Tech and Innovation Logs (Tails)

 

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ABC members can now  receive 10% off new Trimble products in the Construction Enterprise Solutions Division 

By: Patrick Scarpati, Director of Construction Technology and Innovation, ABC

In November 2023, I attended Trimble Dimensions in Las Vegas. I was able catch a glimpse of what the future may entail in the construction technology space from one of the most sought-after providers in the industry. Keynote speaker Mark Gallagher, an industry analyst for Formula 1, set the tone for the event by talking the audience through high-performance leadership, technology and teamwork.

For the next few days, attendees from various industries around the world sat in on sessions ranging from emerging technologies to sustainability. As much as I wanted to attend sessions for all of the 13 topics covered, I decided to focus my time on perhaps the most popular current trends: AI, the labor shortage and next-generation workforce and data flow and technology integrations.

AI (35 Available Sessions)

Trimble announced that its enterprise resource planning will now include automatic invoicing capabilities through its latest integration with Azure AI Document Intelligence. Per the press release, “The integration of Azure AI Document Intelligence enhances Automatic Invoicing, helping automatically turn paper and PDF invoices into validated, unapproved invoice entries within Spectrum and Vista for faster, more accurate workflows that save contractors valuable time, effort and money.”

One of the spotlight panel sessions on AI, “Exploring the Power of Artificial Intelligence to Transform Industries,” included two members from PwC, along with the director of AI at Trimble. This team walked us through their list of themes for AI transformation. (Picture)


Workforce (87 Available Sessions)

Several trade schools and craft academies around the country are recognizing the importance of implementing construction technology into curriculum. In one example, through its industry partnership program, Trimble provides resources and guidelines to educational facilities on how to teach students the effectiveness of jobsite layout on their Robotic Total System family of equipment. Trimble also highlighted how important it is to get students to start learning much of the 3D modeling/layout component in construction by utilizing its VDC Pro+ Solution in the classroom.

An innovation panel on what the role of the general contractor may look like in 10 years was also interesting. Although speculative, panel members discussed topics ranging from AI’s future impact on general contractors to whether modular will take more of a foothold in the industry and what the next generation of our workforce may look like. Previously working in the trades and eventually as a general contractor, I was fascinated to hear that eventually general contractors will be less and less of self-performing contractors, as the industry is mostly filling up with construction managers.

Data Flow and Technology Integrations

Trimble has time and time again emphasized the importance of data flow and tech integrations. This was most evident not only through the panels and sessions offered, but on the exhibit hall floor, where most vendors were able to talk about how their product ties directly into the Trimble portfolio of solutions. One example of this is the partnership between Trimble Viewpoint and Tenna. End users can capture equipment data, location and hours/miles as they are work through various projects.

 

Additional Photos

By: Josef Burkart, Construction Technology and Innovation Manager, ABC National

Autodesk University 2023, held Nov. 13-15 in Las Vegas, was an exploration of the most critical topics related to how buildings and infrastructure are designed and made and how AI is going to revolutionize both processes. Below are highlights for ABC members:

  • The AEC Design Industry Forum brought together industry leaders to explore new solutions to the challenges faced by the industry, from talent gaps to materials shortages to climate events, and how digital transformation can help find new solutions. Nicolas Mangon, Autodesk vice president for architecture, engineering, and construction design strategy, was one of the speakers at the forum.
  • Learning sessions focused on projects platforms and products, extending the Autodesk Forma Ecosystem, soundscapes, green buildings to net-zero buildings, and data-driven design to create more sustainable projects.
  • The AU Theater featured short talks on pioneering projects and ideas that can change the industry. One of the talks was on revolutionizing AEC businesses with extended reality, which explored how XR is transforming the way AEC professionals work and providing a new understanding of how project data translates to human experience in the built environment at all phases of the project lifecycle.
  • The Design & Make Stage presented interesting construction technology solutions through live demos, thought leadership and educational use cases.

Top sessions included: 

  • XYZ Reality:
    • Beyond Blueprints: Engineering Grade Augmented Reality in Action.
  • Toric:
    • Automating Data Pipelines with Toric: Seamless Integration of Multiple Data Sources.
  • EarthCam:
    • See the Future of Construction with EarthCam AI and EarthCam 3D.
  • OpenSpace:
    • Building the Death Star with Reality Capture; an Alternate History.
  • Matterport:
    • Scaling Sustainably: How to minimize your carbon footprint with digital twins.
  • GCPay:
    • Discover Your Missing Link in Construction Accounting.
  • Intelliwave:
    • The future of BLE Sensors for Material, Tools, and Equipment Tracking in Construction.

Autodesk AI: With Autodesk AI, construction professionals can leverage technologies such as machine learning and natural language processing to automate tedious tasks, analyze project data using Construction IQ, predict and prevent risks and improve the takeoff process using automated symbol detection. 

Here are some quick links to learn more: 

By: Charles Rathmann, Senior Construction Technology Editor, Arcoro

ABC Vice President of Construction Technology and Innovation Matt Abeles and Arcoro National Sales Manager Michael Nelson join Senior Construction Technology Editor Charles Rathmann to share insights on how contractors can maximize return on investment from construction HR software.

