Construction Management Software

What is Construction Management Software?

Construction management is a complicated industry, and that's in large part due to how decentralized it is. Coordinating operations between material suppliers across the country or across the world, managers at the office, and construction foreman on the ground can be logistically difficult, and there are any number of variables that could change the parameters of a project in a moment. These complications become even more magnified the larger a construction company becomes.

Due to the convergence of factors involved in the construction industry, it's one of the fields best poised to benefit from the current software revolution. Cloud-based solutions provide staff at every level of operations with the data they need when they need it, and construction management software is the primary tool leading the charge. This type of software is a unified platform that consolidates all the tools that a construction company needs under one roof. From comparing quotes from specialty providers to managing time sheets and work orders to sharing changes to blueprints and operations to the whole team, a quality construction management solution can serve as a nerve center for construction companies of any size and reduce the risk of redundancies and unnecessary spending in the process.

The Benefits of Construction Management Software

The features that make up a construction management platform are plentiful, but the main advantages that these solutions can be split up into two major boons.

The most immediate and tangible benefit is that it allows your company to earn more bids. The construction industry is highly competitive, and a company that can provide the most affordable bids in the least amount of time without losing money in the process are the likeliest to succeed. Management software can evaluate a blueprint and create a highly accurate estimate. That's an impressive feat given the complexities of developing an estimate and the variance in costs. While it's nearly impossible to create a perfectly accurate estimate for a large project, these software platforms can provide you with the closest figure. That's because it pulls from your company's internal databases to produce the results.

Just as important is the ability to create a paper trail for your operations. Improperly tracked expenditures can cause a company to hemorrhage money, but the auditing services you'll find in construction management software provide you with the means to keep a finger on your company's pulse. It takes data as broad in function as blueprints, contracts, RFIs, and punch lists and consolidates them into a single, searchable database readily accessible to the people that need it.

Features Specific to Construction Management Software

There are a number of business management software platforms on the market, but the construction industry comes with its own unique quirks. Construction management software distinguishes itself from these more generic platforms by offering targeted services to industry professionals.

Tracking and Managing Documents

Construction is a complicated enough field that it typically requires coordination between multiple companies. Navigating these sorts of relationships can be a complicated affair, and that's why it's important to have an organized and organic system for sharing information. A construction management platform can make these sorts of interactions far easier. The ability to digitize all of your documents is an advantage in and of itself. Staff no longer has to dig through piles of paperwork to find the data they need, and traditional fax machines can be tossed in the trash. Cloud-based solutions are becoming prevalent and allow information to be accessed from any internet-enabled device.

While the precise information any professional needs will vary according to their role in a project, most project management software is comprehensive in the sort of documents it can manage. That means that everyone can access the information they need with a low barrier to entry. Any software you integrate into your business should provide support for purchase orders, change orders, and requests for information to ensure that a project's financial bottom line is properly tracked. Helping further is the inclusion of drawing sets, contracts, and submittals. Photos are also a practical necessity, since they allow everyone to see what the situation looks like on the ground and share proofs of concept.

The amount of data that needs to be stored for construction projects are vast, and a chief benefit of this type of software is that it provides users with meaningful, and sometimes limitless, cloud storage. And the permission settings inherent in the software means that managers can segregate knowledge on a need to know basis.

Bid Management and Submittals

Businesses without construction management software often rely on traditional email platforms to track bids. It's far from the most efficient option available. Comparing bids means weighing a lot of information according to a variety of metrics, and that can be a chore even when using the most organized inbox.

There's no one standard for how these types of software platforms organized bids and proposals, nor should there be. The wide variety of different companies in the industry and the practical demands therein mean that there's not a singular solution that works for everyone. This is a situation where the wealth of software options is a benefit. You'll want to carefully assess the sort of solutions that you need in terms of managing bids and submittals and narrow the results down to the one that accommodates the specific needs of your company.

Job Site Logs

Tracking the big picture spending of your business in the office is one big part of running a construction company, but just as much oversight is required for the ground level activities. Whether you're managing one construction site or many, the right software platform can make sure that everything is continuing according to plan. At its most basic level, that can mean keeping track of what work got done every day, helping planners account for complications and adjust budgets and timelines accordingly. But these logs offer far more robust options than just work tracking alone. Materials and tools can also be tracked to reduce waste, eliminate the need for unnecessary trips to warehouses, and prevent redundancies on site. It also lets you more accurately move equipment from site to site as needed.

As with bid management, the actual form that these features take can vary depending on the platform. More basic systems make use of blank documents that can be uploaded to the database, while more complex options are available in the form of interactive checklists or templates. Some of these logs even include check-in functions that can essentially serve as a virtual time card interface. While this may not be necessary for every business, it's a great option for keeping labor costs in check.

Scheduling

Log features often provide check-in systems, but a quality platform will typically include a robust and detailed standalone scheduling system as well. Scheduling is the heart of any successful project, as a well run schedule can keep labor costs low and projects timely.

If a scheduling system is a necessity for your company, the amount of customization can be a good barometer for the quality of the program. Many modern programs allow you to build your own schedules from scratch, personalized to the parameters of the project, and these can then be reused as templates for future projects. It's important to think about the long term convenience here and consider the value these sorts of features will offer over the course or months or years.

This sort of scheduling solution is dynamic and adaptable. Scheduling changes can be sent to all relevant staff members using the sort of automated notifications built into these platforms, and many include milestones and deadlines so you can make adjustments to keep a project on track. Most scheduling platforms make use of Gantt charts, a methodology that's well suited to the complicated and codependent interrelated schedules of a construction project. And the ability to highlight dependent work allows you to pinpoint problematic contractors and highlight those worth working with again.

Making Estimates

Making an estimate can be difficult. Overestimating the money you need could quickly cost you a contract, but underestimating it could cost your business financially. Estimating software takes a number of different metrics into account to provide a more accurate assessment in less time. While these sorts of features are present in most construction management platforms, there are also a number of standalone options available. Many of these, such as the one offered by Sage 300, have native configuration with more broad-based management platforms.

General Project Management Features

The construction industry necessitates some very specialized features, but there are a number of standard functions in project management software that can benefit anyone in the business.

Mobile Access

The increased reliance on Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions for project management is a great advantage for the construction industry. Since foremen and workers are often moving site to site, the ability to manage the necessary information from anywhere is a practical necessity. This typically comes in the form of a web portal that can be reached from practically any device.

Integration

Another feature to look for is native integration with third party apps. Email clients like Hotmail and Gmail are common, as are storage platforms like OneDrive. These allow you to share files more readily and upload bids or contracts sent from email directly to the management database. Integration is crucial if you're using a patchwork of different platforms rather than an all-in-one holistic solution. If you're not sure what you need right away, you may want to check out modular platforms that allow you to choose only the features you need and upgrade at a later date.

Collaboration

Collaboration options can vary significantly depending on the platform. This could be as simple as submitting bid requests and tracking responses or as complicated as giving stakeholders access to portals limited by permission levels. The best collaboration features overlap with mobile access.