The implementation of interior design projects often looks effortless, the grand opening eagerly presented to the awaiting press whose educated eye absorbs its perfection. Behind the scenes, the team of designers, owners, operators and procurement companies collectively breathe a sigh of relief, while their eyes are keenly fixed towards the next project. The implementation of design projects is complex. Beset on all sides with challenges, changes and sometimes even a pinch of chaos! And it is this commonly recognised complexity that has led to the launch of IndexPro – a cloud-based platform that enables interior designers, brands, operators and procurement firms to actively collaborate within the platform on a project-by-project basis.

Introducing a new way of working

Whether designers are running a multi-location firm or an individual consultancy, IndexPro facilitates the flow of information, with all parties kept up to date with the latest details of the project: manufacturers discontinue an item or change product specification? Procurement companies alter their supply chain? Designers tweak the specification? With IndexPro, all changes are visible to everyone involved in real-time.

Designers can select from either an extensive selection of pre-approved international brands or add in their own product selection. Projects can be categorised by area, such as lobby, gym or suite and team members can be customised for each area giving users complete control and reassurance of privacy. Once specified within the IndexPro platform, designers can invite project partners to participate within the project.

The consequential productivity boost for time-challenged designers using IndexPro is second to none. With access to the extensive product database, and the networks who manage them, they can effortlessly realise their vision, reducing the time spent on specification, whether for a luxury villa or a 500-room hotel, by around 80% – allowing more time for creativity and ingenuity whilst reducing the potential for error.

A timely evolution in the design process

The launch of IndexPro comes at a time when organisations and professionals across the world have been accelerating their digital transformation, a time when it has become critical to facilitate the easy collaboration of remote teams. Historically, following the successful approval of the design concept, architects or interior designers would utilise their Computer Aided Design (CAD) skills to produce drawings that can be implemented by the build team. However, the ensuing FF&E schedule, where all the products such as fabrics, washbasins, coffee tables and lamps are detailed, has sadly been neglected in any technological advancement, with designers often having to resort to Excel, Word or even Powerpoint files.

The IndexPro platform meanwhile allows the user to easily prepare the FF&E schedule, within its intuitive cloud-based structure. By utilising a Big Data Architecture Pattern, the platform can effectively handle the vast quantity of data available on each product, which can include photos and specification text, whilst Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning creates a smart, intuitive environment for designers to work.

“Our team of engineers have designed a robust, future-proof infrastructure which can operate in a dependable and efficient way, facilitating easy collaboration,” says co-founder Murad Saleh. “As a skilled procurement professional, we’ve received over the years specifications in many different formats. Providing an up to date platform for collaboration on the FF&E schedule is something which we feel is well overdue.”

Fellow co-founder Gail Thomson comments: “Although exciting, fun and even considered the delicious icing on the cake, the FF&E specification schedule has a dark side; a blend of human error, unnecessary repetitive tasks and lengthy time-frames turns this job of joy into a pressure cooker of panic. Testing IndexPro on our own design projects has allowed us to develop the platform into one we know really works.”

This is the first phase of an extensive development programme led by industry experts Gail Thomson and Murad Saleh, who are passionate about the online collaboration of project partners in order to streamline the design and implementation process. Their vision? To drive the future of interior design efficiency.