Arcoro is offering a 25% discount on software fees to ABC members for new ExakTime contracts signed from now through Dec. 31.

 

By: Patrick Hennessy, Director of Scheduling and Analytics, Harkins Builders Inc

It is no secret that the construction industry has seen a boom in technology in the last 20 years. Organizations that were previously using pen and paper to complete daily reports, inspections, submittals, as well as track schedule progress have now entirely moved these processes to the cloud. Harkins is no exception.

A major benefit of performing these tasks online, in a cloud environment, is the storage and control of the organizational data that is a natural outcome of these processes. Data that was previously filed away in a cabinet, never to be seen again, is now at the fingertips of our organization’s decision-makers. Decisions in the construction industry have long been driven by the “gut feel” of the highest-paid person in the room. Harkins is actively working to utilize our data in the most effective way possible, making this a more hybrid approach, and giving our leaders real-time information to help balance “gut feel” with trends and historical facts, which leads to data-driven outcomes.

Our data journey began when we made the move to Procore as our construction management software of choice in 2013. Moving to a cloud-based management software made the storage of construction data in one, easy-to-access place a reality. Previously, data had been kept in an assortment of different places—siloed, untracked and untouched after the initial input was made.

One quote stands out from a study produced by the McKinsey Global Institute in 2019: “[Roughly] 96% of data goes unused in the engineering and construction industry.” In a world where the use of data to target consumers, inform decisions and improve profits is becoming the standard, this statistic is alarming. Unfortunately, we were living proof of this fact. While we began the implementation of Procore in 2013, it was not until late 2018 when we started to put time and effort into figuring out how to utilize that data that we were now collecting in one sole source (Procore), kicking our analytics and business intelligence endeavors into high gear.

We first focused on the low-hanging fruit. We asked ourselves, “What data do we know is accurate and standardized across our portfolio, from region to region, and project to project?” and “What data do we know can make an immediate impact to our organization?” The answer for us was our safety data, and thus, our Safety Dashboard was born. During our initial investigative and brainstorming phase, we quickly realized our data integrity was poor.

Through the process of developing and creating business intelligence reports, we began to learn that efforts needed to be focused to standardize our processes and procedures across the entire organization, driving an improvement in our data integrity. This led to standardization efforts— the creation and distribution of standard operating procedures and training to ensure these processes and procedures were being performed correctly. Today, we have a variety of solutions that provide real-time analytics across many different divisions and teams, from individual projects to our entire organization at a portfolio level, to our HR and risk management groups. We are constantly looking for more ways to tap into our data to help inform the decisions that we make, in the hopes that we can soon have data-driven solutions assist in the decision-making process in all that we do.

The biggest challenges we have faced are mistrust in the information and fear of too much oversight. This is an iterative process, and there will always be a natural resistance to change. To breed trust and comfortability within our organization, we look for “light-bulb” moments. These are moments when a previously quiet user gives positive feedback or tells the story of a situation where the insights helped make a decision or solve a problem. These moments are contagious. Like momentum in a sports game or a viral marketing campaign, these moments dramatically enhance your progress. It is key to capitalize on these moments. Culture is the other key. When there is a culture of trust within your organization, oversight concerns go away. Organizational transparency breeds an unparalleled culture. This cannot be overstated.

In the future, we hope to tap into more advanced machine learning methods and algorithms to help us predict risk before it even becomes a thought, to move to an entirely proactive approach rather than reactive. Too much of construction is about putting out fires. This leads to loss of productivity, loss of profits and too much focus on present issues, rather than the ultimate end goal. The use of big data has completely transformed industries across the board since the turn of the millennium. Think marketing, health care, sports—the list goes on. Why can’t construction be next?

ABC Tech Alliance member SMARTBUILD has announced their new partnership with Microsoft “to offer a fluid interoperability between the platforms—making the two work together essentially as one solution for SMARTBUILD users.” SMARTBUILD is now the sole construction management platform designed for small- to medium-enterprise businesses and powered with Microsoft’s extensive applications. Learn more.

Are you ready for some fun and prizes at Conexpo? Join the ABC Tech Treasure Hunt and visit four of our Tech Alliance companies: Sage, Procore, Tenna and Autodesk. Learn about their innovative solutions for the construction industry and collect signatures to enter a raffle for a chance to win amazing gift cards. Don’t miss this opportunity to network with tech experts and discover new ways to improve your business. The treasure hunt starts on March 14th and ends on March 18th. 

 

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Series A funding to accelerate growth for the construction industry billing and payments platform

ATLANTA, January 13th, 2022 - Flashtract, a cloud-based software company that is dramatically improving billing and payments for construction projects, announced today the close of a $15 million Series A funding round led by Addition and Shine Capital. The new financing will help Flashtract accelerate the growth of its team, as well as rapidly scale its network of new contractors, cementing its position as the industry standard for sending and receiving payments across its connected ecosystem.

