Here at SKYSITE, we’re always listening, taking that feedback and working on improving our platform. To that end, we released our latest upgrade on Sept. 23.

Immediately after our summer release launched, we were busy making lots of enhancements to SKYSITE. Based on your feedback, we’ve been programming and working on implementing these enhancements since our last upgrade in July.

For our Projects module, we’ve added features that get you to your destination file faster starting from when you login, to hyperlinks in your punch reports. You can also now view all those Microsoft files you’ve stored as well as image files like JPEG and PNG.

If you’re a Facilities user, you’ll also be able to view Microsoft and image files. But we’ve also added measurement tools, settings that gives you choices in folder viewing and new features for quick navigation (hint: “favorites” and “recently viewed” options).

We hope you enjoy the features; check out our video for an overview. Also, a full list of all the upgrades is available below. And, if you have any questions, please contact our Customer Success Team:

Email: cst@e-arc.com
Phone: +1 720-588-4132

Time to get to work on to the next round of upgrades!

What’s New – Projects

A. FOR CLOUD ONLY

1. Directly Navigate to the Last Used Module

Now, after your initial login and choice of module, Projects or Facilities & Archive, you will automatically be taken to that module the next time you login.

2. Direct Publishing with Sync

A new option allows you to upload and directly publish non-indexed documents just by dragging and dropping them into your folders.

3. Punch Reports are now Hyperlinked

Quickly navigate your punch reports with an Index and pages that have been automatically hyperlinked for you.

B. FOR CLOUD AND MOBILE DEVICES

1. Markup Changes

It’s easier to create and delete markups. Now, you have the option to view previous markups while creating new ones. And, if you change your mind, you can delete a markup right from the device. No need to open the file in the cloud.

C. FOR MOBILE DEVICES ONLY

1. Viewer Enhancements

Is a lot of your information stored in Microsoft Office® files? SKYSITE now lets you view most Microsoft Office files so you don’t have to leave the application to check a spreadsheet or Word document.

We’ve also added support for many common image files, so you can view your photos and graphics.

And, to help focus on your important information, we’ve made the toolbar collapsible and removed some visual clutter.

2. Select Your Favorite Projects

For those of you storing a lot of projects in SKYSITE, it’s now easier to get to your favorites. You can easily toggle Favorites just by tapping the Favorite icon. Toggle them on and off as needed to keep your active projects handy.

What’s New – Facilities & Archive

A. FOR CLOUD AND MOBILE DEVICES

1. Set Your Start File

Have a favorite document you want to see every time you open your tablet? You can now set it as your Start File. This is great for setting up a Project Dashboard, Campus map or another frequently used bit of information. Open your Facility/Project, and you are taken directly to that file.

B. FOR MOBILE DEVICES ONLY

1. Viewer Enhancements

Is a lot of your information stored in Microsoft Office® files? SKYSITE now lets you view most Microsoft Office files so you don’t have to leave the application to check a spreadsheet or Word document.

We’ve added support for many common image files, so you can view your photos and graphics.

A new increased level of zoom lets you see the smallest drawing and document details up close.

And, to help focus on your important information, we’ve made the toolbar collapsible and removed some visual clutter.

2. Add Measurements

Five measurement tools, including freehand mode, have been added to measure length and area:

a. Line Measurement Tool
b. Square Measurement Tool
c. Circular Measurement Tool
d. Freehand Length Measurement Tool
e. Freehand Area Measurement Tool

With this tool, you can quickly set your scale, then start measuring away. Simple, intuitive and fast.

3. Markup Changes

It’s easier to create and delete markups. Now, you have the option to view previous markups while creating new ones. And, if you change your mind, you can delete a markup right from the device. No need to open the file in the cloud.

4. Select Your Favorite Projects

For those of you storing a lot of projects in SKYSITE, we’ve made it easier to get to your favorites. Now, you can easily toggle Favorites right from the device, just by tapping the Favorite icon. Toggle them on and off as needed to keep your active projects handy.

5. See Your Most Recently Viewed Files

We’ve improved navigation with a “Recently Viewed Files,” icon to quickly jump from page to page.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) recently announced that the city of Los Angeles has been chosen to host the Olympic Games in 2028, while Paris will host in 2024. In the announcement, the IOC Evaluation Commission released a glowing report praising L.A.’s and Paris’s bids for their emphasis on sustainability and fiscal restraint—an especially important feature given mounting criticism that the games place tremendous financial burden on host cities with questionable cultural and economic payoff. In fact, Paris and Los Angeles were the only competitors left after rival cities pulled their bids because of worries over cost.

