Capital Program Process: Pushing Through to the Age of Digital

The Impact of Analog Process on Capital Improvement Programs

An audiophile is a person who is enthusiastic about high-fidelity sound. Anyone who has a home theater can tell you that digital signals are far more precise and crisp than that of analog stereo. This is also true visually on computers. Many years ago, the primary way to get a video signal from the computer to a monitor was through an analog VGA cable. Today, most modern computers will use a HDMI or a DisplayPort digital signal which dramatically improves visual fidelity through increased dots per inch (DPI) and color. In both cases, digital signals present more contextual information to improve the listener’s or viewer’s experience. Who wouldn’t want that?

The main difference between analog signals and digital signals are the waves. Analog signals are marked by sine waves which are smooth and rolling. Digital waves are denoted as having square waves. Digital signals make discrete, binary values that are either on or off. They are very precise and unaffected by noise during the transmission process which is why they are so pleasing to hear and see.

But what does this have to do with improving the execution of construction programs?

The contrast between blended, inaccurate signals (analog) and discrete, binary signals (digital) is very apparent in everyday construction projects. Let me ask you a simple question. What type of answer would you rather have on the project you are managing? Let’s ask the question, 

“What is the status of our project?”