Many businesses that are expanding their operations or which have goals for growth will ask themselves this question. Although it can quickly become clear that your business needs construction software and technology to optimise workflow and manage risk, it can be less clear whether you should source and use this technology independently, or via a consultant. In this article, the team at Contract and Commercial Resources Tech (CCR Tech) will explore some of the benefits of partnering with a consultant for your technology needs.
1. By partnering with a consultant, you benefit from the experience
Consultants in the construction software space bring a lot of experience to the table. They have been in the construction industry for years and are familiar with the often-complex systems designed to improve your workflows, maximise your profit and minimise your risk.
They will be able to advise on how to utilise these technologies in the most effective way, to maximise the benefit that attracted you to these technologies in the first place. They will have worked across similar projects to yours and be able to bring learnings from them and will also be able to bring lessons to bear from different projects and different industries.
2. With a consultant, you can avoid the learning curve
Of course, the experience can be gained, but it can be costly to take the time to gain experience, and while you are still inexperienced, there is a risk of grave technical mistakes, or at the least, missed opportunity cost for the potential benefits you are missing out on.
By partnering with a technology consultant for the construction sector, you can avoid the learning curve, and set yourself up to achieve instant results. This will reduce the risk of costly mistakes, while also helping you to achieve the benefits you are setting out to achieve more efficiently.
3. By partnering with a consultant, you benefit from their relationships with suppliers
A high-quality technology consultant in the building industry or construction sector will have strong relationships with their suppliers. For example, here at CCR Tech, we have strong partnerships with suppliers including ALICE, Autodesk, and CUPIX. Through this relationship, we are able to secure favourable arrangements for our clients and have complicated technical support or warranty/replacement contacts close at hand.
4. With a consultant, technical help will always be available
If you partner with a technology partner for the construction sector that offers technical solutions and digital resources for the construction industry, you can rest assured that technical assistance will always be available. If you go independently, you will have to depend on the instructions provided by the supplier, and by their support services, if they offer them, which will naturally not be as personalised and immediately available or in-tune with your projects and strategy.
Hence, many construction companies will decide to partner with a construction IT consultant, who can help them to utilise technologies such as construction data capturing, data integration services, artificial intelligence (AI) planning and scheduling for construction, construction power BI, predictive insights and analytics, bid recommendations and evaluations, BIM optimisation, and optioneering for construction.
5. A consultant can also assist with your strategic vision
Sometimes you really need a fresh set of eyes to get off to a new start and achieve the goals you have set out to achieve. An IT consultant, technology partner, or construction software consultant can support you by bringing a new and invigorating view to the table.
They can assist you not just with your IT, but they can provide technical advice on how to utilise it to full effect, what its benefits are, and how these can play into and support your strategic vision. They can assess your current system, and spot faults that you may have missed that are costing you money or time or causing an unacceptable degree of risk.
6. A consultant represents a cost-effective investment
If you were to hire a staff member to manage your technological updates and digital infrastructure, you would have to pay them a considerable wage and provide a contract that was attractive and offered a large amount of work – perhaps more than you really require. Once systems are set up, and the team trained in them, technical support may be required less frequently, or just on a maintenance and systems audit basis.
By using the services of a technology partner, you may find that you are able to save money and reduce your liability to a full-time employee. You can use the services of a consultant on an as-needs basis, and many find this a more simple and fit-for-purpose arrangement.
For more information on the digital resources and technical resources available for the construction sector and how these might help your projects, browse the website or contact our team.