Leveraging Software Platforms in Construction Management

Engel Burman is more than a real estate developer. We are a fully integrated real estate company consisting of Development, Construction, Property Management, Sales, and Marketing. As such, we are involved in every stage of a project’s lifecycle, with construction being at the heart of what we do.

Since our beginning 25 years ago, our Construction Division has been the cornerstone of our business model. Decisive, knowledgeable, and innovative, our team has garnered a reputation for building exquisite properties. They do this by staying current with leading-edge building solutions, state-of-the-art products, and industry software that bring value, cost savings, and efficiency.

When it comes to software, the team utilizes a number of different platforms that provide the information, insight, and transparency needed to keep a job on schedule and on budget. Here are just a few of the technologies employed by our team and how they are leveraged on projects.

MarkSystems – Homeowners’ Design Decisions

As a fully integrated company, we are both the real estate developer and builder, and we are also the property managers responsible for sales and marketing. As part of the sales process, we assist new homeowners in making design decisions. The homeowners’ decisions need to be communicated to the entire team involved in the build, including vendor partners.

Communicating these decisions to various members of the team across several locations in a timely manner can be a challenge. Everyone from the office personnel to the field to trade partners needs access to this information in real-time to be sure we deliver on the homeowner’s expectations both in terms of service and delivery of the final product. To help with this, we’ve employed MarkSystems by eci, a cloud-based solution.

MarkSystems has allowed us to automate processes in real-time. When a homeowner makes their design choices, construction is automatically notified of those choices and work orders are automatically sent to every trade involved.

When the installation is complete, supers are automatically notified to review the work. Once the super approves the work, accounting is automatically notified that the vendor can be paid.

From when the customer makes their decisions until the job is complete, every team member has visibility as to where the job stands. This efficiency brings value to the job and, ultimately, to the consumer by delivering the quality and service expected from our residential communities.

Procore – Project Management

When it comes to streamlining processes from pre-construction to closeout, our team utilizes Procore, a construction management platform. Procore facilitates collaboration across the entire team including owners, construction, subcontractors, and the design.

Construction is a fast-paced environment involving teams in various locations, including the field and offices. Keeping everyone focused on the vision and understanding changes as they occur is critical. It means the entire team must be connected and informed in real-time.

Procore helps our team to work more efficiently, improve communication, and build faster by being a single point of information. The platform provides visibility into every step of the process in real-time. It allows the team to optimize resources and meet quality and safety standards.

Having one source of information, including housing documents and correspondence, eliminates delays and increases productivity as everyone on the team can collaborate in real-time with the most current information. Jobsite events are captured as they occur, providing the ability to course-correct and keep the job on schedule. Procore also makes it easier to reference historical data needed for improved planning of future projects.

Meeting the quality and safety standards on time and on budget adds value to our projects from a business perspective, but it also brings value to consumers in meeting or exceeding their expectations when the project is complete.

OxBlue – A Visual Record

OxBlue adds visual documentation to the job record. With live photos and streaming video, it provides for real-time job site visibility. The cameras allow for visual tracking of critical milestones, monitoring compliance, weather delays, and more. It adds another layer to the information captured in Procore.

In a matter of seconds, any member of the team, from anywhere, can log in to visually see the job site, increasing transparency. From a user-friendly dashboard, they can capture build progress, automate routine reports, and build time-lapse videos. These images can be added to the job record and provide insights for future projects.

The images and time-lapse videos are also valuable tools for sales and marketing.

This visual component provides the team with another perspective of the project beyond the documentation, reports, and financials in the record. By improving efficiency and increasing collaboration, OxBlue brings value and aids in meeting our goal of exceeding expectations on quality and safety.

At Engel Burman, real estate development is only part of what we do. Our integrated approach arms us with cross-departmental knowledge and sets our Construction Division apart. Our team is uniquely skilled at flawlessly turning a concept into a reality, and some of the above-mentioned software platforms help them do just that.