5 Document Management Issues in Construction Business & its Effective Solutions
Documents are the least compelling aspect of construction, but they're also one of the most critical. At the same time, numerous construction professionals hate having to track down project-related documents. It must be done perfectly or it can lead to expensive mistakes.
Traditional methods of managing construction paperwork aren't just tiresome but potentially disastrous. Without the power of a document management system, construction documents quickly become unmanageable and challenging to sort through. Moreover, customers often make modifications and recommendations, and all of it gets wrapped up in a mess and confusion.
A McKinsey report states, "The construction industry is ripe for disruption." They quote that cost and schedule overruns are the benchmarks in the construction sector. "Large projects across asset classes typically take 20% longer to finish than scheduled and are up to 80% over budget."
Let's dive into the blog to identify document management problems and solutions:
1. Depending on manual interaction rather than digital
Problem: The document executives on any project handle a huge burden. Nothing should go wrong, be it increased cost or necessary site re-work; focus quickly turns to them. Document executives control numerous versions of thousands of sheets of data while connecting various systems and providing this information to all stakeholders.
Solution: One of the basic practices your construction company can adopt is providing better document management. Above all else, manage all workflows digitally. Several software programs like ProjectPro can do this, and you are ahead of the game as long as you can grasp data digitally.
2. Human errors happen when the document management is done manually
Problem: When files aren't tied to typical jobs, there is a room for people to misunderstand documents, including who or what they're believed to be affixed to. This method can consume a lot of time and create expensive errors.
Solution: Document management software lets an employee open a document immediately. All you need to know is what project a document is attached to. Through software, your business can quickly adopt this process for use. In real-time, you will eliminate numerous steps and create a user-friendly method for finding proper documents for a specified project.
3. Misplacing important documents because of improper file naming standard
Problem: It's easy to get documents blended when each is anointed differently. A typical document executive can readily have thousands of other forms to maintain. You can see yourself wasting hours searching for documents within your files if there isn't a system.
Solution: One of the most time-consuming and effective ways to ensure adequate document management is by implementing good file naming standards. What do we mean by that? Set a standard for naming your files that all employees must follow, and ensure you execute it.
A universal naming standard will never cause confusion about stored documents. For instance, company names, project numbers, specific dates, and functionality are valuable categories to adopt. Try to sidestep long names and save folders. The aim is to create brief, short and easy-to-identify file names.
4. Losing a document leads to diffusion and a decrease in accountability among your staff
Problem: A document executive is usually held responsible when a document goes missing. This creates a diffusion of duty because the field workers can accuse the wrong document manager when the project runs late. But, for instance, what if the field workers start to relax because they can blame the project for running late for that exact reason?
Solution: With document management software, every individual is accountable. It can also save you from a potential construction defect case. Since the document will be at a place, no one can accuse another level of the company structure for the project’s delay.
5. No inter-connection in real-time
Problem: A site project manager should focus daily on sustaining their team. However, many always need to travel to a trailer for the latest game of documentation. Also, diverting them from their responsibilities, they must wait for feedback as document executives take data offline to make the changes demanded. This interruption to the workflow means a more extended build timeline.
Solution: To have an efficient process, allow field laborers to upload a picture of a problem on-site and share it directly with an architect. This means project managers and their crews can finish projects on time. With more effective, streamlined tools, crucial decisions can be made in hours instead of days.
Conclusion
ProjectPro allows you to send and track your requirements from one central location. Input narratives of change and track status with automated updates of contract amounts. This makes approval faster, so you can keep your assignment on the projected timeline!
