In the roofing industry, technology is not just a tool but a catalyst for transformation. The latest episode of the Roofing Technology Think Tank podcast, hosted by Karen Edwards, explores this very topic with insights from Wendy Marvin, CEO of Matrix Roofing and president of the RT3 Board, and Elliott Wittstruck, founder of Contractor CTO.
Wendy emphasizes the importance of customer service in construction, stating, “We are a customer service company that does roofing. Technology helps us focus on what truly matters—our clients.” This perspective highlights the shift from merely using technology to integrating it into the core of business operations to enhance client relationships.
Elliott sheds light on a common misconception in the industry: the need for more software. “Contractor CTO is about building solutions that make your existing tech work harder for you, not adding more complexity. It’s about leveraging what you already have to maximize efficiency without the need for additional software,” he explains. This approach not only reduces costs but also streamlines processes, allowing contractors to focus on growth and innovation.
Karen Edwards, the host, encapsulates the essence of the discussion: “It’s about educating and helping others in the industry. The right tech can elevate your business to new heights.” Her words serve as a reminder that the true power of technology lies in its ability to empower businesses to reach their full potential.
As the conversation unfolds, it becomes clear that the future of construction lies in the strategic use of technology. By focusing on customer experience and operational efficiency, contractors can not only survive but thrive in this competitive landscape. For more insights and stories from industry leaders, subscribe to the Roofing Technology Think Tank podcast.
In roofing and construction, technology plays a pivotal role in streamlining operations and enhancing efficiency. Recently, Karen Edwards from the Roofing Technology Think Tank podcast sat down with Eric Fortenberry, founder and CEO of JobTread, to discuss how his platform is revolutionizing the construction industry.
Eric’s journey began with the creation of his first software company, which he sold in 2015. He then joined a construction company where his hands-on experience in running the business led to the development of JobTread, a platform designed to address the common challenges faced by contractors. “We built this thing out of a needs basis,” Eric explains, emphasizing the importance of understanding the problem to create effective solutions.
JobTread is not limited to roofing; it caters to various construction trades, from commercial builders to luxury remodelers. Eric highlights the platform’s flexibility, allowing contractors to customize processes and workflows to suit their specific needs. This adaptability is crucial in an industry where no two projects are the same.
One of the key advantages of JobTread is its ability to integrate with third-party applications, providing a seamless experience for contractors. From estimating to project management, the platform offers tools that enhance efficiency and improve communication between sales and production teams. “It’s about creating a connected ecosystem,” Eric notes, underscoring the importance of collaboration in achieving project success.
JobTread’s commitment to transparency extends to its pricing model, which has remained consistent for years. Eric believes in providing affordable software solutions without compromising on quality. Additionally, the platform offers extensive support, including dedicated customer success managers and a vibrant user community.
As the construction industry continues to embrace technology, platforms like JobTread are leading the way in transforming how contractors manage their businesses. With a focus on customization, integration, and transparency, JobTread empowers contractors to build profitable and scalable operations. For more insights, subscribe to the Roofing Technology Think Tank podcast and stay updated on the latest trends in construction technology.
Staying up-to-date with building codes is a daunting task. Imagine a tool that simplifies this process, providing accurate, defensible data at your fingertips. Enter OneClick Code, a revolutionary technology transforming how contractors navigate building codes.
The Challenge of Building Codes
Every jurisdiction has its own set of building codes, which can change frequently. This complexity often leads to confusion and errors, impacting contractors and homeowners alike. Bin Wright, Enterprise Solutions Manager at OneClick Code, shares, “Approximately 54% of all estimates have some sort of error. This isn’t a people problem; it’s a data problem.”
OneClick Code: The Solution
OneClick Code addresses this challenge by offering a verified, citation-backed answer key for building codes, taxes, and permit fees. By simply entering an address, contractors receive accurate jurisdictional data, eliminating guesswork and ensuring compliance. “Think of it like checking your math on a calibrated calculator,” says Wright.
