The heart of the new system is a powerful computer from Pyramid Technology, called the Pyramid MIServer.

It houses all the data essential to the production of legal contracts and bills of quantities that accompany any new building task undertaken by the Government.

The staff of the Quantity Surveying Branch can access data from the central server through a network of almost 100 terminals, PCs and modems (for remote users).

The hook-up to the central database enables the staff to share standard information such as construction costs.

This means that Government contract documents of a high standard and consistency can be easily and quickly produced.

''The QUEST Computer-aided Quantity Surveying System is indispensable to our work,'' said Mr Alan Jameson, senior quantity surveyor of the ASD.

''QUEST has not only improved the quality of our work but significantly cut down the amount of time it takes to execute a particular task.

''This is particularly vital for the territory's business as the more time we save automating routine procedures, the more time we can devote to focus on the essential areas of construction tracking and control.'' Mr Jameson said the department tended to take the lead in establishing standards and assisting the industry.

With the help of the QUEST system, the ASD is also in a position to initiate electronic data interchange within the quantity surveying industry.

But the lack of a uniform system among the various private establishments meant it would be quite some time before this became a reality.

''It is extremely important that our initial estimates are as accurate as possible; that is where QUEST plays a vital role,'' Mr Jameson said.

The ASD's task doesn't end with providing the initial estimates for a Government building project. With the help of QUEST, it is now able to keep track of all expenditure throughout the building phase of a project more accurately.

But the ASD's job does not finish once a project is complete. It has to keep all the data in archives for a further 12 years - something that is relatively easy to do with the help of QUEST.

Since different users within the department can share information once it is entered into the QUEST system, it has also cut down on errors and promoted uniformity.

''The shared database means that everyone is working with exactly the same information, be it the price per cubic metre of a particular type of concrete, or the four levels of descriptive text that specify every item,'' Mr Jameson said.

''Once this information is entered into the system, the margin for human error is greatly reduced - both in producing the text and, even more importantly, in the accounting process.'' The name QUEST was selected after a department-wide poll was conducted. It was felt it appropriately described the ASD's quest for improved efficiency in its work, Mr Jameson said.

The Pyramid MIS-2T/02 central server was selected from other competing UNIX-based systems because it offered better value and had the ability to expand in the future.

The Pyramid system also supports the UniVERSE relational database management system, which could translate the earlier PICK-developed application software.

UniVERSE helped to migrate seamlessly from the old system to QUEST with minimum disruption to staff and without any loss of data.

''We shut down the old system on a Friday evening and were up and running with the new one the following Monday. It was amazingly painless,'' Mr Jameson said.

The QUEST system combines two powerful reduced instruction set computing central processors (RISC CPUs) to do high-speed computation and an optimised input/output system to reduce the load on the CPU.

A high-speed data transfer bus permits multiple storage devices to move data simultaneously.

FACTFILE: NAME OF ORGANISATION: Quantity Surveying Branch, Architectural Services Department.

TYPE OF BUSINESS: quantity surveying.

NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES: about 250.

HARDWARE: central server - Pyramid MIS-2T/02 with 32 megabyte (MB) main memory and two CPUs; disk storage - three gigabyte comprising 5X663 MB; back-up - gigtape drive, half-inch open-reel (1600/6250 bpi) tape drive, quarter-inch cartridge tape drive.

SOFTWARE: EVEREST estimating and cost planning system; RIPAC quantity surveying system; PCMS project cost management system; INIPLEX business software system.

COMMUNICATIONS: VM Ethernet communication package; eight TCP/IP terminal servers each with 10 RS-232 ports; Hongkong Telecom Datapak service for remote link-up to PCs; remote diagnosis communication line to vendor.

Other reasons for selecting the present system were reliability and support.