Stacks of paper, filing cabinets and phone calls once defined the bid process.
Thanks to the cloud, the bid process now is paperless, automated and centralized, an article on Construction Executive’s website explains. Technology innovations haven’t merely decluttered the office of paper — they’ve also cut administrative costs and improved project efficiency.
The future of the bid process is likely to become even more integrated and seamless as builders abandon the fragmented software varieties they currently use.
“That’s not to say everyone will adopt a one-stop suite, but rather that open application integration standards will encourage niche software providers to allow their solution to talk to other solutions clients are using,” according to the Construction Executive article.
A seamless flow of data between management software would result in a more efficient platform for end users. That, in turn, ultimately will “increase innovation and collaboration among technology providers,” the article notes.
The idea of being able to push bid information into project management software will increase productivity and reduce errors. Low-cost integration methods include using Microsoft Excel import capabilities.
That way, field service firms can create an estimate in the spreadsheet and import the final line items into a project template to start the customer engagement. Once it’s in your project system, the project manager should be able to allocate resources, order materials and set up the billing schedule that ties right into the financial management system.
Source: Construction Executive, July 2012