Construction projects can be delayed for a multitude of reasons, ranging from budgetary overruns to lengthy site disputes. Developers need to focus on leveraging the right technology solutions that can help resolve and remediate key disputes and improve the speed of execution holistically. Construction management software platforms introduce inherent collaboration and progress management tools that can radically transform how developers complete site work.
In fact, larger projects can experience delays in the range of 2-3 years due to unscheduled overruns, reworks, and disputes. These issues can exacerbate over time, leading to expensive reworks, labour time mismanagement, quality maintenance challenges, etc. By using the right construction software, developers can avoid direct and indirect costs associated with reworks and collaborate seamlessly through online meetings and data-sharing solutions.
Improving communication within teams for planning
The pre-construction stage requires a wide range of inputs, feedback, and insights from multiple stakeholders at any time. Engineers, contractors, architects, and site teams need to resolve several challenges, ranging from site conditions to technical specifications, in an agile manner. Construction management solutions provide the necessary collaboration tools to streamline communication significantly.
Stakeholders can be provided secured access to schedule meetings, review insights, and share feedback on any planning documents, activities, workflows, and initiatives. They can refine the strategy of the project, from procurement to delivery, and optimize the progression of the development across milestones. Through the improved communication tools provided by construction management software, developers can truly focus on building a connected construction ecosystem.
In fact, with E&C firms exploring remote work during the pandemic, nearly 50% of them are focusing on investments within the space. With a vision to boost collaboration and connectivity, these firms are focusing on improving their project delivery and quality. Integrated collaboration and online meeting software, such as Zepth Meet, allow teams to communicate freely without limitations of the number of participants, disconnected apps, inability to schedule, etc. This significantly expedites the planning stage for the rapid development of a concrete structural plan and pre-construction approach.
Integrated task management protocols for execution
The leading online meeting software providers allow for task management to be performed within the solution itself. Dedicated to-do lists, progression tracking, job monitoring, and easy resource allocation makes the process of collaboration dynamic. All mission-oriented tasks can be instantly added to the meeting application without having to rely on offline apps or verbal agreements.
With only around 36% of global developers being well prepared for the pandemic, there is a critical need for the right solutions to boost delivery efficiencies. In the event of delays or disputes, task management dashboards can be referenced to ensure that all workflows are followed as designed. Resolution of disputes, including material delays, quality issues, site work mismatching, and safety issues, can be quickly addressed within the task tracker.
Reworking can also be avoided when teams use task handling features offered under online meeting solutions that are customized to the construction industry. These highly specified applications centralize activity history and provide instant flagging features to leverage the right controls for tasks performed. High-priority tasks can be reviewed within groups and analyzed for points of failure within the dashboard. This ensures that work is being consistently produced while complying with outlined specifications instead of tracing backwards to resolve issues that arise continuously on-site.
Ease of auditing through dedicated logs and reports
Inadequate risk mitigation preparedness is a key area of concern for nearly 58% of construction firms, which is why they are increasing investments into digitization and centralization of project management. The digitization of collaboration and remote meetings is allowing for a comprehensive audit to be developed for faster issue resolution. Audit logs can quickly provide the necessary resolution for areas such as budgeting errors, resource unavailability, scheduling issues, etc.
The top meeting and collaboration software also provide a minutes-of-the-meeting feature for team members to track every discussion. This also enables stakeholders to audit logs and minutes to find relevant data to resolve disputes. Discrepancies and agreements can be located within the minutes of the meetings, which can be further reported and shared with associated parties. This streamlines relationship building with vendors, contractors, engineers, and other relevant entities within the project value chain.
With a significant portion of construction work analysis being visually based, meeting & collaboration tools enable teams to upload supporting documents in the form of images and videos. These assets can be audited as well, providing clarity into critical dispute areas that can escalate at any time within the lifecycle.
More efficient remediation and dispute management
A key benefit area of meeting and collaboration software is the speed at which teams can resolve critical issues. Whether it is documentation approvals, analyzing site progress, uploading GRNs, or reviewing indents, key issues can be quickly highlighted and resolved through the collaboration platform. With around 16% of global construction firms having integrated systems and tools, there is extensive scope for better connectedness through the introduction of the right construction management solutions.
Additionally, meeting & online collaboration software solutions have built-in features to allow for better moderation of discussions. There are chat logs, meeting wait rooms, secured access points, and integration with external apps. This reduces the need for multiple chat, documentation, and video calling tools, thereby ensuring the centralization of all project data. Through the cloud infrastructure, teams from across the world can chime in and share valuable insights that can quickly resolve disputes.
For close to 70% of developers, non-timely arrival of materials due to logistics challenges is a critical area of concern. With materials arriving on-site, within schedules and as specified during the purchase, the flow of subsequent processes can be continued. Delays within procurement processes can introduce the risk of cost and timeline overruns, which is why companies are adopting construction management solutions. These solutions help connect site teams, store managers, vendors, and logistics teams, enabling stakeholders to provide in-depth updates for better resolution.
Multi-stakeholder input system for inspections
Ensuring comprehensive and check-list driven site inspections is a critical parameter in delivering successful projects across a portfolio. However, with roughly 43% of construction firms experiencing some form of issues in managing these quality checks, dedicated software is vital to comprehensive mapping. Meeting and collaboration tools help provide site visibility to all stakeholders, thereby connecting remote teams for quicker identification and resolution of problems.
Another benefit of digitizing collaboration through construction management solutions is the accessibility to site work gained via instant meetings and video conferencing. Project managers can acquire visual insights into remediation progress for previously identified issues. Timelines can be drawn based on the visual feedback of site challenges, and new team members can be assigned to resolve issues faster. This helps in reducing the risk of disputes due to a lack of clarity within the site inspection domain.
Additionally, quality adherence is a dynamic domain within the construction industry. It is important for teams to be informed of the most updated requirements, specifications, and mapping, to comply with internal and external checks. Project managers can analyze the site work being performed across stages and provide instant inputs on best practices, latest trends, and new regulations. By using digital construction management solutions, companies can directly compare building plans with developed work to find gaps in real-time while avoiding reworking.
