IT procedures to support building authority activities.
GIPE – Gestione Informatica Pratiche Edilizie (IT management of building practices) is the only software capable of supporting regions and provinces in carrying out design conformity checks of buildings in seismic zones.

GIPE, an information system developed by Eucentre, is capable of carrying out these checks in a highly automated manner. This system enables supervisory action in the field of construction in seismic areas through IT support that performs consistency and congruity checks against technical standards. It reconciles the constraints of the authorisation regime with the operational limits related to available human resources. The procedure developed by Eucentre is based on web modules that allow planners to electronically submit project data to the relevant authorisation bodies and enable officials to constantly monitor the status of submitted files and provide support for their assessment based on algorithms derived from the latest scientific research. By enabling the transfer of files by telematic means, GIPE complies with the rules of the New Digital Administration Code in terms of the digitisation of public administrations.

The GIPE system is a tool for electronically reporting and transmitting files. The software provides a procedure for collecting data on all structures that are subject to reporting and transmission.
This data is then used to create a database of all planning and administrative documentation. The system enables the digital attachment of design and administrative documentation to be filed with the offices of the competent territorial services for all types of building intervention and structure. Additionally, for buildings and bridges, GIPE allows summary design data to be entered for an automatic check of the work, verifying the congruence and consistency of the design with the national standard NTC08.
As buildings correspond to the highest percentage of building practices, strength checks are also conducted to support the activity of the competent territorial services.
GIPE verifies compliance with construction details and geometric limits, in particular for reinforced concrete and masonry buildings, which make up almost the entire national building stock.
Finally, based on the data entered by professionals and officials from the relevant bodies, GIPE offers the function of automatically producing all certifications, such as the authorisation, refusal or request for additions certificate, depending on the outcome of the checks. The flowchart below illustrates the procedure from when the file is created to acceptance of the work.
This is a general diagram which can be adapted and customised according to the needs and administrative requirements of the organisation using GIPE:

The main advantages of using a system such as GIPE are:

• execution of controls in a highly automated manner
• uniformity in the information and project documentation that professionals transfer to the control bodies;
• consistency in the evaluation of projects by technicians from the relevant bodies thanks to the implementation of automatic checks;
• optimised management of the time devoted to evaluating each file by technical experts within the organisation;
• computerisation of all project and administrative documentation;
• the creation of a very useful project database for government and civil protection purposes.

It is important to emphasise that the user body can ask designers to contribute towards the cost of assessing the construction file, providing an important source of self-financing.

GIPE’s main stakeholders are regional and provincial administrations, who require a system that can automatically perform conformity checks between projects submitted by professionals and the requirements of national NTC18 regulations, particularly in seismic zones.