Gaining Efficiency Through Mobile Resource Management

Times continue to be tough in the construction industry. With fewer jobs to bid and the bidding environment fierce, being able to reduce cost in order to remain profitable is a priority of all contractors. One way to increase efficiency and ultimately reduce short term and long term cost is through the use of technology, more specifically Mobile Resource Management (MRM).

 

MRM enables construction companies to achieve business benefits without a large capital investment. MRM allows construction crews to gain and give information on a real time basis while allowing managers to more efficiently utilize crews, manage labor costs, reduce fuel waste and improve customer service.

 

Managing Labor Costs

 

Labor costs are one of the biggest expenses incurred by contractors. Failure to manage these costs could be the difference in profitability. Use of wireless timecards can allow management to closely monitor these costs to compare labor cost to the initial bid estimate. Also, the use of wireless time cards is real time reporting which eliminates the use of inefficient paper-based processes and reduces timecard rounding and time theft. Use of wireless timecards also increases worker accountability by comparing timecards to GPS data.

 

Estimating Better Bids

 

With detailed reports on actual labor costs, construction companies can ensure bids are not too low or too high. This benefit translates to significant profit increases. Many companies find that this benefit pays for the technology, providing high return on investment.

 

Improving Operations

 

By knowing the exact locations of work crews and status on projects, management can more effectively and efficiently dispatch workers to different job sites depending on the status of work. This increase in efficiency and productivity can lead to more jobs worked on per week for work crews and ultimately better utilization and job profit realization.

 

Improving Employee Accountability

 

Managers can maintain close tabs on crews by receiving alerts if employees are stopped when they should not be, if they enter or exit a pre-defined area, or if the MRM application is turned off during business hours. These alerts help reduce the need for managers to physically check on crews.

  

Conserving Fuel

 

Through real time data from job sites, extra trips to the office are reduced, as is driving time between jobs. At an average fuel price of $2.70 per gallon, just 15 out-or-route miles per day for a medium truck can cost a company more than $1,000 per year for each field employee. This cost will be higher for heavy duty trucks and equipment.

 

Enhancing Customer Service

 

With exact locations of crews, managers can provide customers with accurate arrival times. Also, with greater efficiency, construction crews often accomplish more in a day, which allows for the potential for completing jobs and assignments ahead of schedule.

 

The use of technology such as MRM can lead to many cost savings and efficiency improvements. For more information regarding MRM, please contact David B.Blain at dblain@macpas.com.