The Québec Ministry of Transport’s Bridge Project Tactical Planning Dashboard

Computerized ‘Electronic Dashboards’ are becoming common in many applications today, including management of financial processes, human resources, projects, and assets,. These dashboards are usually stand-alone screens that monitor and display workflow, decision support information, performance measures or some other barometer often in the form of ‘dashboard gauges‘. Sometimes the displays can include sophisticated graphical screens that display large amounts of information and also provide highly effective interfaces for planning and research. In the most powerful form, all data are displayed graphically in a single very compact screen for easy review and graphical tools allow testing, or tactical adjustments to parameters that control the analyses running behind the dashboard. The next generation of bridge management systems (BMS) are making use of new developments in electronic dashboards that include powerful tools for project tactical planning. The Strategic Planning Module (MPS) of the new Quebec Bridge Management System developed for the Ministry of Transport of Québec (MTQ) includes a separate project level tactical planning dashboard that is the first of its kind in Canada, and the first such tool developed for use in the French language. The Tactical Planning Dashboard complements the Strategic Planning Module by adopting a purely bridge-level perspective on the planning of future work and enabling detailed study of project analysis. While the analysis is compatible with MPS and relies on the same input data, the Dashboard runs independently of the MPS and fills an important gap in several ways. For example, • Element and project level information, as well as bridge inventory and inspection information is brought together in one window, whereas in the BMS this information is displayed in many different screens. • The Digital Dashboard uses the same decision rules, budget constraints, and benefit/cost analysis used in the MPS to drive the prioritization and scheduling of work but is able to instantly show the effect of changes in scope (which bridge components are worked on and with which treatments), and timing of the work. Timing of a planned project can be delayed or advanced and the immediate effect on condition, cost, lifecycle cost, user costs, etc. can be seen. This application will be of interest to bridge engineers and owners who make decisions about bridge maintenance, rehabilitation and replacement.