously taken more than 20 minutes was completed in just 2 minutes, with the asset and tag information included in the export.
A More Efficient Way of Working
By creating a direct connection between BIM 360 and Mercury Engineering's existing Master Tagging Tracker, CG Business Consulting helped transform a time-intensive data management task into a fast, repeatable process.
The result is a practical example of how bespoke automation can work alongside the systems a business already has in place — improving efficiency, reducing repetitive tasks and making important project information easier to access and manage.
More broadly, the project has established CG Business Consulting's capability to integrate securely with the Autodesk platform and develop tailored automation solutions around specific construction and infrastructure workflows.
Client Testimonial
“CG Business Consulting developed a really practical solution to a specific challenge within our BIM 360 workflow. The difference in efficiency has been significant, a process that could previously take hours can now be completed in just a few minutes.
What we particularly valued was that the solution was built around the way our team already works. It integrates with our existing BIM 360 and Master Tagging Tracker processes, giving us the information we need in a much faster and more efficient way.
The solution has made the process considerably easier for our team and demonstrates the real value that targeted automation can bring to complex project environments.”
Elena Martin
Business Unit Head of Commissioning
Mercury Engineering
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