Successful businesses are built on strong client relationships and excellent communication. GarCo Inc. (GCI), a Baton Rouge, La.-based commercial drywall and framing business with more than 15 years of experience, makes this belief the core to its goal of exceeding the expectations of general contractors and building owners.
GCI President Alejandro Garcia and Vice President John Gomez have hands-on experience as site workers, estimators and project managers, which helps them concentrate on the details that ensure quality of work and informed customers. The company specializes in metal stud framing, wood framing, drywall hanging, drywall finishing, acoustical ceilings, painting, insulation, installation of metal trusses and EIFS.
GCI is committed to completing work in a timely manner, at reasonable rates and with the highest quality. However, high project volume and the competitive nature of the industry were making manual takeoff and bid processes challenging to complete in a timely fashion.
As a solution, GCI decided to automate essential elements of construction—quantitative measurement and estimating. CGI employed On Center Software‘s On-Screen Takeoff® and Quick Bid® to provide project managers with better control and more extensive knowledge about the quantity and types of materials it needs.
Not only did the software help the company save money and give a precise line of sight into its labor requirements, but GCI also experienced a 50 percent time reduction for estimating, allowing the company to bid more while increasing its bid-to-win ratio.
High-Quality Work for a Mixed-use Development
GCI leverages the technology for projects across its portfolio, including financial buildings, standalone storefronts, academic facilities, institutional centers, large malls and retail shopping centers across the state of Louisiana.
One exemplary project, Perkins Rowe (PR,) is a mixed-use development project that was built in Baton Rouge in 2008. The facility offers a variety of different venues with more than 300,000 square feet of space for shopping, eating and entertainment.
The numerous types of businesses in this project required a high level of quality and style of work. The developer turned to GCI to perform the exterior and interior work, including metal stud framing, drywall hanging, drywall finishing, ceilings and painting. A personal touch was required to ensure that each build-out would meet the objectives of the owner and client while maintaining consistent construction across types.
GCI’s team met tight project deadlines and remained focused on detail, both in managing the overall project and the individual storefront installations.
Whether the project at hand is a small and intimate retail space or a large and complex office building, GCI aims to deliver superior value to each and every client. To consistently produce the highest quality of work requires that GCI learn and grow with the industry so it continues to give the most value to its customers.
Takeoff and bidding technology helps the company deliver accurate and competitive cost estimates, with the flexibility to either cost per the job or supply labor by the hour. For these reasons, GCI often experiences a higher rate-of-return than its competitors.
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