Looking for a better way
Gunne Civil Constructions is a family-owned civil construction company based in South East Queensland. Having been in business for over 30 years, they understand the importance of quality work, safety and record keeping. But having started with pen and paper, they continued using this model until they realised there was a more efficient solution available in modern Construction Management Software.
Gunne Civil Constructions deal with a lot of paperwork on a daily basis. Managing Director Leon Gibb explains that they were looking for a Construction Management System that suited their business, could integrate their management and Quality Assurance systems, and could get live forms to their work sites and back to the office with as little problem as possible.
At first they approached app developers to create a customised solution for their business needs. But then, having asked around, they discovered that other companies were already using apps of the type they needed. Leon was shown a demonstration of Cloudcon’s Civil Software by another business, and could immediately see the benefits, realising he didn’t have to reinvent the wheel.
The Cloudcon Solution
Cloudcon’s understanding and experience working with the civil construction industry streamlined the implementation of the project.
Managing Director of Cloudcon, Chris van Enk worked directly with Leon to facilitate the digitisation of Gunne Civil Constructions existing processes. He explains, “I met with Leon in person to do a bit of a system intro and show him some things quite early at his home. And then we went on site and spent some time there, and now I think they use the Cloudcon app quite well.”
Leon felt that this “direct access to Chris meant everything worked really well.” They were also in contact with Damien Finette, head of sales at Cloudcon, who could assist with any small issues that needed attending to during the onboarding process.
A smooth transition
Leon had some reservations about the introduction of Cloudcon’s app to the business. He says, “I was probably more wary of the uptake from my blokes, and getting them to use it and use it efficiently.” But Cloudcon’s processes allow for infield use and piloting within the first 30 days of a project which not only adds immediate value but allows the new processes to be adopted gradually. Leon explains, “We didn’t drop every bloke in immediately. We dropped probably four or five to get them used to it then added some supervisors, then as we integrated on to the jobs we made it fully accessible to everyone.” This had the benefit Leon says of “ironing out the creases before we released it to everyone, and since then we’ve added another couple of levels.”
Leon was pleased with the way staff responded to the new way of working. He says “Once they got used to the system and the platform, it has been excellent and their feedback has been proactive.”
The advantages of Cloudcon’s platform
Gunne Civil Constructions now have a modern and efficient digital solution to help them in the day to day running of their business.
As Chris points out, “One advantage is obviously being able to access all that data at the touch of a button.” He also highlights the value of data integrity. The Cloudcon app eliminates possible errors that come from illegible handwriting or comprehension. “Where you can type it out or use voice to text, or even just select from drop downs, it means that data integrity is significantly higher.”
Then there is the advantage of secure data retention. Using the previous pen and paper system, if a document accidentally gets damaged, it’s a huge problem. By being able to take photos and store everything in the cloud, it eliminates the danger of lost and damaged documents. Chris adds, “Being able to retrieve that paperwork as quickly as possible is a massive benefit. Photos are obviously critical, especially in construction. They’re all kind of one percenters, but when you add them all up, every one percent better becomes quite a significant outcome.”
Huge gains
Leon has noticed a huge improvement in the running of the business since the implementation of Cloudcon’s Construction Management Software.
He says, “Our record keeping for the job files is becoming more streamlined and efficient. We’ve increased our productivity levels by 30 per cent without increasing our admin staff. There’s definitely a benefit in it. Definitely streamlined. We control things a little better. We’re not losing information. We’ve probably got a little harder on our people if they don’t do their timesheets and they don’t enter things correctly. It’s an education tool as much as anything.”
Leon concedes that at the start he didn’t consider the admin costs that were adding up with the use of triplicate books. “In a one hundred sheet book we’re paying 30 or 35 cents a sheet or a triplicate. When we actually realised how many forms our blokes fill out a day, and even our operators they’re up to four forms a day, so you’re talking about $1.20 versus what the app costs us. The app is cost effective or cost neutral at the minimum, but then you add in the saving of time. Once upon a time that piece of paper was filed in a job file and the job file set in an archive. If there was a problem, we had to go find that and it was time consuming.”
Leon appreciates the difference that Cloudcon has made. He says, “If we took it away now, to be fair, we wouldn’t know what to do with ourselves because it’s our system now.
