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April 28, 2022
Construction companies are facing a critical time as communities begin to recover from COVID-19 declines in 2020. Supply chain delays and labour market challenges mean construction projects need to run more efficiently than ever. Project managers need better tools, and webcam monitoring technology can offer a competitive edge to companies looking to cut costs and protect profits.
How can you navigate the changes to come? Solutions that give you an edge over competitors are essential to sustaining your business, while “new trends in technology – such as drones, robotics, and digital tools” can help you attract new, younger workers, says Building magazine.
In this article, we’ll explore:
The challenges facing the construction industry today
How project monitoring is critical to your bottom line
8 practical benefits of an innovative webcam monitoring system
Simplifying complex projects with improved project visibility
Efficient setup and implementation
Challenges facing the construction and development industry today
The construction industry has seen changes before, but the future is bringing shifts that even the most seasoned construction pros will find challenging. The pandemic caused material shortages across the industry, and developers are managing projects amid complications and delays.
Even as you move beyond challenges in sourcing the materials you need, a labour shortage will make it harder to stay in the black. Over the next 10 years, the industry needs to replace over 250,000 workers, equivalent to 22% of the current workforce, according to BuildForce Canada.
Recovery efforts in communities across the country will have developers and builders busy estimating and planning new projects while desperately trying to keep their crews full of qualified workers.
Project managers will need every advantage to stay competitive, win jobs, and successfully get these projects over the finish line.
Project monitoring is critical to managing your bottom line
You can’t manage what you can’t see. Imagine having a direct view of what’s happening on any project in real time or having a tool to improve communication between field staff and project managers. A webcam system can improve almost every area of your worksite management.
You can see what’s happening on a job site and make better decisions regarding staffing, equipment needs, and project timing. For example, you could see exactly when to send in the next crew because a job phase is complete or when to pause work for a day because the site’s been rained out. And you can do it all from your webcam system.
8 practical benefits of an innovative webcam monitoring system
Companies need solutions to help cut costs and drive profits to make the most of the projects they secure and to stay ahead of the competition.
Here are eight ways innovative webcam monitoring solutions can help project managers run job sites more efficiently.
1. Improve project estimation
With projects preserved in an image archive, you can double-check timelines and details to tighten estimations on future projects. Do you need a refresh on a past job to help scope out your next contract? The Panomax webcam system can act as a costing tool, allowing you to plan your next job.
2. Cut down on travel
Remote access to live footage cuts driving time to manually check on worksites, saving time and travel costs for project managers. When work schedules need to change, alert your crew before the workday begins.
3. Gain a competitive edge
When every part of your business runs more tightly, you can cut waste and unnecessary costs. Competitive industries require sharp bidding skills to balance winning jobs with having the budget to run them. With smoother operations and better project estimation, you can bid on jobs more accurately while protecting your profits.
4. Improve real-time project management
With real-time information, you can spot opportunities to increase production or trim costs safely. In addition, you can catch errors before they cost you money or adapt to changes in weather or other factors. A webcam system allows visual confirmation of deliveries, site visits, and work progress. With full details easily accessible to project managers, a webcam system can support your foreman’s logs.
5. Train new employees effectively
Onboarding a new employee can be time-consuming, and it takes a while to get them up to speed. What if you could create a time-lapse video of the project to date? With high-resolution imagery from your webcam, partnered with interactive software components, you can map out the site and use it for site orientations.
6. Improve project reviews
Once you wrap up a job, you can review any portion of the work with specific crew members or contractors to help clarify expectations for your next project. Need a high-level view of what happened? Create a time-lapse video to see any portion of the job from start to finish.
7. Smooth dispute resolutions
When essential details need to be confirmed, you’ll have a complete image archive showing work progression and project completion to ensure you can quickly and easily clarify any misunderstandings or questions about your project.
8. Grow your business with powerful marketing
Every successful project you capture with your webcam system will produce high resolution imagery that can be showcased in marketing. Why not show a gallery of before and after images on your website? Even better, why not offer a dramatic time-lapse video showing impressive reclamation or development projects?
Simplify complex projects with improved project monitoring
Some projects require work from multiple contractors who need to coordinate access to the worksite, timing, deliveries, and inspections. With a webcam system, you can monitor your project and give temporary webcam access to anyone else you’d like to view the job site.
With a clear visual of how the project is running, each phase can be planned out and implemented in a timely way, keeping the project on schedule. Each contractor or company can be ready to work as soon as needed. When their portion of the project is complete, you can quickly and easily deactivate their access to the webcam.
Efficient setup and implementation
You need simple and user-friendly systems with significant benefits and low frustration levels. We designed our system to support your business and offer efficiencies that boost your bottom line without hassle.
Choose whether our team assists with the setup, or to handle installation and setup on your own. We can help with remote configuration, and ensure you are comfortable accessing the software and using the system.
With a shortage of workers and materials, you need to manage every project carefully, and with as little waste of time and human resources as possible. The industry is ready for practical solutions that help cut costs, improve efficiencies, and improve overall project management across the company.
Learn more about Panomax interactive webcam tech or book a call to discuss how to bring better project monitoring solutions to your worksites.