What type of software are construction companies looking for and why?

A study done by SoftwareAdvice (http://www.softwareadvice.com/)  found that buyers were looking to find software that would increase efficiency.

Why?
The answer is pretty easy.  The more efficient your business runs, the more profit you can make.

Efficiency becomes especially important when profits begin to reflect the fact that time is being wasted, and extra expenses are being incurred because projects are being run poorly.  In fact, 47% of the buyers surveyed were still using manual forms of field data collection, such as pen and paper, to manage their mobile projects.   In past blogs we have talked about how inefficient using paper can be.  

What features were buyers looking for to help their business run more efficiently?

1.    Project Management
2.    Estimating
3.    Accounting/job Costing

Why? 
Again, the answer is pretty easy.   SoftwareAdvice found that firms who use a mobile resource management software complete more projects on time and on budget than those who don’t, meaning their businesses run more efficiently.

Check out this infographic by AboutTime to see the difference between companies who use a Mobile Resource Management Solution and companies who don't.  Click Here

AboutTime has a new movie!  Check it out.  The best 2 minutes of your day is ahead.    http://abouttimetech.com/media/introduction-to-abouttime.html

A Quick Thought ...

Time is the scarcest resource and unless it is managed, nothing else will be managed. – Peter F Drucker

AboutTime Technologies began as simply a time and attendance collection system.  10+ years have passed and their feature set has grown.   Over the years AboutTime has developed into an entire mobile resource management solution.    I spend a lot of  time focusing on all the great innovative feature sets that are available to use in the AboutTime solution.  Sometimes I forget that time and attendance was the first feature developed by AboutTime, and for a very good reason.   As Peter F Drucker said, “Time is the scarcest resource and unless it is managed, nothing else will be managed.”

The first step to managing any project effectively begins with collecting employee time and attendance. 

4 ways smartphones and tablets benefit contractors: Part 4

Everywhere we look tablets and smartphones are being touted as the next best “tool” in construction.  This comes as no surprise when study after study has shown that companies who take advantage of the technology smartphones and tablets provide are seeing higher profits and faster turnaround times on projects than companies who haven’t embraced the benefits of technology.  

What are the benefits that smartphones and tablets provide?

1.  Real-Time Information Transfer

2.  Reduce Paperwork

3.  Location Syncing

4.  Utilize the Camera

In an earlier blog, we talked about documentation and the important role it plays in mitigating risk.    A picture is worth a thousand words can be changed to a picture is worth thousands of dollars.  This is especially true when a picture resolves a situation that could have gone to litigation. 

AboutTime Technologies, a mobile resource management software company, had a client who recently shared an experience where using the picture feature on their app saved them thousands of dollars.

A roofing business had performed patchwork for a customer.  After the next rainstorm, the customer called the roofing contractor upset that their roof was still leaking and demanded that the contractor come back and re-patch the roof.   The contractor had taken pictures of the patch locations to make sure the work was done to the customers’ specifications.  When they looked  at the pictures, it was clear that the leak was in an entirely new location than the previous repairs.   Instead of putting out money for warranty work the roofing contractor received money for patching another hole. 

The best thing about using the camera feature on smartphones and tablets in conjunction with a mobile resource management software, like AboutTime, is the ability to attach the photos to customer accounts making them easily accessible when you need them.