So how does a city like L.A. – part of a metro area of more than 12 million people – exercise “fiscal restraint and sustainability” in such a massive undertaking? By bucking the trend of recent Olympics that saw cities build grand venues for events, only to have them end up unused (see Rio). In fact, both L.A. and Paris have 90% of the facilities they need to host already built, reducing costs to the cities.

L.A. plans to use only temporary facilities and venues that are already in place. Rather than constructing a costly new Olympic village, the city will house athletes in UCLA dormitories. More than 20 facilities either already exist, or are under construction for other purposes, giving the city a head start compared to Sochi and Rio, where some buildings were never quite finished. To give you a feel for how extensive this effort is, check out this interactive map: https://la.curbed.com/maps/olympics-map-los-angeles-2024-bid

While a reuse/re-purpose approach will dramatically reduce costs and waste in preparation for the Games – easing a burden that has seen previous host cities come close to financial ruin – it poses many other challenges. Putting on our Facilities Manager hat, we can only imagine the challenges that must be addressed. Imagine the daunting task of determining and managing how the buildings and athletic venues will be used, altered, and maintained throughout the preparation, hosting, and the restoration of the facilities back to their former purposes.

Where would you even start? Keeping our Facilities Manager hat on, just imagine the sheer overload of data that developers, designers, contractors and subs are likely to be dealing with. Consider how many hours (days?) of time will be lost going through rooms and boxes of paper documents. And, each location is different, with their own set of documents and filing systems (if any).

For example, the Riviera Country Club will be used as the Olympic Golf course. The venue has been around since the mid-1920’s. What do you think the paper trail is on TI’s, changes orders, and drawings for a multi-building facility of its age, size and stature?

Another example are the dorms at UCLA, where the athletes will be housed. The undergraduate community, “The Hill,” alone consists of 17 high-rise towers and five low-rise residential complexes, plus several buildings for dining halls, student services, etc. Imagine the paper trail where different “communities” on The Hill have undergone renovations at different times. Given the reputation of universities’ facilities management (mainly dependent on budget), speculation only leads us to assume that as-builts and other documents will necessitate some time requirement to find and validate the latest versions.

These two examples are only the tip of L.A.’s Olympic facilities documentation challenge; how to compile and understand documents from different eras and management systems, and convert them to usable, accessible documents for renovations.

If you answered technology, you are on the right track. By using a facilities document management platform, managers will be able to organize and access blueprints, warranties, emergency information in snap. Most importantly, to a massive project like the Olympics, these apps are mobile, and all that information is now at a facility manager’s fingertips. No searching dingy rooms for blueprints, warranties and other critical papers.

This mobility improves productivity, while the manager is out in the field at UCLA, she can markup and email documents to the rest of the team spread out across Southern California, getting work orders fixed and problems solved while on the go. And it increases efficiency by being able to track markups and work, the team becomes accountable in real time.

The ability to have immediate, searchable access to documents is also paramount to safety. In the event there is a disaster (earthquakes and fires go hand-in-hand with SoCal), or police activity, having the building information at hand and searchable is key to finding critical information such as shut-offs, evacuation routes, emergency exits, fire hydrants, contact information and even an emergency response plan.

While the 2024 Olympics may be the mother of all tenant improvement projects, there are tools designed to manage building documentation, even extensive projects like the Olympics. Getting as-builts and documents out of boxes and closets, organized and accessible is key to efficiently managing and tracking multiple buildings on multiple campuses.

Best of all, these apps are designed for managing your building or campus, and helping you improve productivity and safety.

Every business owner and manager has to deal with a mountain of information and paperwork on a daily basis. It may seem like construction is all about heavy equipment and cement, but when it comes to paperwork, it’s no different than other businesses. Even in construction, looking for documents, waiting for updated printouts, etc., can be a drain on time and resources.

Unfortunately, there is no secret to make the paperwork go away. And, if you let it build up, you’re just asking for a big headache down the line. Developing a new system to organize all the paper in your workplace (or your life, for that matter) takes effort, forethought and planning. Or, more time you don’t have. The bottom line is we’re all drowning in paper overload and need to become more efficient.