Impact on the Industry
The impact of OneClick Code is profound. Contractors can now produce estimates with confidence, knowing they are backed by defensible data. This not only streamlines the approval process but also builds trust with clients and insurance carriers. As Wright notes, “We provide this report in a matter of seconds, making the process more efficient and accurate.”
Looking Ahead
While currently focused on roofing, OneClick Code hopes to expand into other areas like mechanical, electrical, and plumbing codes. This expansion promises to further simplify the construction process, making OneClick Code an indispensable tool for contractors nationwide.
Navigating building codes no longer needs to be a headache. With OneClick Code, contractors can focus on what they do best, armed with the knowledge that their data is accurate and defensible. As the construction industry continues to evolve, tools like OneClick Code are leading the way, ensuring that contractors can work smarter, not harder.
RT3 members explore technology in one of the most innovative labs in the world.
The Roofing Technology Think Tank (RT3) is committed to learning about new, emerging technologies and how these technologies may be leveraged in the roofing industry. They meet several times a year to experience the latest innovations and understand how they might advance the roofing industry as a whole.
On May 16 RT3 members met at the Oracle Innovation Lab in Deerfield, Illinois to participate in immersive experiences at the lab. According to an information sheet provided by Oracle, “The Oracle Industry Lab is a unique idea incubator designed to help businesses in a variety of industries tackle their most complex challenges. At locations around the world, we work side by side with our customers and technology partners in hands-on simulated industry settings to turn bold ideas into powerful solutions they can implement and use today.”
Manufacturing and AI
One of the experiences was a manufacturing and transportation focus, where artificial intelligence was being used for quality control in a manufacturing environment. Strategically positioned cameras would monitor the production of materials and issue an alert if abnormalities were spotted in the item being made. Drones were deployed to fly autonomous missions to count inventory. In the use case in the lab, the drone would fly to a stack of pipes, take a photo and count the number of pipes, delivering the count to inventory software in the lab.
Models demonstrated how fleets of trucks could be outfitted with technology to monitor their performance, efficiency, locations and health. The technology can alert the company to potential delays or problems before they happen, allowing them to take action.
Mark Mortimer tries the exoskeleton
Connected Tools
Oracle partner Hilti was on site to demonstrate their line of connected tools. They have eliminated the need for electric cords by using smart batteries to power the tools. The tools are able to be monitored using an app on a smartphone that provides detailed information about the use of the tool and the GPS capabilities of the battery can provide the tool’s exact location. This feature was extremely helpful lto one contractor whose tools were stolen from their truck. The app was able to provide information on their whereabouts and the contractor was able to recover the stolen items.
Hilti also has an exoskeleton that helps support the upper body when doing repetitive work overhead. Members were able to try on the exoskeleton and experience the difference. The company has another exoskeleton in the works that will provide support for the knees, hips and lower body.
Greg Bloom experiencing VR in a building model.
Virtual Reality and Wearables
VR headsets were donned by members as they experienced how a digital model of the Innovation Lab was used to identify a potential issue and correct it during the design phase – before construction was even started.
New Oracle partner RealWear had a hardhat equipped with a smart eye that allowed the person wearing the hat to use voice commands to take photos and share data about the condition of a roof or a job site. By freeing up both hands and eliminating the need to enter data into a smartphone or tablet, the user is safer on the job and more efficient.
Smart Suite
The energy and utilities section of the lab featured a model of a smart kitchen and living area that helps consumers understand their energy usage and ways that they might be more sustainable and energy smart. A Tesla battery wall stores electricity generated by the solar panels on the roof of the lab and holds enough electricity to power the lab for four hours should they experience a power outage.
Smart Scheduling
The command center at the lab has state-of the-art monitors and technology where the Primavera P6 scheduling software was demonstrated. Integrations with Esri and other data sources allow for the identification of potential issues that could arise during a project. The example was for the installation of a utility line, where upon examining the data, we were able to determine that there was farm that would experience disruption as well as a creek that would need navigated during the installation. This allowed for adjustment of the schedule with a more accurate timeline to allow for those issues to be addressed.
