How New Construction Technology Benefits Your Pre-construction Performance

New construction technology is all around us, from the use of smartphone apps to mapping and surveying job sites using drones. The use of digital takeoffs and cost-estimating software is just the tip of the iceberg regarding how construction tech can benefit the pre-construction process.

In this guide, we discuss how new technologies contribute to improving your construction company's performance.

Customer Relationship Management Software

Construction management software that includes customer relationship management (CRM) tools is critical for performance improvement. Not only is it designed to help keep everything on schedule, but it also increases productivity. Additional benefits of CRM include:

• Every member of the project can be kept entirely informed in real time.
• Everyone can see "actual" progress, in addition to the project's scheduled goals.
• Because communication occurs digitally, that means there's less need for many people attending job site meetings.
• All communications with current and potential customers are stored in a dedicated cloud, thus allowing for increased organization.

Construction managers are not the only ones communicating during the project. Every member of the team is sharing information every day. Capturing these communications to deliver summaries and updates to owners and other stakeholders is far easier using CRM technologies. In addition to being able to refer back to previous communiqués, construction managers have access to all notes and change requests that they must include in updates.

Digital Takeoff Apps

Previously, construction managers and their teams implemented handwritten documents into their takeoff process. As a result, they found themselves surrounded by stacks of paper and no practical way of preventing errors. Digital takeoff apps help construction company improve their pre-construction performance by:

• Allowing them to create digital takeoffs directly from design plans or blueprints quickly and efficiently
• Reducing the time it takes to create a takeoff, which as a result, slows down the estimation process
• Reducing errors because there are opportunities to make quick changes and updates

Digital takeoff apps are also an excellent way for construction managers to stay organized in the early stages of projects. There is no need to hunt for information or worry that other team members or stakeholders do not have updated data. Because everything is available in one location, that means there is more time for working on the project—and less time having meetings about its scope.

Drone Technology

New construction technology, including the use of drones, has changed how construction companies operate for a variety of reasons. For example, the benefits of drone technology in terms of improving your company's pre-construction performance include:

• Drones can map and survey areas where heavy equipment or humans can't go.
• All progress is monitored in real time, thus allowing for quick changes according to uploaded footage.
• Comparing footage to blueprints for making notes and dealing with deviations in real time.
• Improving data and mapping accuracy and efficiency by integrating data sets into other business tools seamlessly.

Another benefit of using drone technology is its safety enhancements. When drones are mapping and surveying, that means fewer risks are occurring at the job site. Incorporating safety protocols early in the pre-construction process not only helps improve performance but also efficiency and budgetary restrictions. Construction accidents are costly, but when using drones, those costs become less of an issue.

Cost-Estimating and Reporting Technologies

As a project is moving through the design process, cost-estimating and reporting technologies allow managers to create estimates for materials, labor, and quantities. This kind of construction technology is beneficial to pre-construction performance because:

• It uses cloud technology to help with organization, reduce errors, increase accuracy, and help managers stay on schedule.
• It eliminates the need for manual cost estimating and reporting, thus improving efficiency and saving time.
• Curated data is available for managers, estimators, and stakeholders to make real-time decisions using data that typically doesn't stand out in standard reports.

As noted, an essential benefit of cost-estimating and reporting technologies is their integral roles in reducing errors. Pre-construction performance improves because there is no wasted time looking for or verifying information. Because this data is available to all members of the team and can change quickly when necessary, there are no discrepancies.

Conclusion

CRM, digital takeoff apps, drone technology, and cost-estimating and reporting technologies all help improve your construction company's performance. ProEst is part of a proactive approach to helping commercial construction companies understand how new construction technology can benefit their pre-construction performance and maximize scalability to help companies flourish with a profit increase.

If you would like to learn more about how your commercial construction company can acquire new construction technologies that benefit your pre-construction performance, reach out today, and schedule a 1-on-1 walkthrough with one of our specialists!