Contractors’ views on project scheduling—and the contractor scheduling software that supports the process—vary widely. Some view scheduling as a necessary evil to satisfy the building owner’s need for control. Others view it as an important discipline for delivering work on-time and on-budget. Typically, the larger and more complex the job, the more important scheduling becomes to both the contractor and the owner. Generally speaking, as jobs get more complex, job scheduling software for contractors becomes more important. Regardless, scheduling tools available on the market range from a small desktop construction scheduling program to sophisticated multi-user systems integrated within broader. This guide attempts to parse through these offerings for the construction scheduling software buyer.
Here’s what we’ll cover. What Is Construction Scheduling Software? Construction job scheduling software supports management of labor, resource, material and equipment schedules.
These programs allow a user to define phases and tasks, and then match them with the labor, materials and resources required to complete each task and phase. Of course, labor and resources introduce constraints and dependencies, which in turn affect the schedule and completion date.
Construction schedule software runs complex calculations “under the hood” to account for these dependencies and constantly recalculate the project schedule. Screenshot of Buildertrend user dashboard Most project scheduling applications make use of the critical path method—an algorithm that calculates the minimum amount of time required to complete a project based on required tasks and dependencies. The user interface is typically visualized through a Gantt chart, which displays each task as a line item, and then illustrates its duration and order with horizontal bars. More sophisticated functionality includes network diagrams, percent completion graphs and what-if scenario planning.
Please check out the Quick Start Guide before getting started, to improve scheduling efficiency by 10+ times. Quick Start Guide.
What Type of Buyer Are You? When evaluating the best vendors, it helps to identify yourself with one of the specific types of buyers we see in the market: Major project scheduler. These buyers are focused almost exclusively on scheduling and are fully embracing the need to automate this function. Their schedules are extremely detailed, and they run multiple scenarios. They are often interested in sophisticated functionality like earned value analysis.
These buyers will be best off with best-of-breed systems with enterprise-class capabilities. Project manager. This type of buyer may also be a sophisticated scheduler, but is also concerned with other construction management functions, like cost control and document management. As a result, they prefer to use the scheduling application offered within their construction management system.
Typically, they also want to publish some or all of the schedule to other participants over the Web. Desktop scheduler. These buyers value planning and create fairly sophisticated schedules, but do not have the same multi-user requirements. Their needs can be met with straightforward residential construction scheduling software for desktops, such as Microsoft Project or VirtualBoss.
Calendar manager. Some buyers just don’t need to create complex schedules. They may manage smaller, less complex projects, or they may prefer to manage “by the seat of their pants.” In these cases, a simple calendar application may suffice. Most solutions will include a calendar, which will address these buyers’ needs. There are also options on the market that provide construction scheduling software free of charge. The Vendor Landscape The next step in selecting construction project scheduling software is to map your buyer type to the top-rated vendors that serve the market.
This type of buyer. Should evaluate these systems Major project scheduler Oracle Primavera P6 Project manager e-Builder, HeadsUp, Oracle Primavera P6, PMWeb, Procore Desktop scheduler Microsoft Project, VirtualBoss Calendar manager Microsoft Outlook, Google Calendar Benefits of Project Scheduling As we mentioned above, there is often some debate over the value of developing schedules—field supervisors sometimes find them burdensome, while most managers and owners view them as critical.
We concur that schedules are very important, and we see the following benefits:. Better planning. The scheduling process requires managers to consider their phases, tasks, resources and labor in greater detail. Managing this activity simply leads to more thoughtful planning. Faster time to completion. When properly scheduled, projects can be completed faster by removing bottlenecks, such as when the workforce waits on a prior phase to be completed. Lower costs.
By more effectively scheduling resources, project managers can reduce costs. For example, a job requiring the rental of a crane can rent that crane for fewer days if its tasks are scheduled more closely together and all materials and labor are scheduled to make most efficient use of that resource. Improved accountability. When things go wrong, it helps to have a record of what was originally planned. This way all parties can identify what factors caused bottlenecks and assign responsibility accordingly.
