The construction industry: a document-intensive industry?
Construction is an essential part of human progress and is crucial in determining the quality of the physical environment we abode. Being one of the primary industries, it has witnessed the advancement of technology at every stage, from better methods to newer materials and engineering advances. When it comes to digital transformation, where does the construction industry stand?
To begin it all, construction firms need to process a considerable amount of paperwork. Before starting a construction project, they must process and manage information and data accurately and efficiently. Not just that, it is a very document-intensive process for all the departments, from the owner to the project manager, contractor, supplier, to subcontractors.
While working on a construction project, they need swift access to the latest documents such as contracts, reports, schedules, bids, tenders, regulations, incident reports, drawings, BIM models, blueprints, and much more. Don’t you agree that it is high time to augment the construction industry with streamlined document processing? Solutions such as IDP or Intelligent Document Processing can easily handle the enormous volume and complex paperwork present in a modern construction company. With increased accuracy and agility, approvals will be faster, and work will proceed efficiently.
The present situation of the industry
Even today, many construction companies rely on archaic document processing systems such as paper-based systems, physical folders, and Excel spreadsheets. Even though firms have been managing documents that way for a long time, mainly because that is the only way, they need help understanding the multitude of problems caused by it.
Architects, planners, engineers, and other stakeholders spend a lot of time filling out important documents and paperwork like bid documents, architectural drawings, safety reports, construction contractor agreements, and more manually. Not only is the whole process slow, but there is also a chance of essential documents getting misplaced or illegible over time. Additionally, due to the fragmentation of pre-construction and construction-based paperwork, it is challenging (and many times impossible) to locate documents for variants and internal and external audits.
Intelligent Document Processing in Construction
One of the topmost challenges of construction companies is on-time project completion that too within the budget along with maximum safety and quality.
A staggering 47% of managers still manually process data which involves inputting, organizing, and extracting data from their systems.
Imagine the staggering volumes and the amount of tedious labor that goes into this, not to forget a small error that can also cost heavily. The sector is currently dealing with a wide variety of documents, including bidding documents, architectural drawings, schedules, work orders, insurance, and more. Implementing IDP solutions that automatically recognize different document formats and can handle most of the laborious processes of identifying, pre-filling, storing, and managing digital, printed, and handwritten documents can be the answer to construction firms saving hundreds of hours.
It can also result in wage savings of up to $50,000, given that the average construction worker makes $50 per hour.
Furthermore, frequent changes in construction projects are a common thing. It may occur due to variable factors like material prices and weather conditions, leading to numerous document revisions, making it challenging to determine up-to-date versions. Physical paperwork users must schedule regular checks to ensure participants have the latest documents.
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IDP Use Cases in the construction industry
Payment interactions with subcontractors:
Change order billing:
Even though they are rarely ideal, changes in scope are frequently necessary. Manually inputting data to reflect these changes could lead to errors or delay the delivery of information to the right people. This can make the process long, tedious, and drawn out.
Approximately 65% of construction managers claim they have missed change order opportunities.
A modern IDP solution can transform the entire process. With advanced IDP, managers can process the time-sensitive change of scope information swiftly and accurately, reaching relevant stakeholders instantly. This efficiency ensures timely decision-making and seamless communication, making change orders better manageable and less disruptive
Payments for time and materials:
Throughout the course of a construction project, the team has to keep track of a lot of materials and hours. These factors can get very taxing. However, a modern IDP solution can come to the rescue by relieving the team of the bulk of the work while assuring accuracy and thoroughly accounting for each material used and every hour worked.
With an AI-enabled IDP solution, you can reduce straight-through processing (STP) by up to 95% and reduce your accounts payable manual tasks by up to 75%.
Streamlining onboarding new suppliers and vendors with IDP:
Simplifying equipment rental invoices:
Streamline financial reporting to customers and owners with a modern IDP solution:
Data entry using IDP
A significant portion of a construction company’s duties include data entry. It is not only a time-consuming, complex, and expensive process, but it is also a highly error-prone one. The process becomes even more expensive with each error.
Even then, 47% of construction managers still manually enter data, although 59% of them claim that doing so results in incomplete information.
Over two-thirds of surveyed construction managers claim to use a modern IDP solution to make data-driven project decisions and spot potential issues. Relying on AI and machine learning technologies, IDP solutions extract data more quickly, accurately, and autonomously, conserving resources and time
Non-accounts payable use cases:
Intelligent Document Processing solutions offer a lot more than just accounts payable benefits for construction firms. They streamline critical document processing, including bills of lading (BOL), purchase orders, and also insurance claims. Construction sites are bustling with activity, with new materials constantly arriving. Each new cargo necessitates a new Bill of Lading, adding volume to the paperwork to be processed. IDP solutions expedite data extraction and process the bills faster and more accurately.
Similarly, in the construction sector, insurance claims are bound to happen. Being accident-prone, a lot can go wrong during construction, such as fire, vandalism, material damage during transit, workplace accidents, and more. A modern IDP solution can expedite the time-consuming process of filing insurance claims. Again, with accelerated data extraction, you can save downtime and streamline the claim submission process resulting in quicker payouts for construction-related incidents.
How can we help?
Intelligent Document Processing can make a massive difference for construction firms as they have to deal with huge piles of documents in all sorts of formats and styles daily. Saxon AI offers tailored IDP solutions that are apt for construction firms alleviating all the paperwork burdens. Not only it goes beyond OCR or manual data entry, but it also delivers much faster and with pinpoint accuracy. Apart from accounts payable, Saxon AI’s IDP solution can process construction-specific documents such as excavation permits, checklists, daily construction reports, water well applications, material safety data sheets, and completion certificates as well.
You can also try our intelligent accounts payable solution – a digital co-worker powered by DigitalClerx built on Azure Cognitive Services and Power Platform, designed to autonomously handle your end-to-end AP requirements with speed, accuracy, and intelligence.
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