So how do you handle the growing paperwork mountain? As technology continues to evolve, business leaders in all industries are finding new ways to adapt it for everyday use. The construction industry is no different and has embraced the use of technology for of businesses. One of the key technological advances for the industry is construction project management software.

Project management platforms come with different feature sets and offer a variety of benefits. Some provide good storage of documents with the ability to share and edit files. Other, more robust platforms also allow for storage and sharing, but also offer more industry specific features that can make your job easier, while also eliminating the paper headache.

So, where do you begin in evaluating which project management software platform is right for you and your business? We’ve outlined four features to consider when choosing your new software tool.

Ease of Use

Opt for software that is easy to learn and easy to use. Your job is stressful enough; you don’t want a solution that has a steep learning curve that takes time away from actually doing the job, or one that requires expensive training. You also want one that your team members, especially those that don’t use technology every day, will see the benefits of and be on board to adapt.

Single Repository

We’ve heard of some companies that use two or three apps to manage their construction projects. Honestly, that is counterintuitive to staying organized. How can you assure your team is all working on the latest set if you’re switching between accounts while trying to collaborate on an update? A single hub for all of your digital files ensures that you have all critical information organized in one place; documents, photos, PDFs, all files. No worries about lugging rolls of plans or sorting through stacks of paper.

Online / Offline Capabilities

Make sure you can take your documents wherever your job takes you, in the office or in the field. Looks for a solution that works on mobile devices as well as PCs. You’ll want a platform that, whether you’re online or offline, PC or mobile, allows you to work on the documents you need, when you need them. Once you get your bars back, make sure the software will automatically sync any changes you made.

Maintain Security

Of course, a good document management plan must include good security. Make sure any platform you are considering uses the latest security protocols. Look for one that requires complex passwords, and even better one that offers two-step verification/two-factor authentication. These features require minimal effort, but go a long way in protecting your critical documents from data breaches, phishing and password leaks.

Paperwork isn’t going away anytime soon. However, using technology, especially project management software designed for the construction industry, can keep you and your team organized and on the latest set of documents.

On July 21^st, SKYSITE launched the latest upgrade to its construction and facilities document management platform. Of course, the upgrade included the proverbial bug fixes, but the launch was also full of useful tools including enhanced security, full in-app capabilities even when offline, new markup tools and other improvements to increase productivity and user experience.

Most significant, however, is a new Big Data Scalable Database Backend that will allow customers unlimited uploads of critical documents and continued expansion of their account as their company grows. It may be a mouthful to say, but the benefits are unlimited.

To find out more about the new backend system (built by SKYSITE’s own team), we sat down with Rahul Roy, Chief Technology Officer. 

Why did you see a need to update the system?

We were seeing the SKYSITE customer base growing, and that is good, but we also began to see our customers wanting to store increasing amounts of their data in SKYSITE. As we evaluated our underlying database, we realized that it wasn’t well positioned to scale with this additional growth without significant limitations and additional licensing costs, that would then have to be passed on to our customers.

What changes have been made to the SKYSITE platform?

We were running our backend based on a Microsoft SQL database. After realizing it wasn’t a good long term fit for our application, we began looking for solutions. We evaluated other choices like Oracle and SAP, but they also had very high licensing and implementation costs.

After an exhaustive search of enterprise software options, the solution became obvious. To get what we wanted, we had to build our own backend database. So, using the best and latest technology open-source components we developed a cost-effective, fully scalable, big data database.

Will there be any disruption in service?

We schedule all our upgrades and maintenance over a weekend, to minimize any interruption or disruption of service. We also provide advance notice to our customers, so they aren’t surprised.

Will users notice a difference?

Visually, customers won’t notice a difference. Because the upgrade is to the backend infrastructure, there are no obvious changes to the user interface. However, users may experience better speeds and overall performance, especially when the load increases.

What is the biggest advantage of the new backend database?

For us, we really wanted a system that would allow not just SKYSITE to grow, but one that would grow with our customers. The biggest advantage of our new backend system is its ability to scale infinitely, while maintaining user performance. Our Big Data backend can now store millions of petabytes of data without any issues.

This means customers can upload documents, photos, or whatever they want, and have it all be searchable, and safe. And, if they grow, or acquire another business, and double in size, they just upload the files. SKYSITE can handle it. All those new files are then instantly available and searchable for their team.