After the immersive experiences, members gathered to discuss what was learned throughout the morning and how it might translate into roofing. They also identified challenges that the industry may face in adopting some of these concepts and plan to work on providing information and education to help the industry integrate tech solutions more efficiently.
If you’d like to learn more about becoming a member or participating in future meetups, visit rt3thinktank.com and choose Join RT3.
In a recent article from Roofing & Exteriors, editor Gary Thill spoke to RT3 members from Furman Insurance and Cotney Attorneys & Consultants about the ways contractors can protect themselves from cyber attacks. In fact, Thill writes that “construction companies are now the no. 1 target for ransomware attacks.”
John Kenney of Cotney Attorneys & Consultants said he has seen more than a dozen contractors who have been hit with ransomware attacks where hackers were asking for anywhere from $20,000 to $1 million, telling Thill, “There are a lot of contractors getting hit with ransomware, but the truth is no one wants to talk about it because you don’t want it out there.”
Furman Insurance’s Nick Ondo, a commercial risk advisor, says that contractors have become targets because hackers know that they do not have strong IT departments with protective measures in place. He told Thill, “A lot of our clients don’t have sophisticated IT departments. These hackers know that, and then they get into the system and passively monitor it and track every move.”
Kenney and Ondo share six ways that contractors can better protect themselves from these attacks ranging from education to software updates to purchasing cyber insurance. See all the tips and read the full article here.
As a Sales Consultant, Coach, Trainer and Leader in the Trade Construction and Service industry, it is my obligation to share my thoughts on the pandemic that we are seeing rapidly unfold in March 2020. I’m writing this so that my clients and our industry will come together to take the necessary actions to navigate what is certainly uncharted territory. There’s a clear medical affect that we are seeing impact our communities and small businesses, but what will impact our lives and businesses even more is the economic ripple effect. Who knows how long this will last? We don’t know the answers, there are too many unknowns. However, we have seen economic depressions before, and we can take the right actions.
My construction business mentor Gregg Wallick told me once that the economy is cyclical. We struggled in 2008-2009 and changed our business radically to avoid suffering the next time there is one, and there will be another. I believe that the Coronavirus pandemic will force this next depression into reality, and we need to be ready and make sure we survive it. Gregg began moving out of the bid-world and focused on building a service and sales organization, which is much more of a recession-proof business model than new construction. He started Sales Training in 2008 and hasn’t stopped since. He’s seen this movie before. I learned why and how he did this, which birthed my desire to start Sales Transformation Group – so the construction industry can have the skills, the focus and strategies to survive and thrive. I’m writing this so that your businesses won’t die, but you will make it. Don’t be afraid, we will make it!
Here’s what you can do:
The Coronavirus will impact your customers’ confidence of having your team members step on property, so record your “COVID-19 Hands-free Process” from “contact to close-out”. People will always need to fix leaks.
Record this “process” in a scrappy way – put in on your website, post on social and email broadcast. Communicate. Communicate. Communicate.
Send an email to your staff and stakeholders. People need your leadership right now.
Allow your staff to work remotely. Require an end of day scorecard and 7-minute morning huddle via Zoom.
Take pre-cautions medically. Social distancing, gloves, protection, etc. I’m no expert here so please find a reliable resource.
Keep Marketing. Keep Selling!
What’s the best way to sell now?
Set up 15-minute discovery calls, 30-minute Project Consults via Zoom meeting (have prospects download the app). Zoom is free up to 40 minutes.
Stick with the sales process! Don’t skip the steps because you’re anxious. This will allow you to differentiate.
Use technology to perform a digital, virtual, hands-free inspection, take-off and estimate.
Present via Zoom by appointment. Don’t email your quotes and don’t be a human panic button.
Who should you sell to?
I’ve said this time and again because of my construction business mentor Gregg Wallick of Best Roofing…noninsurance and non-new construction work keeps you surviving through economic storms.
Relationships with owners and managers of old commercial and residential buildings will help you survive.
