Company type
General Contractor for multi-family construction projects
Company name
Name withheld at client’s request
Project types
40 - 120 units per year
Team size
15–20 in-house staff and 15–30 sub contractors
About
This GC builds 1–2 projects a year, ranging from 40 to 120 unit residential condos. Projects are wood frame low-rise, up to 6 stories, sometimes with commercial on the ground floor. They are hired by a developer who acts as the client.
The challenge
Existing tools covered the big picture. Field-level deficiency tracking was another story.
The company had software in place for accounting, change requests, scheduling, and RFIs. Communication from the client and architect down to the boots-on-ground supervisor was generally managed well. But at the site level, everything still came down to texting and email.
Where things got difficult was tracking small deficiencies, task assignments, and the final close-out process. The sheer volume of “little things” caused delays. Formalizing the deficiency process and keeping subs accountable was a persistent challenge. Getting them to adopt a new app made it harder still.
How Buildster helped
Buildster was brought in specifically for the final deficiency close-out process.
- Individual inspections were created for each floor, something their existing platform couldn’t do, as it grouped all deficiencies together.
- Due dates were set for each inspection. During close-out walkthroughs, deficiency tickets were pinned directly to plans. The entire capture-and-assign process took roughly 10 seconds per item.
- Once a walkthrough was complete, Buildster notified each trade of outstanding deficiencies and sent automated reminders as due dates approached.
- Subs who hadn’t downloaded the app received deficiency details via text message with a link. No forced sign-up required.
- A daily reporting email gave management a clear view of what was done and what was still outstanding.
Results
Significant time saved in both the office and the field during close-out.
- Office time reduced. Previously, the person responsible for deficiency tracking would photograph everything during the walkthrough, then return to the office to sort distribution lists and send individual emails. Buildster collapsed that into a single step done on site.
- Field time reduced. Subs received clear, targeted deficiency information without needing to navigate a new platform. The process was simple enough that it got used.
- Accountability improved. With automated reminders and daily reports, outstanding items were harder to lose track of, for both the GC and the subs.