Last week I began a new series on Mobile Device App strategy. This should be a starting point for anyone looking to start or revise their current program. The question that I asked was simple: When you are looking for new apps do you look for “Point Solutions” or “Integrated Solutions”?
The option I reviewed last week as the “Point Solution” app. It has a singular function that accomplishes one task. This is a stand alone app that does not work with another app or software. This week I will describe the second option of “Integrated Solution” app. These have multiple functions that communicate with other apps or systems. The example I used last week was a financial one. This week I will discuss project plans.
Let’s say that part of you Mobile Device Program strategy is to find a app that will replace your old paper project plans and move them onto tablets.
What sort of app would you use? The app I use allows you to upload plans to their cloud space, distribute them to your internal team, and add mark ups. You can also allow the Owner/Architect/Engineer or Subcontractor teams to have access to the plans. So where is the “integrated” part you ask?
The way I use the is this…
Step 1: Upload plans to the app website from my desktop.
Step 2: Grant other team members members access to the plan folder.
Step 3: My team members add notes and photos to the plans. These items can be viewed by other team members.
The integrated aspect of the app is connecting Workflows: My team members can add notes or photos to the plan set that generate:
A. RFI’s,
B. Safety Alerts,
C. Punch list items,
This app does not integrate with other apps, but it does combine several work flows into one app: view plans, mark up plans, take photos, and generate punch lists. This allows team members to be more productive and use less apps to accomplish tasks.
My current Mobile Device Strategy is searching for apps that talk with or integrate with other apps. My current plan is evolving to incorporate more “Integrated Solutions”.
The Construction App Guru 
This second app strategy is more in line with where we’re going at Newforma. For example, our new Capture app enables users to capture field information by means of notes and snapshots, then assign the notes to a specific type of action item, whether a punch list or whatever. It’s a shift from our old Punch List app, which was dedicated to that one task.
I was surprised to see a survey that said smaller construction companies were not as interested in integrated software. Seems to me that using multiple, separate applications makes more work and increases the risk of items slipping through the cracks! The survey is here: http://www.softwareadvice.com/construction/buyerview/report-2014/
This will be an interesting topic to explore. I think it depends on the size of the company and the state of their mobile device program.