Communication, Documentation, and Data Sharing

RefineMySite by Bosch (https://www.bosch-refinemysite.us, Bosch Power Tools GmbH) is a cloud-based social-media-like digital construction platform that allows teams active on a project to plan, communicate, and document jobsite changes in real time, improving work visibility, communication, and collaboration to increase jobsite productivity.

Using the principles of the concept of Lean management as a guide and with the aim of minimizing waste of materials, time, and effort and improving overall efficiency and productivity, the platform is accessible on computers and smart devices 24/7 via the web and mobile app.

How it works: Lean management is a relationship-based system (generally considered to date back to efficiency implementations by Toyota in the 1930s) through which participants work in such a way as to achieve informed decision making, knowledge sharing, collaborative planning, and project predictability, with the aim optimizing continuous workflow and minimizing waste of materials, time, and effort.

RefineMySite works in lockstep with the Lean Construction Institute’s holistic Last Planner System® to implement the Lean method. A production planning system and control system, the Last Planner System features five key principles: Process Analysis; Milestone Planning, using flowcharts and dashboards; 6-weeks Look-Ahead that shows constraint indicators; Daily Huddles and Weekly Planning, including coordinating work among trades through day cards that show commitments completed as planned or not completed as planned, with a window prompt to identify the category for the plan variance for commitments not completed; and Continuous Improvement, including review of task planning, identifying areas of improvement that will support project success.

To address the challenges of social distancing at a time when teams on a construction project are no longer able to meet in large groups, RefineMySite partnered last year (2020) with Construction Accelerator, an online training platform available for team members at all levels which offers 100+ educational videos designed as micro-learning sessions (three minutes to nine minutes each) on Lean topics such as design, planning and scheduling, problem solving, collaboration, and process improvement.

Pricing for RefineMySite: Cost, charged monthly quarterly, or annually, is based on a project base or enterprise level based on construction volume (independent of the number of projects); In 2021, a free trial available is available for one project per general contractor; Construction Accelerator is priced by monthly subscription or by purchase of individual courses.

Successware Field Service software (www.successware.com, 888/272-8009) is an integrated all-in-one solution that enables contractors performing commercial and residential work to book calls, dispatch technicians, communicate and share data between office and field, and handle marketing and sales and other business tasks from a single platform. 

Call booking features include pre-built scripts, call tracing, and closing rate data. The software integrates with HelloBooked and Schedule Engine for after-hours calls. Scheduling takes place on a color-coded drag and drop dispatch board.

Dispatchers can flag skillsets of technicians and crews to help ensure the right tech for each job and notify the technicians of details from within platform. Customers receive notifications confirming their appointments and identifying who is on their way. 

The Successware Mobile app, for Apple iOS and Android iOS phones and tablets, allows technicians to receive assignment information, including location navigation, and real-time appointment updates; access detailed job data, including equipment history and service history photos; notify the office or the customer when on the way to the job; receive job instructions from the office; and accept customer sign-off on the job before it starts and after completion. Field employees can also manage their own timecards from the field and view a personalized scoreboard that tracks their revenue progress for day, week, month and year-to-date.

The technician can accept payment in the field manually, documented into the software on the smartphone or tablet, or through an added credit card swipe attachment. The software works offline, syncing automatically when an internet connection is available.

Successware has an integrated pricebook that can cover flat rate formulas and customization of parts, labor, overhead, discounts, and other criteria, to generate good/better/best pricing. It also works with all major pricebooks and custom pricebooks.

Existing business data, including customer lists, service history equipment, flat rate pricing, and inventory items, can be imported into Successware from a contractor’s current software system.

In the software, accounting is fully integrated into workflow, with automatic entry for jobs, payables, and payroll, call backs, sales, and other parameters, without the need for a third-party integration. 

Users can store images and documents in folders specific to each service location through integration with CompanyCam (a construction industry photo app for iOS and Android, see the May 2020 column for more details) and DropBox (a document storage solution), allowing taking jobsite photos and scanning of documents and associating them with the service location, with the images accessible by the office team in real time. 

Several types of reports are available for measuring and tracking various business metrics, including call takers’ booking rates, closing rates, callback rates, and other details on technician performance.

Successware integrates with several third-party software solutions for other business tasks, including reputation management and customer payment and processing.

Pricing: customized client pricing based on each organization’s needs.

Patti Feldman writes articles and web content for trade magazines and manufacturers of building products. She can be reached at [email protected].