Despite its slow start, the construction industry is finally starting to adopt technology solutions, such as mobile applications, to help with project management.
Four out of five construction managers use mobile applications and agree that mobile technology has improved their business practices. As contractors continue to adopt mobile technology and as mobile applications continue to hit the market, here are tips for choosing the best app.
What to look for
The main purpose of a mobile application is to bridge the gap between the field and the back office by increasing mobility and allowing the on-the-go worker to communicate and collaborate with anyone in real time despite their geographical location. The best applications allow the subcontractor and everyone else on the project team to access project files, take notes and share them in real time, email and store responses in one centralized place and more.
When bridging the gap between field and back office, there are certain benefits to look for:
- scheduling apps can allow managers to schedule workers to specific tasks and alert the workers on their mobile devices if any changes are made;
- checklists can aid in inspections and should have the capability to upload photos and notes in real time;
- searchable files and ability to store all documents to a related project so that any document can be easily found later;
- daily reporting capability for field workers to create formal documents from a mobile device and immediately share them, allowing recipients to add photos, notes or any missing information in real time;
- integrated accounting that connects the back office to the field;
- sharing and communication application that allows field workers to immediately share documents or ask questions that the rest of the team can receive and respond to in real time;
- digitized time cards that track the time and location of employees in the field (some applications allow for a set labor budget that employees cannot exceed); and
- centralized and integrated email so emails and responses sent directly from the app will be time stamped and saved for easy access later (emails are viewable by anyone who can access the application, so if worker “A” sends an email and worker “B” needs access to it, worker “B” will be able to do so).
Even though mobile devices can hold many different mobile applications for many different purposes, use caution. With too many applications comes decentralization and confusion among parties. If documents are in more than one place, users may have to switch applications depending on what they are trying to accomplish.
Integration Solutions
Rather than having one application for each benefit, have one application that has a number of capabilities. Integrated project management solutions act as one mobile application but include all of the important capabilities for the subcontractor. With one integrated solution, necessary tasks can be performed without having to switch apps with all necessary documentation stored in one place – typically in the cloud where all files are securely stored and indexed. One integrated app ensures that all team members are using the same application and are viewing the same, most up-to-date information, which will help avoid misinformation.
