Tools & Equipment Review: Construction SoftwareFrom project management to design, software programs help make pros efficient and profitable.

Until four years ago, Hauser Homes in Charlottesville, Va., bid all jobs individually, printing out 60 to 80 copies of five to seven plans. Since installing BuildTopia's Web-based construction management software, the home builder can now electronically bid on multiple jobs and print out final plans for contracted trading partners. And by locking in prices with leading trade partners for one year, says director of operations David Winship, the cost of Hauser's homes can be more competitive since building costs are more consistent.

Hauser's is just one example of the efficiencies builders can achieve through various types of construction management software, and it's enough to make cost-conscious builders reconsider slashing IT spending during the market downturn. Desktop and Web-based management software programs can not only save time and money in the short term, but also can provide a head start when the market begins ramping up again.

"Unfortunately, IT people are viewed as a luxury during a downturn," says Craig Schweikart, formerly of Shinn Consulting and now an executive at software provider Constellation HomeBuilder Systems. "But the people who can reduce your costs are your estimating, purchasing, and IT people," he explains, adding that builders should take advantage of the downturn to focus on their back-office operations.

Though the dot-com boom and subsequent bust—marked most notably by e-commerce consortium BuildNet's collapse in 2001—made many builders wary about how well technology can deliver on promises to improve business, the boom years fueled important product development. And in the time since, software providers have continued to launch and refine products that aim to make every stage of the building process more streamlined.

Companies such as BuildTopia, Builder MT,Sage Software, and Dynami Solutions now are delivering products that can help builders do automated bidding on the Web, design workflows on the fly, and even spec a new home online easily.

BUILDING EFFICIENCY
Builders like Hauser that started on the automation path several years ago are now reaping the benefits. This story explores several software packages that can help builders garner the same results. In addition to the cost savings of printing fewer sets of plans and locking in prices, BuildTopia allows the builder to operate so efficiently that it can afford to keep people during the downturn. "We now have 15 live projects with all different product types," says Winship, who says his capacity is about 200 homes. "We're on track for about 150 this year, and I don't have to let anybody go other than my supers."

Another product helping builders manage more efficiently is Builder MT's business process management (BPM) tool. Similar to Microsoft Visio, Builder MT's BPM lets users easily drag and drop workflow diagrams to design a new process.

Jason Schaeffer, president of Tim Schaeffer Communities in Berlin, N.J., says his company got started with Builder MT's BPM last fall by identifying 10 standard business processes, or tasks, that the company uses daily. In one example, the company created a workflow for variance purchase orders in which every time the builder experiences a 1 percent cost variance, the system sends an e-mail to Schaeffer and the company's top execs. So instead of receiving a five-page report at the end of the month, Schaeffer receives real-time variance information.

One of the more interesting products to hit the market this year is Dynami Builder from Dynami Solutions, a Web-based program that helps builders manage sales, mortgages, selections, schedules, and warranties. It even has an interface that lets home buyers spec a home the way they would a Dell PC, a feature that Dynami believes will be widely used in the years ahead.

Kevin Ogle, president of Dynami, says what really separates Dynami from the rest of the crowd is the close relationship it has with Dynami Mortgage, a captive mortgage company founded to support the software business. Dynami's business partner, Jagoe Homes of Owensboro, Ky., uses Dynami Mortgage to run credit checks on prospective home buyers and offer them immediate feedback. No more waiting for up to three weeks to hear from the finance company.

By using the Web-based options feature, a Jagoe salesperson can walk the buyer through the selections process with a realistic budget. The buyer doesn't overbuy and communications are improved, since all the selections information is loaded and sent electronically to all the parties involved in the building process, including the buyer, the builder's back-office workers, subcontractors, project supers, and Dynami Mortgage.