Peak construction season is fast approaching, which means organizations are now compiling their most competitive bids. The average win rate for these proposals: a mere 44% – leaving a significant margin for improvement. In 2022, companies want to see detailed, data-heavy initial plans – with the assurance that they’ll remain informed throughout the entire build process. Adding new technologies to these submissions is often the difference between a won or lost bid, and tools like drones, 360 cameras, virtual walkthroughs, and ground robotics can tip the odds in your favor. In order to win more jobs and, overall, promote better client relationships, integrating a drone solution into your firm’s current operations is essential.
Tailoring Bids to Unique Customer Expectations
So much of construction is inherently subjective, which is why adjusting project plans to the customer’s unique asks is crucial to winning more bids. While this is historically time-consuming, automating long-held processes will be key to efficient bid generation. Although an internal management system can store and templatize offers, autonomous vehicles provide the color. Capturing pre-build images of the site, generating potential 3D models of construction, and establishing a system of consistent progress reporting will ease client concerns pre-approval. Setting these timeline and data-sharing expectations upfront, with the help of developing technologies, will increase overall proposal selection with minimal additional effort required.
Sharing Project Data Internally & Externally
Post-bid, transparency will be essential to continuous positive relationship building. Repeatable aerial drone flights or on-the-ground walkthroughs of build progress provide project managers and owners the opportunity to share data throughout every stage of the project. This is a win-win for both parties, especially when building a historical database to ensure contract compliance. Supporting or disputing claims, storing permits, and creating a visual record of proof of work done is a built-in insurance policy for construction companies. Drone solutions supply unquestionable photographic visuals that display alignment with time and cost goals for external stakeholders and third-party inspectors. Internally, the service is a clear, referenceable map of field conditions for contract changeovers – requiring no travel costs.
Creating an Immersive Site Experience
Similarly, drone technology creates a seamless, virtual site experience for those unable to put boots on the ground. The level of detail and accuracy at which ground robots and 360 cameras provide include minute electrical units, paint chips, and more. For teams working remotely, this allows for a comprehensive view of projects in each stage of their build. As one of our customers put it, “This makes the site familiar the first time our teams get there.” Instead of sending full crews to the site to capture data, only one person is needed to generate site context. With automatic uploads, everyone can say they’ve been to the jobsite in just a few hours.
Design bids that stand out by showcasing state-of-the-art construction technology. While the ability to marry the company’s visual recording system with what’s happening in the field is new, it’s already been vetted and proven to improve the profitable execution of projects. By letting owners know that they’ll be able to view their jobsites at their discretion virtually, organizations are setting the tone for the rest of the project – one that emphasizes clear communication, transparent relationships, and accurate reporting.
If you’re interested in bringing DroneDeploy to your construction site, watch our webinar detailing our Procore integration, or contact us.