Market Trends to Understand There are a few market trends that are playing out in construction project scheduling application market. Here are a couple that you should understand: The move to Software-as-a-Service (SaaS). Project schedule software is a subset of project management systems, which vendors are offering in the SaaS model more frequently. In the SaaS model, the vendor hosts and maintains the servers, database and code for the application. This significantly reduces the upfront investment in a system. Development of mobile functionality. In an industry where many employees spend a significant amount of time out at a jobsite, developing mobile construction scheduling programs is an area of increasing focus. With of adults in the United States owning smartphones and tablet adoption growing, some vendors are focusing on building native functionality for the iPhone, iPad and Android-enabled devices.
Of course, Web-based options are also accessible via the device’s web browser even if a vendor has not developed native functionality. There is also a growing number of third-party free construction scheduling software apps to help improve contractor scheduling.
Is a top-rated alternative to the stock iPhone calendar app because it strikes a great balance between deep features and ease of use. It has all the features of competing apps, including the ability to view your calendar by day, week, month or year, and easily drill down to view individual events. It lets you add events using natural speech, such as 'Meet Ted for lunch at 2:00 on Tuesday.'
Fantastical 2 parses your sentence to fill in all the relevant information and then automatically notifies you when the event approaches. Most importantly, the app is intuitive and easy to use. For example, moving an event to a different time or day is as easy as tapping and holding, then dragging it to the correct spot on your calendar. One newly added feature is detailed location info for meetings, including a map. It also has an easy-to-use reminder feature, so you can casually voice your tasks you want to be reminded of later.
Puts the focus squarely on the minutiae of your daily tasks, then provides the tools you need to see if you're spending your time wisely. It has an easy-to-use interface to help you quickly plan out your day in the morning, letting you place items in color-coded categories such as Work and Free Time. The app then generates charts to help you see, at a glance, where your time is going – a key feature for small business owners who make their own schedules.
Like other day-planner apps, Schedule Planner allows you to set custom alerts, repeat tasks, and move items around with easy copy-and-paste functionality. Can help you burn through tasks by adding tons of extra functionality to the traditional to-do list format. In addition to setting up simple checklists, the app lets you set due dates and even rank tasks by priority to help you identify your next action item. A paid business version of the platform allows you to better collaborate with the rest of your staff. It includes project management features, including the ability to assign individual tasks to a larger project and designate tasks to a specific team member. Todoist features dozens of integrations with other apps, including Dropbox, Slack and Google. Credit: Apple App Store is an all-in-one productivity app that allows you to record tasks and group them in projects.
Organizing tasks this way can keep you focused on the projects you need to get done. You can customize your tasks and projects by adding location data, collaborators, priority and even energy level.
It has an easy-to-navigate interface where you can review your list of tasks. Custom notifications will keep you on track and can even be sent to your Apple Watch. This app integrates with Siri, so you can record tasks with your voice. It's sort of like Siri, only smarter. In fact, parts of are in Siri. This app is not only a comprehensive, live encyclopedia, but it gives you a serious computational knowledge engine that can help you with any type of math or science problem.
Wolfram Alpha can give you quick answers to complicated math equations, making it one of the best calculators ever. It has a wide variety of uses and is knowledgeable in hundreds of subjects. From currency conversions to the nutrition facts of your meal, Wolfram Alpha is the ultimate reference guide. Credit: Apple App Store is a powerful PDF reader and editor that has all the essential tools you need to handle PDF and more. The app has lots of editing tools, including font recognition and editing, so you can change the style, size and color of text. Its annotation tools let you leave notes in texts boxes or with freehand drawing.
The camera feature allows you to snap a photo of a document and immediately turn it into a customizable PDF. You can convert PDFs to TXT, Word, HTML and dozens of other file formats. It integrates with Dropbox, Google and other services for easy sharing. Sometimes the best ideas pop into our minds when we're working on other projects, but getting them written down and keeping track of where they are can be a real problem. Is a great app for iPhone users who prefer to jot down their notes by hand. It's like having a notepad that never runs out of paper and saves all your ideas to the cloud.
You can create diagrams, charts and sketches with a wide variety of pens. It also has the organizational flexibility to make subsets for notes on random thoughts or specific topics, allowing you to keep track of individual projects. Paper also offers a stylus for sketching for an additional $54. Additional reporting by Anna Attkisson and Matt D'Angelo.