Waters Construction, a family-owned general contractor in Bridgeport, CT, was one of the earliest adopters of HCSS software. After attempting to develop a custom digital estimating solution in the early 1990s with little success, Waters' president Mario Smith read about HCSS software in a print ad.
After writing a letter to HCSS founder Mike Rydin, he received a floppy disk back that contained HeavyBid estimating software. Mario remembers installing it and feeling a sense of relief that he had found a solution to a key business problem: training new estimators to follow consistent processes. More than 25 years later, Waters Construction has standardized their estimating, project management, safety, and fleet management using HCSS products.
“When you buy an HCSS product, you are buying years and years of both programmers and users figuring out what problems they need solved,” says Mario. “There are a myriad of business problems that new and old construction companies have, and their solutions are fully developed functions of HCSS software. When you make (a solution) yourself or buy something else, you don’t get the benefit of all the problem-solving that has happened over those 2-3 decades.”
There are a myriad of business problems that new and old construction companies have, and their solutions are fully developed functions of HCSS software.
Mario Smith, President of Waters Construction
Using HeavyBid, Waters Construction saw risk reduction in several areas of their estimating processes. "People come and people go. We can (now) take someone from our paving division, who has never estimated, and within six months or less, they are able to price things consistently," said Mario.
Empowering Supers & Foremen with HeavyJob
Waters Construction now uses eight HCSS solutions that dramatically improve their business and strengthen their labor force after executives decided to implement the software throughout the company for various job roles. Mario credits HeavyJob, a project management solution, with empowering their users with an ownership mindset that has helped them understand the business and how they can help it grow.
“HeavyJob helps partner the supers and foremen to provide information back to estimators and the controller,” said Mario. “It is a great way of engaging the field with the financial and legal side of the company. It is a more open book way of managing your jobs, and we have seen our employees work smarter for the company as a result. This connects the foremen, the supers, the safety director, and the office to one common goal.”
HCSS software connects the foremen, the supers, the safety director, and the office to one common goal.
HCSS makes an effort to stay at the forefront of technology trends so customers can get and stay ahead of the competition. Mario noted that as personal devices replaced laptops in the field, HCSS listened to the users in the field and made the HeavyJob mobile app a product they wanted to use every day. "Contractors saw the immediate benefits of giving a foreman or super an iPad or a smartphone to communicate. Even people who might not be particularly tech-savvy saw the benefits of that. HCSS was on the frontier of that and provided a good transition for us as technology changed,” said Mario.
The way that HCSS has approached change over the years is amazing. I remain a very loyal customer.
When you have HCSS in the office or the field, you get 35 years of dedicated construction research and software development, 35 years of improvements from direct user feedback, and 35 years of experience providing personal support at all hours of the day.
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