Despite relying on technology in the field, the construction industry is one of the last major sectors yet to effectively leverage technology to streamline and optimize office operations. Payment and billing are typically done via Excel spreadsheets and paper checks, leaving room for human error and subcontractor payment delays, negatively impacting a project’s bottom line. With the sector still squarely reliant on traditional methods of conducting business, Flashtract has seized this white space to finesse a software platform designed to save time and resources for contractors’ accounting and finance teams. With its intuitive user experience, Flashtract can be rolled out in one afternoon, differentiating itself from traditional construction technology that can take upwards of six months to implement.

“Flashtract is committed to maximizing value for its customers, offering an innovative, flexible and efficient solution for billing processes in the traditionally rigid construction industry,” said Lee Fixel of Addition. “We were impressed by Flashtract’s significant growth, and we look forward to supporting the company as it continues to solidify its position as the billing solution of choice for the construction space.”

Flashtract continues to innovate its software capabilities for more efficient billing and payment offerings, automated lien waiver collection, digital signatures, and insurance tracking, all while maintaining outstanding training and support for users. Additionally, the application is solving for the newer and more nuanced need for diversity and inclusion tracking on many construction projects. The new funding will help bolster these advancements and provide streamlined communication channels between general contractors and subcontractors within the highly fragmented construction industry.

“Construction professionals today are pulled in more directions than ever before, creating an overwhelming need for software solutions that optimize traditional processes,” said Blair Chenault, Co-founder and CEO of Flashtract. “Our goal is to continue evolving our product to eliminate the silos that exist for general contractors and subcontractors. With many complex issues facing the construction industry today - including labor shortages and supply chain problems - payments and billing should be the last thing creating stress for these professionals.” Since its launch in January 2020, Flashtract has experienced significant growth across the company, now employing 32 team members. Over the course of 2021, the company saw a 300% increase in payment application volume, with a 400% increase in total dollars billed by customers, totaling multiple billions. This rapid expansion is helping advance Flashtract’s mission of building one connected billing and payment network for the entire construction industry.

To learn more about Flashtract, go to www.flashtract.com.

About Flashtract:

Flashtract is a cloud-based software company that simplifies the billing and payment process for contractors. Flashtract is designed to track, manage and expedite payment applications, lien waivers, compliance requirements, change orders, and all other documents that keep construction projects running. Flashtract was built specifically for construction, which creates a level of focus and drive that has made the organization the fastest-growing billing solution in the industry.

In addition to its core functionality, Flashtract works alongside contractors’ existing technologies like accounting programs, ERP systems, and project management tools. The company focuses on being easy to work with, having an implementation time of just a few hours, and providing a “usage-based” pricing model, which allows companies of all sizes to take advantage of this new approach to construction billing. Most importantly, Flashtract maintains the highest level of customer satisfaction, which can be seen at Capterra. Learn more about how Flashtract is empowering construction organizations across the country here.

Media Contact:
North 6th Agency for Flashtract
[email protected]
212-334-9752, ext. 147

Executive Report From ProEst: Automation is the application of technology to minimize or eliminate the need for human involvement in order to complete a task. Automation is hardly a new idea. After all, machines have been used to automate routine tasks for hundreds — even thousands — of years. While some experts credit the Greeks with the idea of “self-moving” machines, most see the industrial revolution and the rise of industrial machinery as the true beginning of automation as we know it. But there’s a lot more in store.

Not surprisingly, as technology platforms evolve, automation is following suit. Today, sophisticated robotics are found in virtually every industry, and digital programs are everywhere, from your car key to your doorbell. Even more impressive, as Artificial Intelligence (AI) and other technological advances gain traction, more complex processes and procedures, including those that require refined judgment and decision-making, are increasingly likely candidates for automation.

What does that mean for the construction industry as a whole, and your company in particular? That digital automation is here to stay — and will only grow more capable and pervasive over time. In this Executive Insight report, ProEst explores three questions contractors should ask to determine their own preconstruction automation needs, an essential step in building and keeping a competitive advantage. Read More

 

Executive Report From ProEst: The green building industry, spurred in part by the Energy Crisis in the 1970s, has continued to gain traction in the United States and around the world, helped along by a growing awareness of environmental issues and increased government support. Today, sustainable non-residential construction projects employ 278,460* workers, and job growth is expected to be faster than the industry average through 2028, at about 10%. That’s good news for contractors with an interest in the sustainable building field. With more demand for ecofriendly structures, “green”-qualified construction companies could well be on a path to greater growth and profitability.

In this Executive Insight report, ProEst takes a closer look at how sustainable building is changing the construction industry, and why “going green” can represent an important new business opportunity — and continued market viability — for your construction company.

Read More

Executive Report From ProEst: We’ve all seen it before: some contractors seem to win bid after bid — growing their revenue by double or triple digits — while others sit on the sidelines, wondering where their proposals went wrong. And while there’s no one answer as to why certain companies succeed and others don’t, there are proven ways to stack the odds in your favor.

In this Executive Insight report, ProEst takes a closer look at how your construction company can increase the likelihood of submitting a winning bid and highlights seven precon strategies that the most successful contractors use to fill the project pipeline and stay busy with profitable work.

Read More.