Times are Uncertain – perhaps now more than ever, but contractors can still take steps to prepare their businesses for the future. Not only can having the right technology plan in place help improve workflow, but it can also strengthen data security and improve efficiency for a contractor’s internal and external stakeholders.
Futureproofing Technology Can Be Critical
Even as COVID-19 was ramping up across China, there was no way of knowing that this economy-changing event would strike so ferociously in the U.S., with many companies having to react quickly.
This pandemic has completely shut down some economic sectors, while construction continues to operate at varying degrees across the country. As a result, everyone has had to adapt their business practices to meet federal, state, and local guidelines to ensure safe work environments on jobsites, in offices, or with employees working remotely.
But, there are steps contractors can take today to make sure their business operations are prepared to adapt to whatever comes tomorrow. Evaluating information technology (IT) infrastructure and plans (and adjusting those plans in a way that makes sense for specializations) can make future adjustments, changes, or pivots easier to manage.
For instance, if a company already has cloud-based software systems in place, then transitioning to working from home or keeping field workers out of the office becomes a company memo instead of a complete systems overhaul. Futureproofing IT can help futureproof businesses.
Get Ahead of the Curve
All areas of construction, from accounting to equipment operations, are known for carefully evaluating any new technology before adoption – especially when it is designed to handle, maintain, process, and share data.
The JBKnowledge 2019 Construction Technology Report (ConTech Report) found that more than 46% of companies in the industry spend less than 1% of annual sales volume on IT hardware, software, and staff.1 Comparatively, a report from Deloitte found that the banking and security industry spends 7.88% of annual sales volume on IT, while the energy and resources industry spends 2.31% and the manufacturing industry spends 2.14%.2
The construction industry might be slow to adapt to new technology, but new tools, products, and services that can increase productivity and save time or labor are emerging (i.e., those that support building information modeling (BIM) or cloud-based software as a service (SaaS) solutions).
A report from the World Economic Forum (WEF) notes that “substantial improvements are already within reach” for the construction industry through new technologies, materials, and tools. “New technologies in the digital space, for example, will not only improve productivity and reduce project delays, but can also enhance the quality of buildings and improve safety, working conditions, and environmental compatibility.”3
Companies should explore the technology and IT systems that are already in place, ensure that they are using them to their full potential, and then explore existing IT to make their process easier, faster, and smarter. Evaluation will be a crucial first step to help set up a technology plan – focusing on IT – for success in the future, no matter what curveballs are thrown their way.
Current “IT Norm”
Contractors likely already use some IT to manage their work. E-mail providers, dedicated accounting or tax software, Microsoft Office, and timekeeping software are all widely used across the industry.
Additionally, the ConTech Report notes contractors’ use of the following dedicated software:
- Accounting/enterprise resource planning (ERP) – 85.7%
- Project management – 57.5%
- Estimating – 54.6%
- Project scheduling – 46.6%
- Computer-aided design (CAD)/BIM – 40.3%
More contractors are using advanced IT solutions, like cloud-based systems, to help manage their work. According to the 2017 Construction Outlook Survey conducted by the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) and Sage Construction and Real Estate, 85% of contractors were using or planned to use cloud-based solutions in 2017.4
However, it can be difficult to know how to evaluate these systems and what kinds of questions to ask software vendors in order to ensure that you are getting the most for your money.
Exploring IT Options
Contractors can work with their IT teams and software vendors to maximize the potential of their existing IT systems. Quick changes to discuss with an IT team and software vendors could include:
- Migrating systems that are hardwired in the office (or “on-premise”) to cloud-based software or SaaS
- Exploring mobile or tablet versions of software already in use on desktop computers
- Automating data collection through the use of integrations, application programming interfaces (APIs), or other solutions that could reduce the amount of time a team spends with IT
When discussing the specialties of SaaS, the miracles of middleware, the advantages of APIs, or the impact of integrations, these terms can be confusing. Understanding the function of each and how they can work together to achieve IT goals will help companies decide if these updates are really necessary for their business.
Specialties of SaaS
Software was traditionally designed to be a single-purchase model; a customer bought a software application, downloaded it to their computer or server at an upfront cost, and ran that software version with minor updates or bug fixes issued from the software vendor. Newer versions of the software usually required a significant additional expense.
Discrete from traditional software, SaaS “is a cloud-based service where instead of downloading software [to] your desktop PC or business network to run and update, you instead [would] access an application via an internet browser. The software application could be anything from office software to unified communications among a wide range of other business apps that are available.”5
Unlike traditional software packages, SaaS is usually subscription-based with an ongoing agreement between the vendor and user(s). This spreads out costs over time, and usually means users get access to new versions as well as small updates or bug fixes without having to access or buy a completely new system.
Miracles of Middleware
Sometimes referred to as the “plumbing”6 between applications, middleware is code written for individual components within software (or entire software programs) to connect two discrete applications. The goal of successful middleware is to bridge the communication between different technology systems.
Middleware can be used in software-to-software interactions and software-to-user interactions. It can also improve how existing systems function and can enable the implementation of best-of-breed software or the use of multiple interfaces (web, desktop, and mobile) at the same time. Perhaps most important, middleware permits instantaneous information sharing between systems.7
Advantages of APIs
Similar to middleware, an API connects two systems; unlike middleware however, an API is only used for software-to-software interactions. There are a variety of APIs available to software and web developers to bring systems together and improve functionality of a software or website. The most common APIs are used in browser-based software for SaaS or web development.
APIs are programming features for manipulating different aspects of the browser and operating system that are being used to run the site and can be used to manipulate data from other websites or services.
And, APIs create “a way to interact with an application/service or data,” and this “provide[s] an easy way for developers to enable software applications to communicate with remote applications over the internet through a series of calls. Calls back and forth between the applications are managed through web services.”8
These calls between applications all happen “behind the scenes” to a user, which makes website or software integrations look “seamless” when there is actually a flurry of activity going on at the server level.
Impact of Integrations
Integrations happen when one software product uses middleware and/or APIs to take the information from one system, such as estimating, and then translates it into information easily understood by another system, such as accounting software.
Integrations are the official confirmations that one software “plays nicely” with another software. Think of it as a stamp of approval – verifying one system will talk to another system with minimal effort from the end users.
As the IT and software experts at Red Hat explain, “IT integration, or systems integration, is the connection of data, applications, APIs, and devices across your IT organization to be more efficient, productive, and agile. Integration not only connects, but it also adds value through the new functionalities provided by connecting different systems’ functions.”9
This connection of data, applications, APIs, and devices eliminates the need to manually input information from one system into another by hand or spreadsheet, ultimately saving companies time and money.
Within productive conversations about improving IT infrastructure and systems with IT teams and software vendors, understanding SaaS, middleware, APIs, and integration options are vital.
New IT Solutions & Tools
A review of existing IT updates may be sufficient for some companies, but others may want to consider newer, more cutting-edge technology to stay ahead of the curve and their competition.
Within the next 10 years, full-scale digitalization within nonresidential construction would be “capable of producing annual global cost savings of $0.7-1.2 trillion (13-21%) on engineering and construction and $0.3-0.5 trillion (10-17%) in the operations phase.”10 This cost savings could be applied to other capital investments, such as equipment, office space, or staff training.
There is a wide array of new construction-specific IT solutions for contractors, accountants, financial managers, architects, and engineers. For instance, there are existing software options for BIM and business intelligence (BI) and analytics that are tailored to the needs of both large and small contractors.