DESTINI Estimator Helps Serve Clients Better
DESTINI Estimator estimating software helps improve communication with clients and improves their experience. Benchmark Construction tells how in this case study.
Founded in 1985, Brownstown, Pennsylvania-based commercial contractor, Benchmark Construction lead by their core values of balance, integrity, leadership, and loyalty. It is through living by these core values that Benchmark exceeds client expectations and is dedicated to “positively impact and elevate the people and communities” they serve. They do this through fostering a culture of collaboration and by focusing on their team’s growth and well-being.
Part of that growth is embracing innovative ways of thinking. The forward-thinking culture of Benchmark means exploring tools and technology that benefit their team, the company, and above all—their clients.
Because the customer’s journey begins before a project breaks ground, preconstruction plays just as big a part as design and work in the field. Benchmark’s commitment to preconstruction means collaboration starts at the beginning.
Benchmark writes, “Benchmark has developed a comprehensive preconstruction system that will enable our clients and the project team to make confident decisions every step of the way. Preconstruction is not just about numbers and pricing a set of drawings. Our collaborative approach creates efficiency, builds certainty in the pricing, and ensures a consistent direction. It also brings value to the design documentation, the building product, and the overall project’s success.”
Part of being successful means that Benchmark’s preconstruction team needs a tool that helps them collaborate better, both internally and externally.
The Challenge
Like most teams using legacy software and disjointed systems, Benchmark’s precon team was working in silos. Each estimator was doing their part of the estimate separately and then at “the 11th hour,” as Matt Shehan, Benchmark’s Vice President of Preconstruction Services, puts it, “gluing the estimate together.” And “in another spreadsheet, they were manually typing in a lot of information.”
One of the biggest problems with that was they couldn’t see how much money they were making on the project.
Besides the challenge of being collaborative and not being able to note profitability, Benchmark’s preconstruction team says that it was difficult getting information out of their legacy system and into a report that presented well to clients.
As is the issue with older software, the tools Benchmark were using weren’t ever updated. Nothing was changing. Benchmark was one of the early adopters of this particular legacy program and to “computerized estimating,” says Matt. It was time to look for an innovative and integrated product that would replace the older system.
In 2020, Benchmark began the exploration of preconstruction solutions and found Beck Technology’s DESTINI Estimator.
The Solution
The Team Estimating and Dashboards features in Beck Technology’s DESTINI Estimator construction estimating software, enable Benchmark’s precon team to collaborate internally and externally quickly and easily—especially presenting project data in a way their customers want to see it, giving their precon team an immensely powerful way to communicate.
Tamara Altom, Benchmark Project Estimator, says “it is now a way more collaborate process in general.”
The ease of use and versatility of Dashboards allows the preconstruction team at Benchmark to show the client the detailed information from the estimate in the way they want. Being able to “fine tune” the estimate and mold it the way a client can understand has helped them a lot. “Some programs,” Tamara points out, “it’s really hard to do that in a matter of minutes.”
“The magic of it is the Excel-based Dashboard,” says Matt.
The Results
In DESTINI Estimator’s Project Tab and Dashboards, Benchmark’s preconstruction team has been able to create a report that calculates profitability of a project in real time, allowing them to adjust their strategy as they go.
Another feature Benchmark’s team loves is the model-based estimating and BIM 360 integration. “Without information, it’s just Legos,” says Matt.
But most importantly, it’s being able to better serve and take care of their clients. The investment is “worth it,” says Tamara. “It’s a competitive industry. You don’t want to be lagging behind. Customers enjoy innovation,” she continues.
Besides the cutting-edge features that set DESTINI Estimator apart, Matt says it was the people behind Beck Technology. Matt points out that it was the “customer service aspect that sold me.” It was Beck Technology’s continual commitment to adding new features and listening to user feedback. “The people we deal with are just as much of a piece of that,” says Matt.
For Benchmark, it isn’t about the bells and whistles, it’s about the people that drive the innovation, passion, and caring behind the product.
Benchmark cares about its employees and its clients and aligning with a software vendor that’s culture and drive is the same was an important driving factor in their choice.
Doug Maiden, Beck Technology Customer Success Specialist says, “A rolling stone gathers no moss is a proverb first credited to Publilius Syrus. Matt Shehan, Andy Strausner, and Kevin Zimmerman exemplify this behavior. Benchmark is Beck Technology’s ideal customer profile. They embrace change and are constantly striving to improve. It has been a pleasure to collaborate with them in Customer Success as we produce a better tomorrow together.”
If you would like to see how DESTINI Estimator can help your team collaborate better and wow clients, click the button below to schedule your demo today!