How does this compare to other document management technology?

Other app solutions that rely on enterprise software are subject to either very high licensing and maintenance costs, or they will suffer performance issues.  At some point, those costs or performance issues are going to impact the customer. By developing our own solution, we can provide the scalability and performance that our customers demand.

Can you give us a hint at what is next in the technology pipeline?

(no answer, with a wry smile)

About

Rahul Roy, Chief Technology Officer

Rahul Roy brings decades of leadership in software design and development to SKYSITE. A serial entrepreneur, his development experience encompasses network management software, financial software products, e-commerce engines, document management systems, and BI applications. A creative engineer at heart, Rahul is the architect of SKYSITE, and focused on delivering solutions, functions, and features that make his customers happier and more productive.

Dane & Associates Electric Company manages multiple construction projects at any given time ranging from the installation of equipment inside a $2 million wind turbine, to ensuring the power systems for life support work properly in a hospital, or repairing a fuel monitoring system in an international airport.

They not only do an incredible amount of critical work in the field, they manage an incredible amount of information.

The Oklahoma City-based regional electrical contractor shares a huge variety of data with its coworkers, customers, regulatory agencies, security contractors, building owners, and more. Not long ago, it was common for Dane’s construction managers to carry around rolls of project drawings that often weighed considerably more than their heaviest toolbelt, or even an industrial-grade power tool.

But times change, and two years ago they introduced tablet computers and the SKYSITE Projects app to their team to help lighten the load.

Construction manager Chic Harrison said, “When our foremen are looking at an empty room and need detailed drawings to do their work, instead of having to carry around twenty pounds of paper with no place to set it down, they can just pull up their tablets and answer any questions that we might have for that particular issue.”

Since 1976, Dane & Associates has been known for their thorough analysis to provide the best electrical solutions for new construction, clinics, hospitals, entertainment venues and more. They are acutely aware of how technology changes quickly, and how those changes can affect both their clients’ and their own businesses.

“We always want to remain relevant in our industry,” says Jeff Lewis, Dane’s president. “That means that every few years we have to reinvent ourselves. Computers and iPads are on the jobsites now, and if you’re not ahead of the game then you’re behind.”

No one wants to be behind in accessing or providing information on important jobs.

Jackie Sing, another of Dane’s construction managers said, “Being able to communicate with the guys in the field and look at the same thing saves us a lot of time in an eight-hour day. If we get a new set of prints, a change order, or anything like that, the guy in the field can have it as soon as we get it. We don’t have to wait, go get it printed, go pick it up, and take it down to him. I don’t know about Chic, but I’m on that thing four or five times a day with different projects, and our field foremen.”

Chic, who was listening nearby, held up his tablet. “I’m on it now!” he said. “I’ve got maybe ten projects under me, and I can keep all ten jobs and plans with me, at all times, on my iPad.  That’s probably one of the main reasons we needed SKYSITE in the first place.”

As a commercial and industrial electrical contractor, Dane works with a wide variety of other types of construction professionals, designers, engineers, and suppliers. Not all of them have embraced cloud-based tools in the same way, so Dane still prints when necessary. But where they used to print every drawing and document, they now print one or two sets for installation purposes, and those are usually on 11 x 17 size paper rather than the standard engineering size blueprints. Still, it’s the tablet that rules the job site.

“Sometimes you have to have the whole set – architectural, structural, mechanical – not just electrical, because engineers can refer to other drawings.” says Chic. “We put everything on SKYSITE.”

Dane references other documents on the job, too, like spec books, submittals, and safety regulations.

“Even though we are required to use stuff on paper to give to the general contractors, we still have it on SKYSITE for our guys,” Jackie said. “I build my entire job on SKYSITE; every single item, any type of communication. I like to build them thoroughly on SKYSITE because some of my guys like to look at it at night when they don’t have the stress of the day on them. They can look ahead and see what they need to order, and figure things out. They’re doing their own admin and uploading, so it’s easy to use.”

Dane’s preconstruction and construction management teams were the first to adopt SKYSITE, but they received no pushback from the foremen in the field once they saw how easy it was to use.

It’s become part of the company, now; the organization and communication backbone for their projects.

“If we had to go back to paper it would be like going back to the stone age!” Jackie said.