New builds will dry up. Focus on creating a great customer experience with repairs, restoration, replacement and retrofitting projects.
How do you find them?
Scrub your outstanding pipeline. TODAY.
Communicate and protect your existing clients. People will be trying to get them now…trust me the competition will be scrambling. Ask for introductions, “who do you know?”
Certain buildings are vacant, leverage this time to complete jobs (restaurants, schools, sports facilities).
Reonomy is a database you can subscribe to help locate contact information of building owners.
Prospect – LinkedIn. Facebook Groups. Next-Door App. Advertise in your local market
What message should you send them?
Use “Vidyard”, “Loom” or “Icecream” to capture short screen recordings. You can Google Earth a video of the building.
Send Linkedin Messages of the screen recordings with an identified problem and demonstration of the problem. Video messages of your face is also different than the rest.
Share that you have a “hands-free process to remedy the problem from contact to close-out”
In closing:
Don’t be afraid. This is an opportunity.
Stick with servicing old, existing buildings.
Share your mapped out “Virtual, digital, COVID-19 Safe, Contact-Free Process”
Communicate. Market. Sell. Sell. Sell. Require all sales staff to prospect digitally in 1-2-hour blocks in the conference room or remotely.
Get ready to endure a medical and economic storm, have courage.
Stick with training and coaching. We are here for you; this is a time to get better and pivot.
If you’re not a member of the Sales Transformation Group community yet with access to my company Sales Accelerator Program and want to become a resilient sales organization to propel you into the private sector of your market, taking the right action and getting the right coaching so that you can weather this upcoming storm, visit: https://training.salestransformationgroup.com/quiz to apply.
AccuLynx, the leading business management software for roofing contractors, announced today it was named a FrontRunner for Construction Project Management Software by Software Advice. FrontRunners is designed to help small businesses evaluate which software may be right for them.
“We’re proud to be a FrontRunner in our software category,” said Katie Badeusz, Director of Marketing at AccuLynx. “AccuLynx is trusted by many of the top residential roofing contractors in the U.S., and this recognition reflects our continued commitment to making our software the best choice for roofers looking to grow their businesses.”
FrontRunners is published on Software Advice, the leading online service for businesses navigating the software selection process. FrontRunners evaluates verified end-user reviews and product data, positioning the top scoring products based on Usability and Customer Satisfaction ratings for small businesses. FrontRunners for Construction Project Management Software can be viewed here.
About AccuLynx
AccuLynx is the leading cloud-based software application for roofing contractors. Since 2008, AccuLynx has helped thousands of contractors—from rapidly-growing start-ups to multi-location operations—streamline their processes and grow their businesses. AccuLynx’s all-in-one solution includes easy-to-use business management tools, such as estimating, production management, aerial measurements, material ordering, photo sharing, custom reporting, unlimited document storage, field applications, and more. AccuLynx is a preferred vendor of CertainTeed, GAF and Owens Corning, and has direct integrations with QuickBooks, ABC Supply, EagleView Technologies, SkyMeasure by CoreLogic and others. For more information, visit our website.
Disclaimer: FrontRunners constitute the subjective opinions of individual end-user reviews, ratings and data applied against a documented methodology; they neither represent the views of, nor constitute an endorsement by, Software Advice or its affiliates.
Sutter Roofing shared how technology is key driver of their success.
100 construction professionals recently gathered at the third annual ENGAGE global customer conference in Seattle, Washington to share best practices for driving greater operational effectiveness, competitive differentiation and employee safety through the use of technology, specifically the Smartsheet platform.
“Smartsheet is a popular choice in industries where technology adoption can make a tangible difference, and construction is a great example,” said Mike Arntz, Chief Revenue Officer and Executive Vice President of Worldwide Field Operations at Smartsheet. “ENGAGE is the perfect opportunity to gather customers for a conversation on the future of the industry and the role technology will play in shaping it.”
The pressures facing construction companies continue to deepen. As business booms, so does the number, complexity, and duration of projects. Many are turning to technology to remain efficient, innovative and competitive.
