The antidote to Brexit and rising prices: an integrated design and estimating process
Monday, June 03rd, 2019
Quick takeaways:
- Economic uncertainty is putting pressure on construction sector
- With its integrated design and estimating process BuildingWorks provides a ‘better way of working’
- It promotes good business practice and cost management
Three years of political uncertainty have taken their toll on the construction sector, particular at the smaller end. As Sarah McMonagle, Director of Communications at the FMB put it, “A perfect storm of diminished consumer confidence, rising material prices and increases in wages and salaries has resulted in the construction SME sector detracting for the first time in six years.”
It’s never been more important to get the sums right. To make sure your financial understanding is sound, that you are using the latest prices and allowing for inflation.
Future-proofing your business
Forward-thinking building firms, property developers, house builders and architects are looking for an efficient process to ensure they can sustain their businesses and maintain a decent profit.
What they don’t want is a design and estimating solution that will overcomplicate their current procedures rather than make them easier. And they don’t want to invest heavily in high-end software tools that require some serious expertise.
That’s where BuildingWorks comes in. It’s a digital practical BIM solution that offers effective interoperability with high quality data. Rather than importing and exporting data from one software product to another, or duplicating their efforts keying in information twice – BuildingWorks makes it a single process.
An end-to-end design and estimating solution
The software platform is simply a work process; a coordinated, effective, holistic approach to getting a project completed.
As Adrian Wild, founder of Integro Construction Software, explains “We’ve designed a straightforward system that seamlessly shares one set of data throughout each stage of a build lifecycle. And it literally costs in real-time as the user designs. Believe it or not, not even the big-ticket software can do that, which is why the national housebuilders are taking an interest as well. They particularly like the fact that we can produce a custom system to suit their operation.”
So what do we mean by an integrated design and estimating process? As the building plan is either being drawn or measured, it calls on a library of over 15,000 data-rich BIM products and nearly 5000 rates to generate a live cost breakdown of materials, labour, rates and energy performance – plus a 3D model. All the products are UK-based and are regularly updated.
Users can review the design in real-time, swapping products and rates in and out of the project to compare how they impact on budget or U-value. As well as the 3D model and thermal performance report, you receive a client quotation, a full Bill of Quantities (NRM), detailed costings, build program and full schedule of works itemising everything required to construct the project (materials, labour and plant).
Introducing a ‘better way of working’
BuildingWorks provides everything you need to evaluate the feasibility and profitability of a project and build it quickly to plan and specification. The idea that digitizing your business requires a big budget, a large team and loads of training time is very out-dated. This is a ‘better way of working’ allowing all businesses to benefit from the practical aspects of BIM built into the software, a more disciplined way of working, the sharing of information and in turn, improved productivity and profitability.
In outline BuildingWorks helps:
- Save time designing, specifying and pricing the project
- Reduce staff costs – time saved avoiding data re-entry
- Reduce the costs of alterations and rework
- Avoid errors and information loss
- Reduce actual construction costs
- By specifying the building plan effectively at the outset
- By ordering materials more smartly
- By delivering the project on time.
Joanna Mulgrew, Operations Director, adds “It’s no surprise BuildingWorks has been hailed a game changer for SME construction companies through to house builders, as well as developers, surveyors, architects, offsite manufacturers and higher education. We believe this ‘joined up thinking’ marks the end of the current fragmented approach to construction. It’s true ‘digital construction’.”
Want to know more?
So for a fully supported instant 30-day trial of this integrated design and estimating process visit our download page.
Or to find out more call us on 0117 916 7880 or email us at hello@getbuildingworks.com.temp.link and we’ll get back to you as soon as possible.
Want to read more?
When Adrian Wild spoke during UK Construction Week >>
Winner of the Housebuilder Magazine Best Business Product 2018 >>
Digital tools Q & A with Housebuilder magazine >>
‘Special Report’ Q & A with Professional Housebuilder & Developer >>