How Contractors are Utilizing Technology to Improve its Workforce Management Practices
The Challenge
A&R Mechanical Contractors, or A&R, is a specialty contractor based in Illinois. Previously, the company used various apps and manual methods to complete things such as payroll, project planning, and scheduling, which led to organizational problems and ultimately, a loss in profits. A&R knew it needed a solution to increase its efficiency and effectiveness, so it turned to Procore.
The Solution
Procore Workforce Management has given A&R the ability to use one, central platform for all of their project-related needs. It has made strides in aligning teams, both in and out of the field, so that everyone can easily collaborate and access project information in real-time. In doing so, project planning has become much less of a struggle, timelines have decreased and profits have increased.
“Procore increases communication across all fields throughout all projects. We've got more informed teams which, in my opinion, increases the morale of the guys in the field. They feel like they're connected and they know what's going on. And when you have an informed team, you have a better team.”
Justin Weidner
Vice President
Background
Justin Weidner, Vice President of A&R Mechanical Services, which is the Civil Division of A&R Mechanical Contractors, leads A&R’s self-performing contractors. This means that everything from overseeing scheduling to collecting payments at the end of projects falls onto his shoulders. To manage each of these aspects, Weidner implemented a number of different apps — one for time cards, one for plans, one for scheduling, and so on — but noticed that the technology being used was actually creating additional problems.
As he stated, “I was putting things in places that were tough to access. Our workers were reaching into too many spots for information. We had too many manual methods. Time cards, papers, T&M tickets for change orders, schedules — you'd be amazed how many time cards we got with no one's name on them. The field workers are really just trying to get the job done. When you're a self-performing contractor and you've got all these types of projects, you've got to be able to adapt and move quickly.”
Knowing there had to be a more complete solution to manage all of the workforce planning involved with being a specialty contractor, he set out to find it and came across Procore. When speaking about the outcomes A&R has seen since implementing Procore, he explained, “We needed a way to track the work that we had, obviously. Procore did that for us. We were able to bring everything that we were looking to track under one umbrella.”
Accelerating Payroll
Using Procore, A&R has been able to accelerate the overall process and ensure that payroll is more accurate. Instead of attempting to track time manually with paper time cards, employees can now sign into their Procore accounts, and using Timesheets access their project and enter their hours with cost codes. The days of losing time cards, getting the job number wrong, or simply forgetting to put their name on their card are virtually gone. Taking payroll tasks to a cloud-based platform has enabled A&R to collect more accurate information quicker and pay its workers much more efficiently.
Getting Paid for Out-of-Scope Work
On top of this, getting paid for out-of-scope work has dramatically improved with the T&M Ticket Tool. Employees can track out-of-scope work, then easily request the authorizing signature with just a few clicks. Previously these tickets would have the wrong job number, would lack critical information, or just be lost in the foreman's truck for months. This would often result in a rejection of the ticket and nonpayment for extra work. Weidner spoke to this, commenting, “With the T&M ticket tool, we’re able to be in the job the moment it’s time to start the ticket. We're able to put all of the information, pictures, receipts, and anything that you're going to need to get paid later, and put it right in there. The best part of this tool is that you can import the timesheets for the crew you just used over to the T&M ticket, which eliminates double entries.” Ultimately, the T&M Ticket tool helps them track, submit, and get approval on out-of-scope expenses which helps keep the project on track and profitable.
Optimizing Workforce Scheduling and Planning
What used to be a chaotic process has been simplified with the help of Procore. In terms of scheduling, there are no more messy whiteboards that lack information being used. Instead, project managers can:
Determine the best fit for a task just by clicking the name of an employee. Doing so takes A&R’s project managers to that employee’s profile page, which contains additional details that help managers utilize the right people when scheduling.
See who’s available. Weidner gave the following example: “If I schedule Chris for the next couple of weeks, I can see his previous obligations to ensure I'm not creating any conflicts. After I finalize the assignment details, I can ensure all relevant parties are immediately notified of the changes. When we transition from the board's page to the Gantt view, I can see who should be coming and going across projects and when. I can also see when we need more people.
Drag and drop to craft an easy-to-view schedule. A&R has saved significant amounts of time just by having the option to clearly view its people, their information and availability, and a clean, readable schedule to work with.
Weidner spoke to the benefits of scheduling within the Procore platform, explaining, “[workers are] pivoting daily but [with Procore], we get things moving — all from a laptop or cell phone. It makes it easier for everybody to manage what they need to do. Everybody sees what their assignment is, project name, address, and any other specific details we want to include.” He continued, “With workforce planning, the amount of detail you need on some of these projects and certain nuances make scheduling difficult. Procore gives A&R the ability to act on last-minute things right away.”
Streamlining Communication
Perhaps most important to A&R, though, is the fact that communication has become much more thorough across the board. Weidner remarked, “The biggest advantages we've seen from [Procore] are our staff conversations. It's been phenomenal for us. Our project manager is more in touch with who their teams are. Superintendents know more about the skill sets of field guys.”
With Procore, A&R can share necessary project information with workers before going out to a site to make sure that employees know what is going on beforehand. Project managers can even select who to send alerts about updated information via text message. This has been a game changer for A&R’s project managers and those in the field, alike, because they no longer have to stress about knowing who is working, or when and where they will be.
Weidner also commented, “Procore increases communication across all fields throughout all projects. We've got more informed teams which, in my opinion, increases the morale of the guys in the field. They feel like they're connected and they know what's going on. And when you have an informed team, you have a better team.” He continued on to say, “We’re seeing more of project ownership. We do a lot with self-performance, which is driven by our Project Foremen. Knowing their teams helps them to own the project more. They're more in touch with making sure they're not adding additional resources and keeping the right people on certain jobs, which results in an increase in productivity for us.”
