Towards the end of 2016, our friends over at Software Advice, a homebuilding software consultancy,聽analysed small and midsize businesses (SMBs) and their needs when it comes to construction software. For three consecutive years now, Software Advice has been conducting an annual analysis of their construction software buyer consultations with the aim of studying buyer trends to understand the changes in these market trends over time. Their report for 2016 presented some interesting findings and insight into construction software industry and painted a clear picture of the buyers鈥� industry-specific needs.
To summarise their latest construction software buyer report, the key findings for 2016 are as follows:
60% look for estimating capabilities in a software.
24% want to increase project transparency and improve tracking.
50% are currently using manual methods to calculate takeoff, prepare bids, and manage projects.
As these small and midsize construction companies plan to expand, the study indicates that they are slow to adopt new construction software, that they look for software that would improve project estimating and tracking, and that they seek for useful software that would replace manual methods capable of supporting processes throughout the project lifecycle.
鈥淥ur 2016 analysis of trends among construction software buyers revealed an interesting finding: while pre-sale functions such as estimating and takeoff continue to top the list of capabilities most-often requested by consumers, we found that contractors are increasingly looking for solutions that streamline the actual build process. In fact, when taken together, project management (encompassing requests for project tracking, scheduling, and document management) is the number one capability required by SMBs.
We also found 6 percent of buyers specifically requested solutions with construction apps. These customers need tools that allow contractors and technicians access to the primary system while out on job sites. This makes critical information, such as RFIs and change orders, immediately accessible to all parties, helping to improve transparency and reduce errors.
However, it鈥檚 important to note that nearly every construction software available for cloud-based deployment is going to include a corresponding mobile application with the purchase of the subscription license. As such, the percentage of buyers looking for mobile connectivity is likely much higher than the 6 percent referenced above.鈥�
– Eileen O鈥橪oughlin, Market Research Associate for Software Advice