Project Page Overview
Projects are the best way to keep your research and your team organized. To get started select 'My Library' and then 'Projects' in the top right.
Within the Projects section of the app, you will see all projects created including your firm's material library and general research projects. Any projects that other members of your firm have invited you to will also show here.
⭐ Best Practice Recommendation: Add all teammates that will be collaborating on a project with you to keep research and communication streamlined.
You will see the total number of projects on the far left and you can select your viewing order on the right. Currently you can view by Most Recent projects or by alphabetical order.
Creating a New Project
Select the '+ New Project' button. It can be helpful to have high-level Project information close at hand for the next few steps.
The next screen will ask for the following information:
Project Name (required)
The project address is often used here. Or you can mirror the naming conventions at your firm.
Firm Library Project
Select this if you would like this project to be the Firm Library Project. This can be helpful if you are just getting started in Acelab and the project information and products you have selected thus far are representative of the Firm's standard selections.
Location (required)
This information is helpful for product searches and also for manufacturers so they easily assist you with information specific to the project's location.
Phase (required)
Select the phase that best represents where the project currently stands.
Project Type (required)
Select the Project Type that best represents your current project or select 'Other'. Again, this information is helpful for product reps or our team of in-house product experts.
Budget (required)
Select the budget range that is most appropriate for your project.
Once all these fields have been completed, select 'Create Project'. Now that this project has been created, there are 4 sections to each project.
Product Shortlist
Where shortlisted products show for easy comparisons.
Product Searches
Searches conducted and saved for the project's needs. This is also the spot to start a new search for a product.
Conversations
All conversations relative to the project will show here.
Project Info
Additional project information can be added and documents can be uploaded here.
Each of these sections is explained in more detail below.
Product Shortlist
Once you have completed a search, you can shortlist products. You can learn more about how to Shortlist products here. Clicking into the Product Shortlist tab will allow you to see the total number of shortlisted searches on the left and on the right there is an viewing option of either the most recent or by alphabetical order.
All Shortlists for the project will appear here. Clicking on the 'Compare product' button at the bottom of the Shortlist will allow you to see the side-by-side product comparisons and you can share these shortlists from that screen.
Product Searches
To do a project specific search, navigate to the Product Searches tab within the project. Select 'All Categories' or select the category you are searching for and then hit 'Start New Search' at the bottom of the page.
⭐ Best Practice Recommendation: To help keep search results focused, the recommendation is to select a product category for optimal results.
Once you have started your new search, the product advisor quiz machine learning will kick in, guiding you through questions.
📚 To learn more about using Acelab's powerful search tool, click here.
Once your search is complete, you can save the search to the project or elsewhere. By clicking on the bookmark to the right of the search name.
Please note, conducting a Product Search from the project does not automatically save it in the project. Continue using this area for Searches as needed.
⭐ Best Practice Recommendation: Saving searches with easily identifiable names is a great way to help you and your team stay organized. For example, a search could be saved as 'Exterior Door' but potentially there is a difference between the 'Exterior Front Door' and the 'Exterior Back Door'. Saving a search with the most specific name possible will save your firm time.
Conversations
The Conversations tab will show all conversations relevant to the project. Conversations are created when you engage with a Product rep or our team of Product Experts. You will see the total number of manufacturer conversations at the top. All conversations will automatically show with the most recent at the top of the list.
Clicking into each conversation will pull up the entire conversation's history, allowing for all team members to get up to speed quickly.
Selecting 'View all Conversations' at the bottom of the page will take you to the main conversations tab where you will see all conversations across all projects.
Project Info
This section is important for firm and product rep collaboration. While some project details were input when the Project was created, this is a great spot to add more information and invite other teammates to the project. To upload additional information and documents, select this tab and scroll to the bottom of the page and select 'Edit Project'.
Additional fields for the project that are recommended to be completed are the 'Expected Start Date for Product Sourcing' and the Description field. In the above screenshot, the Description field was used to input some key information about the project. Other ways your firm could utilize this link could be including a link to the RFP, the moodboard, the contract, etc. If you think the information would be useful for your team as well as a Product Rep, it can be input here. An image can also be uploaded here that will serve as the main image for the project. This image can also be helpful for Product Reps.
⭐ Best Practice Recommendation: Each firm is unique and so is each project. Try using this field with different pieces or amounts of information and see which works best for your needs and then make that the firm standard.