Written by LetsBuild
Last updated October 18, 2023
Every rollout is different as every organisation has its own needs, objectives and digital culture. However, there are some core principles and steps that should be followed every time.
That’s why onboarding is always seen as one of the most crucial elements for the successful implementation of a digital tool not only in construction but in every industry.
Before you get going with such a demanding and resource-consuming process you should always try to take a detailed approach and see how both your organisation and the software provider you are about to work with can turn this to a fruitful collaboration for both parties with lots of potential for further development in the future.
We understand well that supporting your customers in the first crucial steps of their digital journey is of paramount importance for the final outcome of this collaboration.
With that in mind, we wanted to share with you four onboarding stories that made everyone in our organisation proud:
VolkerFitzpatrick
VolkerFitzpatrick is one of the UK’s leading engineering and construction companies, providing specialist building, rail, civil engineering and industry focused skills to a range of market sectors including commercial, industrial, education, rail, aviation, waste and energy through its six different businesses in the UK.
Currently, VolkerFitzpatrick have rolled out LetsBuild across over 20 critical projects, including airports, railway stations, etc.
GenieBelt has given the project team real-time updates so they don’t have to wait 4 to 10 hours for a formal report or make multiple phone calls to get updated on progress. Issues or incidents on-site are communicated to project teams immediately and decisions are made based on accurate and timely data.
In that context, we asked Ben Joyce, Project Manager at VolkerFitzpatrick, about their impressions from the onboarding process with LetsBuild.
“It was very beneficial to be able to meet the LetsBuild team in person and get a thorough introduction to the system and its benefits to the whole project team. We really felt like a valued customer”, said Ben Joyce.
And he added:
“Thanks to LetsBuild we have the ability to propose improvements to the programme and be sure that we have the right people around the table who can make them happen. The onboarding process has played a significant role in the resolution of teething problems, as well.”
Matt Ghinn, Project Director at VolkerFitzpatrick referred also to the importance of the collaboration with GenieBelt:
“I think the way we’ve integrated LetsBuild within the business, or started to integrate LetsBuild into our business is definitely a part of this digital paradigm shift. I think we’ll repeat that process for any other stuff or platforms or any other digital changes that we do. So starting with understanding “Does it deliver what we need?” Trialing on a small scale, making sure the whole business understands what we’re trying to do and why we’re using that one platform and then rolling it out and understanding the scalability.
That’s going to be key because there are more and more challenges out there. There’s a risk that if you got 100 sites, 100 project managers, those 100 people will go and find 100 different things to do the same thing. So we need to control it a level, make sure we train our people correctly, and LetsBuild has shown us that we can do that. And it’s driving improvement. As soon as you see the improvement, people latch on to it.”
Eurovia
In our effort to bring efficiency and clarity to construction projects, we are extremely proud to have embarked on an ambitious digital journey with Eurovia in France. It’s a collaboration that we are very happy about.
Eurovia, a subsidiary of Vinci, offers integrated expertise and know-how through four business lines: transportation and urban infrastructure works, quarrying, industrial production, maintenance, and services.
In France, they employ 18,600 people in 141 agencies and 218 quarries. Their activities consist of roadworks, railway development, demolition, civil engineering and more.
LetsBuild is currently being used in the construction of the tramway line T9 in Paris, a new line that will connect the Porte de Choisy and the city of Orly with a length of 10.3 km (6.4 mi) and 19 stops. GenieBelt is able to help Eurovia connect the site to office in real time, bring traceability to the project and allow managers to spot problems beforehand.
As far as the onboarding process is concerned, the Eurovia team mentioned the following:
“The LetsBuild team was very helpful by coming to our offices in order to introduce their software to the whole team. The proactivity and good energy transmitted, in combination with the start-up spirit and the overall vision of LetsBuild inspired all of us. Given also the benefits and user-friendliness of the platform, LetsBuild quickly became a substantial component of our day-to-day working routine.”
Specon Group
A few months ago, we were happy to welcome Specon Group to the GenieBelt customer family. Having a huge presence in the Middle East and North Africa, Specon specializes in Mechanical, Electrical, and Plumbing.
With over 3 decades of experience in the construction industry, Specon has delivered many landmark projects including airports, hotels, hospitals, commercial and residential towers, and universities.
GenieBelt is being used as their real-time collaboration and communication software in the construction of a residential project which concerns the development of two commercial and residential towers. The towers are 67 and 57 stories high, respectively, and constructed atop a retail podium. The project also includes office spaces, a 3-story retail podium at ground level named The Gallery. The project will also feature the world’s largest cantilever, The Linx.
What attracted Specon to LetsBuild was the level of transparency it provides to managers in viewing team performance and productivity. LetsBuild provides them with instant actionable information about what needs to be done and all the relevant data regarding their project is presented clearly in dashboards.
Provivienda
Groupo Provivienda is a great example of a digital champion in the construction industry, as they have invested a lot of time and resources in the digitalisation of their systems and processes.
It is a residential real estate developer, operating mainly in Panama with operations also in Colombia, Mexico and El Salvador. They are a leader in the industry in Panama and have around 25% of the market share covering all the different spectra of construction (site selection, site planning, purchase of the land, sales, construction and customer service after the delivery of a new home to the client).
“As an industry leader, the first challenge we’re facing is that we compete in an industry where entry barriers are very low. So you need to be ahead. You need to be ahead not only at the front end, meaning relationships with clients and everything involved with sales.
But also you need to be ahead at the actual construction site. If we go and analyze construction sites, and the actual construction process, it’s still a very old school industry where you have all the players coming in from different places with different backgrounds, with different experiences trying to put it all together without technology helping that industry nowadays.”, explains Raul Hernandez, co-CEO of Grupo Provivienda.
It quickly becomes evident, then, that keeping everyone on the same page is of paramount importance. This is where a tool like LetsBuild can play a vital role.
“LetsBuild has helped us be able to be on-site, without actually having to be there and not only that. It’s also helping us to control that the people on the site are actually doing what they need to be doing and not reinventing the programme or changing the programme. That was something that we didn’t have before.”
Regarding the impression that Grupo Provivienda has from its collaboration with LetsBuild so far, Raul Hernandez highlighted the following:
“We see our relationship with LetsBuild as a long-term relationship, basically what we see is we can both learn from each other, we can do a lot more things together, we can help them understand the pains we have in the industry and we can provide information not from only one market but from other markets that may be experiencing different pains. We also have a broad range of products.
And he continued:
Our product range goes from single-family housing for low income families, all the way up to luxury homes. We do single-family houses in forms, we do single-family housing in blocks, we do high rises. So from every single product range, we have the information of all the pains that we’re currently suffering. And if we can get that information to LetsBuild and start working together on how to solve this with a platform as powerful as LetsBuild, it will eventually benefit us both in the future.”
Want to learn more?
From housebuilders to main contractors, our customers use LetsBuild to collaborate in real time. Our mission is to make sure that they have implemented our solution in the right way so that they can quickly get the most out of using it.
If you want to learn more about how we could help you digitise your systems and processes, feel free to reach out and get a free demo from our team.
