The Many Ways It Can Benefit Paving Contractor Workflows and Operations

by John Sheedy

Advanced software solutions can help drive efficiency and enhance profitability for today’s paving contractors by streamlining workflows and providing information about how jobs and the business are performing in real time. In fact, the construction management software market, currently estimated at $9.7 billion, is expected to reach $15.2 billion by 2029, according to market research company Mordor Intelligence.

The growth is no surprise, considering the influx of building and maintenance projects around the world. As we expand and improve our infrastructure, the need for digital solutions grows, as well. Software applications offer a multitude of benefits to paving contractors, which can range from winning bids and making better operational decisions, to streamlining accounting and payroll practices, to recruiting and retaining young talent – all of which are necessities in today’s ever competitive landscape.

Following are some of the top-line benefits of construction software solutions and success stories from two paving contractors who’ve integrated them into their operations.

Construction management software benefits
Efficient accounting and payroll processes. One of the first benefits many contractors realize when they implement software solutions into their workflows is the effective data transfer to and from accounting, particularly for payroll. When data on labor hours moves electronically from the field to the accounting system, accuracy improves and finance teams can shift their focus to core operations rather than having to manually track and process payroll.
Software applications can also track truck drivers’ material load tickets for yard hauls and other job-specific material, which helps field supervisors and invoicing teams more easily track and process the cost of materials for invoicing purposes.

Winning bids and operating cohesively. Software increases efficiency and project status visibility throughout the business and offers numerous advantages for project team members. A few examples include:

• Specialized estimating software with a central resource hub of accurate cost items can increase accuracy and save valuable time in the bidding process regardless of bid size, allowing estimators to work on more strategic tasks.
• Scheduling software can help plants manage production to meet demand and give the entire organization real-time, online visibility to optimize crews, materials, equipment and trucking.
• Maintenance software enables teams to be proactive in scheduling mechanic time and completing preventive maintenance, while offering detailed equipment repair cost tracking, and digital tracking of inventory and parts.
• Connected data helps project managers provide status updates to all stakeholders and also grants stakeholders access to real-time data from project start to completion.

Business growth and recruiting tool. The construction industry is constantly trying to recruit younger talent, and technology is one way to help attract and retain younger employees who tend to expect it and be more adaptable to change and open to embracing innovative construction methods. Additionally, contractors who’ve adopted construction software applications say field workers more readily accept the technology – particularly performance tracking field logs – because of the ease-of-use and time-saving capabilities offered.

As more and more contractors compete for the same projects and a qualified pool of employees, the contractors who embrace technology will be more successful on both fronts.

Palmer adopts software and eliminates ‘building from scratch’
Based in western Massachusetts, Palmer Paving (Palmer) is a Peckham Industries subsidiary specializing in highway construction, commercial paving/excavation and sitework. Palmer creates more than 500 estimates annually, ranging from $150,000 to $20 million. The company implemented estimating and tracking software solutions into its workflows and gained significant efficiencies.

“We can get a small, routine bid out in 15 or 20 minutes if we have all the information for it,” says Jim Madden, chief estimator and project manager at Palmer. “With a larger, more complex job, the software allows us to not have to build the whole thing from scratch.”

Estimators at Palmer have also built various crew structures and tasks for completing work, along with personnel, equipment and other costs associated with these crews and tasks into the software, which can be plugged into the bid as required.

Bid data at Palmer is transferred electronically from the estimating software to the accounting system and is then used to set up and track jobs in the performance tracking software. There is no redundant rekeying necessary along the way, reducing opportunities for errors.

For project tracking, Palmer utilizes electronic field logs to capture labor, billing quantities, equipment hours, production quantities and subcontractor quantities. All information for a particular job is in the system and at the fingertips of those who need it, which reduces manual entry errors.

More accurate information, more often for Lakeside
Third generation family-owned Lakeside Industries (Lakeside) provides asphalt products and paving services throughout Washington and Oregon.
The company leveraged a performance tracking software application to make it easier for the foremen to enter accurate data on the front end, so there are fewer corrections required and more insight available after the fact.

Lakeside also developed unique field logs specific to its paving team needs and also to capture an alternative set of data points for asphalt and aggregate plant operations. Information previously submitted through email, paper or texts is captured conveniently in the logs. In addition to standard payroll, equipment and production information, Lakeside collects data for its quality, safety and customer satisfaction departments. Personnel from foremen to owners used reporting based on the field log data to manage daily operations and uncover opportunities for improvement more quickly.

Putting it in perspective
By implementing construction software solutions, paving contractors can enjoy successful project and business outcomes in the face of material, logistics, accounting and payroll, scheduling, maintenance and labor shortages, to name a few.

John Sheedy is a product manager at B2W Software, a Trimble company. He has a leadership role in development of the company’s specialized B2W Track application for performance tracking and analysis and its integration within the B2W platform of applications for heavy construction estimating and operations.