What if you got up one morning to find your online account has been hacked? You’re locked out and your private information has been breached and sensitive data has been compromised. It can happen in a number of ways, your email could be breached, bank account information stolen, your website taken over, contacts deleted. It’s a worst nightmare scenario, yet people still go about their day with an “it can’t happen to me attitude.”

These days, it’s all too common to turn on the news and hear about a high profile data breach, phishing attacks and password leaks. Recently, hackers have been so bold as to hold accounts for ransom. The frequency of these attacks, and their continued success, demonstrates how many people and businesses don’t take the necessary steps to protect themselves. That’s not to mention what doesn’t make the news; the everyday hacking of personal and business accounts. All of this generates concern about the online safety of at our homes and businesses.

At SKYSITE, the security of your account is important us and our team is constantly improving the security protocols to protect your information.

So, what can you do to protect yourself or business? Here are five things you can do to help keep your accounts protected.

1. Think about your password. Mix it up, don’t use the same one for all accounts. And, make it difficult. The guidelines that are provided (# of characters, upper/lower case, numbers, special characters, etc.) are there to help you protect yourself. Don’t take the easy way out and use the same old password or minimum amount of characters. Bottom line; use different and difficult passwords for logins. Consider using a password manager app to help you manage your passwords so you don’t have to worry about forgetting them.

2. Update your OS and other software frequently, if not automatically. This keeps hackers from accessing your computer through vulnerabilities in outdated software.

3. Educate yourself on what phishing looks like. Phishing is an attempt to trick people into giving sensitive information (usernames, passwords, credit card data, etc.) by pretending to be a bank or other legitimate entity. The emails link to a site that look legitimate, but are designed to collect your sensitive information. No matter how official an email looks, it’s a bad sign if it asks for personal information, especially if you did not initiate the contact. Banks and other reputable companies will not ask for you to resend an account number, password, credit card number or answer a security question. If you are unsure of the authenticity of an email, call to make sure that company sent the email. Do not provide the information via the link.

4. Beware of public WIFI. We all know this, but whether you’re traveling for business or getting a change of scenery at the local coffee shop, it can be tempting to use the free WIFI. But before using, make sure you can access any important and sensitive data through a trusted VPN. And, if you don’t have a VPN, think twice about using public WIFI and especially accessing any important documents or accounts. We all know the risks, yet, it’s easy to think, “I’ll make this quick,” or “Just this once,” but hackers move fast and one lax time on public WIFI is all they need.
5. Always use two-step verification, also called two-factor authentication. Unless you are completely off the grid, you’re probably already using it (think banks, Google, Apple, etc.). This process provides an extra step, a secondary security layer, besides passwords, that will reconfirm your identity and make sure it’s legitimate. Passwords are not enough and this second layer makes it hard for cyber criminals to get the second authentication factor.

A common example is when you enter your password and then receive a message (usually a text) with a one-time passcode that must be entered before you login. That passcode is the second layer of your two-step verification. More and more, two-step verification is becoming a standard for managing online accounts, however some companies make it optional. Again, the more difficult you can make for the hackers, the better for your accounts. Always turn it on and use two-step verification.

Don’t settle for just a password to protect your accounts, they are not enough. It is up to you to make it as difficult for hackers to access your information. Take the steps, know what to be wary of, be careful on public WIFI and enable security features to make sure you are protected.

“Building Better” can mean different things to different people; from meeting deadlines and beating the budget, to providing an easy handover. But getting to that point is no easy task.

In an earlier post  we discussed how rework can drive up costs, as much as 20%, and throw your schedule off track. Time management is another crucial area that, if not managed tightly, can easily slip away from you and affect your budget and your schedule.

There are many tools to make it easier to manage your time, and using construction document software is one of them. It can help keep your team organized, up to date and on track.

Here are five ways the right technology can help you and your team save time.

1. Get Everyone on the Same Page

How many hours have you spent waiting for someone to deliver the latest set to the team in the field, or worse, the hours wasted in mistakes and resulting rework that occur if someone thinks they are using the correct set, but aren’t?

Making sure your team members have the latest set of documents, complete with markups, RFIs, Punch lists and Submittals, is imperative. Ditching the stacks of paper for a professional, cloud-based construction document management app allows everyone to be in sync, receive critical information, proper project updates and important files in real time.

