How Construction Business Intelligence Tools Improve Profit Margins

Construction Business Intelligence tools are more than just a fancy buzzword — 2018 appears to be the year that these tools take center stage. Business Intelligence (BI) comprises the strategies and technologies used by enterprises for the data analysis of business information. BI technologies provide historical, current and predictive views of business operations. Unfortunately, contractors of all sizes are losing a lot of money because they are not tapping into the critical business analytics available to them. Experts put the potential loss of revenue from failing to leverage this asset in the billions of dollars.

What’s the Disconnect? Why More Firms aren’t Leveraging Construction Business Intelligence Tools..

Better business intelligence, or BI, could improve profits and productivity, but only half of all construction firms are tracking information at all, according to a McGraw-Hill study. This study found that:

• Only 37% of workers can access information outside the trailer
• Only 37% use cloud services to share information

Some companies mistakenly think they are leveraging BI because they’re using apps or other stand-alone software. But that technology often serves only to silo data, making it difficult, if not impossible, to access and analyze for actionable insights. Even more firms are stuck in the outdated use of manual data entry, spreadsheets and CSV files, which are more limiting when it comes to sharing and optimizing data. The report found:

• 49.2% manually enter data
• 44.7% use spreadsheets
•  31.9% use CSV files

The bottom line, experts say, is that failure to capture BI with an integrated solution is costing construction firms untold millions in lost productivity. Capturing, sharing and reporting all that data can help contractors better manage cost, risk and collaboration — not to mention increase profits

Five Ways Construction Business Intelligence Tools Improve Profit Margins

Reduce job site error, waste and inefficiencies – all while improving profit margins – with these five benefits of BI:

1. Achieve a global view of projects past and present:

• See how accurate past bids have been as well as where the market is headed to make more accurate bids
• See trends across projects to make strategic business decisions based on actionable insights

2. Improve efficiency and margins with real-time data:

• See where problems or bottlenecks are happening and address them immediately, rather than getting information about them weeks later when the problem has eaten into margins
• Have instant access to metrics, such as payroll, to see whether work is being done on budget and where spend can be reduced

3. Bring together office and field data with standard reporting:

• Ensure standardized reporting that is easily viewed on customizable dashboards and reports
• Get access to data that otherwise might be siloed or unusable

4. Manage resource (people and equipment) more effectively:

• Better predict when equipment needs maintenance to avoid breakdowns and job stops
• Track workers’ licenses, insurance and certifications to know when they expire and better schedule accordingly to ensure enough labor for upcoming projects

5. Monitor risk more effectively:

• Keep daily tabs on contract requirements, legal restrictions and safety issues by project and locality
• Analyze safety incidents with real-time data to see where weak spots are occurring and be more proactive in preventing them rather than reacting to them

See How Your Peers are Utilizing Construction Business Intelligence Tools in Their Day-to-Day Business Life

Southeastern Site Development, a Southeastern regional construction firm, is incorporating advanced reporting and Business Intelligence tools to set the nearly 12-year-old company above its old-school competition. Click below to learn more.