One example is Florida-based Sutter Roofing, one of the oldest and largest roofing and sheet metal contractors in the United States. Sutter Roofing Chief Operating Officer and RT3 Member John Kenney headlined the event with a discussion of how Smartsheet is enabling the entire organization to run smoothly while driving customer satisfaction and retention.
“We take pride in being on the forefront of technology in an industry that hasn’t traditionally put a priority on that kind of approach,” said Kenney. “Smartsheet has transformed how our teams execute projects. The response we now get from customers, in a very competitive environment, tells us how central it has become to our continued success.”
Sutter Roofing originally implemented Smartsheet to schedule projects more efficiently. They quickly expanded its use across all business functions, from marketing to fleet management. They also developed a risk management system based on historical data of completed and estimated projects that estimates the chances of success on projects under consideration.
Kenney said the company plans to connect Smartsheet with other critical business applications in the months ahead to increase transparency and speed to insight.
If you weren’t at the event and want to learn more about Sutter Roofing’s success using technology, you can watch John’s webinar here.
RT3 member Beacon Roofing Supply developed a recruitment strategy that focuses on members of the military who are re-entering civilian life.
Beacon Roofing Supply Senior Recruiter Brian Link came to the roofing industry from his role as a recruiter for the National Guard. He was on active duty from 2003 – 2016 and is still active today but on a reserve basis. He spent his last few active years as a recruiter for the Guard so his transition into a recruiting position at Beacon was a natural fit for him. He interviewed for his position at Beacon with Dana Bamvakais who was a military spouse for many years.
Photo: Above and Beyond Award from ESGR.Left to right: Dana Bamvakais (Vice President of HR West Division), Governor Mike Parsons, SFC (Sergeant First Class) Brian Link (Military Program Manager), 2LT (Second Lieutenant) Brian Hughes (Market Dispatcher)
After Brian joined the Beacon team, he and Dana began planning a program that would focus on recruiting newly discharged members of the military. “The military in general is a blue-collar type industry where you form strong relationships with people of similar backgrounds and experiences; people who work hard and do what it takes to get the job done,” Brian said. “When you leave the military, you miss that camaraderie.”
He knew that Beacon was the kind of company that could deliver some of those things that those in the military were used to having: that strong team, a stable company with the option to have a long career, the ability to provide for their families and an environment that cared about them. He and Dana worked together to develop the outlines of a military recruiting program that would target those transitioning to the civilian life.
They put together flyers that targeted the Transitional Assistance Program (TAPS) that all branches offer to those leaving to let them know there was a place for them at Beacon. The programs help the military members create a LinkedIn program, develop a resume and teaches other skills that will help make the transition smoother.
Brain cited an example of a person he had met two years previously who was in the military in Florida. He wanted to move back near his family in Michigan and Brian was able to find him a position with the company in that area.
The military recruitment program has the full support of the company, from the Board of Directors to the leadership team and to the employees. They are currently in the process of trying to get their Drive program approved as an apprenticeship so that employees can use their GI benefits toward earning their Commercial Driver’s License (CDL). “If someone has experience driving large vehicles in the military, they will be able to complete a form detailing their experience, taking it to their state’s Department of Motor Vehicles and only have to take the written portion of the CDL exam,” explained Brian.
It’s evident that Beacon is committed to supporting the military by the recognitions that they have received. The Employer Support of Guard and Reserve, the lead U.S. Defense Department program promoting cooperation and understanding between civilian employers and their National Guard and Reserve employees, recognized Beacon with their Above and Beyond Award with the Governor of Missouri presenting them with the award. They also recently received the Military Times award for Best for Vets.
“We really support our guard and reserve troops when they are deployed,” said Brian. “We send them care packages and let them know that they will have a job when they return from deployment.”
If you are a recently discharged member of the military or even if you’ve been out for many years, Beacon wants to talk to you. See all of their career opportunities or contact Brian Link at blink@becn.com.