2. Find Information Quickly and Easily

Ok, you have your team on the same page. Now it’s crucial they don’t lose time searching for data, photos, and other critical information. If you’ve migrated to a capable technology solution, you may already have your documents in one place, but sometimes getting to them is another trick. Is it easy to navigate from one document to another? Are you wasting time going from document to directory and back again?

A robust construction management platform will be engineered with the advanced search capabilities that locate everything you need no matter where it is. Some current platforms even allow you tag documents (like favourites in social media) making searching for documents not only fast and easy, but familiar and intuitive. When you can find data inside title blocks, call outs, notes and more, information is at your fingertips and saving you time.

3. Reduced Paperwork

Tons of documents are generated during the life cycle of a project (sometimes literally!) Reducing paperwork not only eliminates an everyday hassle, but it saves an immense amount of time.

Of course with traditional paper there’s also the obvious waste of natural resources; trees. But what you probably didn’t realize is with your construction platform and its search capabilities, the average worker can save nearly eight hours a week in handling and digging through paper. Think of what your team members could accomplish with an extra workday!

4. Show & Tell

You know it’s easier to show your team an issue with a picture rather than describing it with words, but sometimes taking the photo and getting it to the right spot on a paper document can be time consuming. You don’t have time to mess around trying to match photos to documents; you need answers.

A good cloud app makes managing your construction project photos easy, really easy. Not only can you take and upload a photo from your phone, you can use tags and links to make search and navigation easy. Your team can find photos easily, even in RFIs and Punch Lists, and knows exactly where they need to focus. If your app has in-app markup capabilities, you can save time by writing descriptions and recording critical questions.

5. Ditch the extra apps

How many apps are you using? Are you using one for document storage and another for RFIs? Are your markups in the same place? Where are your photos and how are they linking to your projects? You may have found a technology solution, but you’re losing valuable time by switching back and forth between apps. Don’t let tech become too much of a good thing. Find one solid app with a feature set that supports your workflow, and forget about multiple upgrades, training everyone on a variety of tools, the costs associated with them, and of course…all that time!

Time management is one step to building better that you can control. Luckily, there are technology-driven tools, focused on construction document management, that allow you collaborate, manage, sync, and share documents so you can spend your time getting the job done.

Rework doesn’t keep a set schedule; it can crop up in any phase of construction causing disruption, driving up costs by as much as 20%, and throwing off schedules.

Recent research shows that of all the causes for rework, 50% are due to changes in a project plan, 37% are due to errors, and 13% for others reasons.

More specifically, rework is caused by:

• Miscommunication and lack of coordination
• Change orders
• Changes to construction methods
• Late delivery of materials
• Personnel-related reasons

So what’s the best way to work around rework?

If our list is any indication, you’ll need to communicate better, manage change more efficiently, stick with your construction methods, and keep your materials and labor on track. But of course this is easier said than done.

You need to get everyone looking at the same information at the same time. You need a way to ensure that everyone who needs to know what’s changing, knows what it is and how to address it. The outcome and ramifications of the construction method need to be projected accurately, and all that has to be tied into where and when labor and materials show up.

You know what? Almost all of that list can be addressed via well-managed access to project data and documents.

That’s where SKYSITE Projects comes in.

With SKYSITE, data and documents stay up-to-date, and the people who need them see it all at the same time. Nobody’s stuck with version control problems, nobody’s wondering where to find things, nobody’s stuck in the field having to run across the entire project site to get to the job trailer. It’s all there, on whatever computer or mobile device is closest.

A few taps, pinches and swipes, and everyone’s in the loop. The plans are easy to find and easy to use to project the best outcome. If problems are identified, change orders are issued and everyone gets the same information at the same time. Schedules are preserved and budgets are protected.

So the next time you’re trying to work around rework, work with SKYSITE Projects. Download your free trial today.

Still wondering about better budgeting and scheduling? Check out how to ‘Build Better and Save Budget.’

There are many reasons to incorporate a digital document management system like SKYSITE Projects into your workflow. The big ones, of course, are cost, mobility, convenience, organization, and speed. But during the past several years, considerations around environmental sustainability have come to play a more important role in the ROI of your system.

Consider the following quote from a retail store construction manager:

“The way we used to handle blueprints was incredibly wasteful. We’d have a new set of hundreds of documents made every time we had 10 percent or more of the drawings go through changes. That could happen in a day! After a while it looked like we were stacking rolls of blueprints under the job trailer as if they were firewood!”

