12/9/2021—COVID-19 has affected industries across the spectrum, and construction has not been spared. As a result of supply chain interruptions, construction material costs have skyrocketed, remaining high as we continue to navigate the pandemic. Suppliers, like steel mills for example, are seeing rising costs with prices having climbed 108.6% over the past 12 months and 87.6% in 2021 alone.1 Construction is also seeing increased demand with people spending more time at home and renovation projects increasing, creating a demand where suppliers can’t keep up.2
On-site supply waste is a significant issue that affects budgets and productivity, especially with increasing supply costs. Waste can come from failure to always account for materials and improperly trained employees who damage or misuse materials. CoRe Connected Resources can easily help solve both of these common issues, saving you cost and time.
Tracking costly materials on job sites is fundamental to keeping budgets aligned, avoiding waste, and allowing production to continue. CoRe construction software tracks consumable materials (e.g., welding rods, discs, etc.) issued per worker so that you never have to question where supplies are being used and by whom on your job site. If you notice materials have gone missing, you can use the reliable data of the CoRe dashboard to see where they were issued and when. On top of material tracking, CoRe can also be utilized to track expensive vehicles and equipment, which helps ensure necessary machine maintenance is done and prevents misuse of machinery by untrained personnel. This feature of the smart badge not only improves worker safety, but acts as a gateway to understanding what’s happening around the worker. CoRe’s smart IoT devices can report which power tool has been used by whom, for how long and where on the job site. This ability to connect the entirety of your job site, and its teams, helps contractors better track valuable power tools, which have also increased in price and demand during the pandemic.
Failure to properly train employees on material handling and particular jobs is not only dangerous, but can lead to supply waste, as jobs are not completed to code and damaged materials are discarded. With CoRe smart badges, each employee badge is equipped with a personal training and safety profile assigned to that employee. Site managers can view in real-time if an employee is sufficiently trained to complete an assigned task. If the employee is not appropriately trained, admins can provide training or assign a new task that fits their capability. Management can also catch when employees may require more training, as material waste is monitored, and employees who consistently have issues can be trained further or moved to new jobs altogether.
Technological advances have provided advantageous ways of streamlining construction, including increasing productivity, conserving materials, and lowering budgetary estimates. Tech-based management software, like CoRe Connected Resources, provides real-time visibility of worksites and accurate data for predicting and maintaining budgets. This data can also help forecast supply needs in the future, helping to prevent overspending and more accurate budget plans. By visiting analytics from past jobs, management can better determine the number of supplies needed for future work, avoiding excess spending and saving money on costly materials.
As we continue to navigate the ongoing pandemic and the resulting supply chain issues, construction software management has never been more essential. CoRe is proud to provide an easy-to-implement solution that will give management peace of mind and better oversight of complex job sites.
Contact us today to learn more and schedule a free demo!
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1 Building material prices climbing at record year-to-date pace: Nahb now: The news blog of the National Association of Home Builders. NAHB Now | The News Blog of the National Association of Home Builders | NAHB Now | The News Blog of the National Association of Home Builders. (2021, August 20). Retrieved November 3, 2021, from https://nahbnow.com/2021/08/building-material-prices-climbing-at-record-year-to-date-pace/.
2 Conerly, B. (2021, June 30). Why lumber and plywood prices are so high-and when they will come down. Forbes. Retrieved November 3, 2021, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/billconerly/2021/05/22/why-lumber-and-plywood-prices-are-so-high-and-when-they-will-come-down/?sh=2b0b37cb4b71.
