Hardwood Floors August/September 2017

TECHNOLOGY BUSINESS BEST PRACTICES

By Jodi O’Toole

As technology continues to advance at warp speed, it’s a huge challenge to identify those solutions that can truly benefit you on a job site. To help, here’s a roundup of the latest technologies that can help you stay connected to the people, organizations, and information that can help you succeed, those that help you work smarter, not harder, and those that help keep health and safety a high priority. TECHNOLOGY ON THE JOB SITE = CONNECTED, SMART, AND SAFE

Staying connected to job sites has gotten easier as well. Most of us have experience with using mapping technology to find a job site initially. Creating customGoogle maps to plot out all of your job sites makes tracking projects and assigning teams even easier. Visit Google My Maps (google.com/mymaps) to create maps, including pins at each job site, then share those maps with co- workers and even suppliers for ease of materials delivery. Finally, GPS technology enables us to share not only addresses of job sites, but also our own personal coordinates with others making it easy to track which staff is at which job site. There are technologies already built into iOS (Find Friends) and Android (Google Maps Share My Location) mobile devices that can track team members. Even better, make use of applications like Pathshare (pathsha.re/#intro) or Hubstaff (hubstaff.com/gps_time_tracking) that work cross-platform and even allow for time tracking. These not only help staff assignments, but also increase accuracy with job costing. Do make sure to establish, communicate, and abide by your organization’s policies when using this type of technology. WORK SMART When looking for tools to use on-site, the choices can be overwhelming. I want to point out a few that our industry can easily employ to increase efficiency, decrease error (since geometry may not come easily to all of us), and run projects more successfully. The apps mentioned below are available on iOS and Android platforms. The first obvious type of app that assists on-site is a calculator/ converter. Many exist, and some are APP COST Construction Calculator Pro Free and Premium Mobile Pro by DEWALT Free

BigStockPhoto ©

CONNECT When mobile technology came into existence, it was designed for voice communication. Fast forward to 2017 where we use our devices to communicate with others using countless applications, access a wealth of information via the internet, and even connect with others using Global Positioning System (GPS) location. Successful businesses take advantage of these technologies to propel their organization forward. The first way to use mobile devices to stay connected is via your supplier websites and mobile applications. Ask each supplier what information they have available and you might be surprised. Common offerings include new product information, ordering history, and even safety data sheets. The best part is that you no longer have to carry around reams of paper and the information is always up-to-date.

comprehensive to the construction industry while others have stair, flooring, or moisture specific calculations. Those pesky angles and area calculations will no longer slow you down!

STANLEY Floor Plan

Free

Stair Calculator Pro

Free and Premium

Weather Underground (historical moisture)

Free

Wood H 2 0 by Wagner Meters Free

30 hardwood floors www.hardwoodfloorsmag.com