This description is familiar if you’ve been in commercial construction for any length of time. And while we might not have thought much about it years ago, today the costs, time, and resources represented by that “firewood” makes no sense at all, especially when considered from a sustainability standpoint.

So-called “green” initiatives now encompass issues such as more efficient construction management, better communication, increased materials performance, more collaboration, and even safety. If you use construction project management software, you’ve already experienced these benefits whether you know it or not.

Efficiency can take on many meanings, but in the context of less waste and rework, keeping the documents up-to-date and in the cloud is an easy win.

Better communication improves outcomes, project schedules, budgets, and the working environment on the jobsite. Enabling RFI’s, submittals and punchlists on mobile devices — not to mention distributing construction documents in real time as they are updated — can keep communication fluid, reduce re-work, tear-outs, and dramatically decrease waste.

Increased materials performance does a great deal to contribute to a more sustainable project, and there are lots of ways to think about it. Sure, achieving a higher R-value with insulation, drywall, or exterior cladding creates a more efficient building, but think about the material performance of paper, especially when there’s so much of it being used in project documentation. It’s only single use, it suffers from quick obsolescence, and even if it’s recycled, it still ends up in a landfill. By contrast, it’s tough to beat the ever-renewable materials performance of a pixel on a screen.

More collaboration keeps everyone on the same page and boost both productivity (getting more done) and efficiency (less work for the same or better outcome). Using construction project management app is far more than just one place for data; it’s also one place for people to interact in a way that’s planned for, understood, and controlled. Outcomes are less costly and more sustainable because they are predictable, accurate and correct.

Safety issues can bust a budget or wreck a schedule faster than almost any other problem on a job site. While not on everyone’s “sustainability” list, keeping the job from slowing down, or worse, coming to a complete standstill, is a natural consequence of better efficiency, communication, increased materials performance, and greater collaboration.

Let’s face it, nothing is sustainable, much less “green” unless it’s completed, on time, built to spec, and compliant with regulations and contract stipulations. A coordinated implementation of a well-designed construction project management system like SKYSITE Projects can do wonders for sustainable business, projects, and your company’s performance.

Thinking about how your company could work more sustainably, increase efficiency and be more competitive on the “green” front? Sign up for a free trial today and find out how “going green” means going with SKYSITE Project.

Project delays seem like a necessary evil in construction. Despite significant financial penalties associated with missing milestones, phase completion dates, or whole project deadlines, it happens more frequently than anyone likes.

The most common reason for construction delays is miscommunication, primarily in the area of setting expectations. Even when expectations have been aligned, if a key player has been left out of the communication chain, problems still come back to bite you in the form of extra meetings, disputes, and in the worse cases, re-work.

It is critical to establish a clear chain of communication for input, distribution, and response to each kind of inquiry. Be it, change order requests, RFI, submittals, or any directives to and from the client, it all has to be captured in writing and addressed by recipients with the authority to act on, or approve each item.

Use the Right Tool to Communicate

The first step in solving communication problems is to recognize where necessary communication isn’t occurring, and then automating distribution lists, document and approval workflows, and approval procedures. SKYSITE has powerful features that make distribution workflows easy to create and easy to implement. SKYSITE also works on an array of mobile devices ensuring proper document control and communication regardless of where team members may be.

Here are four ways communication improves with SKYSITE:

1. All team members and project stakeholders can see the same information in real time with SKYSITE’s synchronization tools — no one works with outdated information.
2. Information is searchable and viewable with a few touches on a tablet or clicks of a mouse, keeping fewer people waiting for information, and more people working on the jobsite.
3. Submittals move faster so the project can, too. By eliminating “packages” of submittals where one issue can hold up a whole group, automating the distribution and approval of single issue submittals streamlines the process.
4. SKYSITE’s synchronization tools can reduce and even eliminate paper from your workflow, reducing the chances of old, wrong, or outdated information from causes errors and slowing you down.

The flow of communication genuinely affects the flow of a construction project and good construction project management software allows you to stay ahead. When everyone is communicating and collaborating efficiently and effectively, projects will run smoother and be completed on time and budget.

Simplify your project management tasks with SKYSITE. Save time and avoid any delays by keeping communication on track.

Sign up for a free trial today.