Construction

ERT Group provides a comprehensive set of solutions that provide powerful software to integrate flexible systems that allow contractors to manage complex business processes without the burden of a large, expensive information technology (IT) infrastructure. These solutions support and enhance all business processes, assist you in reducing costs, while improving interactions with customers and suppliers, and in making faster, smarter decisions helping you become more competitive regardless of your company’s size.

Overview:

The construction industry includes the building of apartments, office and retail buildings, hotels, schools, public buildings, industrial and manufacturing buildings, highways and bridges, sewers, pipelines, power lines, power plants, and other civil engineering projects. The industry is highly fragmented, with many small companies working as subcontractors on larger projects.  Demand depends heavily on the health of the economy, including corporate profits and local government budgets. The profitability of individual companies depends on accurate project bids and efficient operations. Large companies have advantages in their ability to engage in multiple projects simultaneously and in many types of construction. Small companies can compete effectively by specializing, working in a limited geography, or serving as subcontractors on larger projects.

Market Scope:

Overall, global dealers’ expectations for construction equipment demand in 2008 were more conservative compared to the prior quarter.  Numerous dealers noted weakness in the housing sector along with rising fuel and steel prices as current negative factors to the industry. However, many expected that sales should start to turn around in 2009.   Competition from low-cost manufacturers in China continued to weigh on dealers, who felt that this would be a major challenge for the future of the industry.

Industry Issues:

Material Costs – In the past several years, costs increases for key construction materials and components have greatly outpaced both the consumer price index and the producer price index.  The escalating costs are the natural consequence of shortages of materials such as bulk cement, gypsum, and metal products.  The causes range from hurricanes in the Southeast U.S. to skyrocketing demand for these materials in China, India and the Middle East.

Environmentally Friendly Building Projects – Without question the most important issue for the construction industry at this time is creating better energy efficient and environmentally friendly building materials.  These types of building projects, called green building projects have been in high demand in recent years.  With the recent rise in prices, it is becoming more important than ever that building energy and climate systems use less energy and save money.  According to a recent study, almost half (48%) of public property owners (such as state agencies or commissions) in the United States have implemented construction projects with energy-efficient designs in the past year.  This shows that not only are these buildings cheaper to run and better for the environment than traditional buildings, but they are also becoming more popular as the years pass.  This “sub-industry” of construction is an important one for any construction company to get into during the next few years.

Recruiting and Retaining Skilled Labor - According to FMI, despite the projected need for more workers, the primary working age group (those between the ages of 25 and 54 years old) is projected to decline, resulting in approximately three million fewer employees in this age range alone. With the reduction in available workers and the improving job market, FMI maintains that many organizations will not only find themselves losing their stars to competitors, but may also have a difficult time replacing this talent.

Interconnecting With Other Companies - The driving influence of governance and legislation, environmental pressures, global project finance, new procurement methods and the increasing cost of materials have been shaping the increasingly interconnected construction marketplace.  These trends serve as challenges for the industry, but represent exciting opportunities for construction players in Europe and the US.

ERT Group Solutions Benefits:

Manage projects more effectively

• Improve project management and decision-making through immediate access to financial and accounting information across the entire organization.
• Automate office operations, such as time and billing, to spend more time on value-added activities.
• Develop and enhance key business processes to increase productivity and profitability.

Streamline internal communications

• Improve communication between on-site personnel and the corporate office.
• Provide all stakeholders with common, up-to-date information.
• Increase collaboration with Web portals and shared project document libraries.
• Configure role-based views of relevant data so that employees can easily access critical information.

Improve customer relations

• Manage and track all customer-facing activities through multiple channels from project inception to completion.
• Access a unified view of customer information using a familiar desktop interface.