The Tech to Grow
June 29, 2012
The construction industry has reached a tipping point. Companies that aren’t embracing technology for estimating, project management, and accounting, among other critical business processes, might find it more difficult to compete in today’s market.
For larger companies looking to grow, flexible technology is a big priority. One such company that began looking for a new solution to manage its growth is Summit Contracting, www.summitcontracting.net, Evansville, Ind., an environmental, heavy civil, and specialty construction company that provides project management, scheduling, estimating, construction management, and design-build services.
The company was specifically looking for a solution that offered the scalability to meet its future-looking growth strategy. Last week, Computer Guidance Corp., www.computerguidance.com, Scottsdale, Ariz., announced Summit Contracting is now using eCMS for ERP (enterprise-resource planning).
The company plans to use the technology for management of its four multidisciplinary business units, specifically leveraging functionality for financials, business intelligence, time and material billing, payroll, human resources, project management, and enterprise content management.
Ultimately, the use of the technology will allow team members to share resources and maintain consistency across the entire organization. The efficiency across multiple different business units will allow the organization to reduce profit margins and remain competitive.
For smaller specialty shops, sometimes finding the money to make the investment in a software platform can be difficult, but the need for software has grown exponentially in tighter economic times. For these types of construction organizations, there are many resources available to make the technology purchasing process a little bit more affordable.
For example, this week an association in Canada announced it is offering its members access to estimating technology, helping remove one of the major obstacles to implementing new technology—cost.
The Interior Systems Contractors Assn., www.isca.ca, Ont., Canada, announced it is now funding an initiative that provides all its members with access to drywall construction estimating software. This trend isn’t completely new; many associations often offer discounts on technology to members.
Construction companies need to develop more efficient business processes and reduce margins in order to remain profitable. Technology is the solution that will allow contractors to improve operations and the bottomline.