Project management in construction is a set of activities and tasks that encompass the entire lifecycle of a construction project - from ideation to planning to completion of the structure. This includes many phases and can get very complex irrespective of whether it is a residential, industrial, institutional or heavy civil infrastructure project.
Project management in the modern sense has been in vogue since 1958. However, when these frameworks are applied to a nuanced field like construction management, a lot can slip through the cracks. The complexities involved in terms of financing, budgeting, stakeholder collaboration, scope creep and a dozen other factors contribute to significant challenges and these are hard to navigate using general frameworks.
It is not uncommon to see general purpose project management tools that include the likes of ClickUp, Asana, Wrike and Zoho Projects, being used to manage projects in the construction industry. However, tools that are purpose-built focussing on the niche have an edge over general-purpose tools.
According to a study by the Construction Industry Institute, only 25% construction projects are completed on-time adhering to projected deadlines. The average cost overrun due to these delays are approximately 7%.
Poor and outdated project management practices are key contributors to these delays. According to a Construction Productivity Survey, companies that leverage the right tools achieve up to 70% increase in efficiency. This is a significant impact and can ensure projects don’t overrun projected timelines and costs.
To effectively manage a construction project, the tool selected needs to have a few essential features. These help in timely execution of tasks, fostering collaboration, providing a good degree of visibility to stakeholders and preemptively highlighting potential areas that can cause delays.
Here is a set of essential features to look for while choosing project management tools for construction:
Simple Project Creation: Project creation is the first and one of the most critical steps in the overall process. It is critical to keep this simple and user-friendly. Augmenting it with abilities such as project creation by scanning documents saves time and effort.
Centralized Dashboards: Visibility at each milestone and between stages is critical to ensure timely completion of projects. A centralized dashboard gives instant visibility into several aspects of a specific project and also a comprehensive view of all projects.
Mobile-first Approach: SInce projects can be scattered geographically, a mobile-first approach which allows stakeholders to update statuses and remarks in real-time is an essential feature to look for.
AI-based Insights: Our world is fast-changing into an AI-powered one. To make sure that the approach to project management is future-ready, it is recommended that an AI-based tool that is built to provide insights be used.
While the above mentioned are key capabilities to look for, some of the other factors that should be considered are:
As established earlier, this listing focuses specifically on project management tools tailor-made for the construction industry.
Kyro is an AI-based project management software for construction management which is loved and trusted by many types of customers from mid-market to enterprises.
Kyro offers a free plan starting at $0 which is rich in functionality.
The other plans are in the range of $39/user pm and $79/user pm to suit mid-segment construction companies. For enterprises, there is a custom plan.
You can get started with a plan that best suits you here.
FieldWire is a real-time construction job-site management software acquired by Hilti. It consists of capabilities such as Plan viewing, Task management, file sharing, punch lists and messaging.
What users love: Ease of setting up, tracking, picture management
Where FieldWire can be better: Versioning, Lack of customizations, Clunky user management
Pricing: FieldWire offers competitive pricing plans starting at $0.
Procore is an online construction software for project management, cost management, communications and collaboration.
What users love: Ease of setting up, Ease of use, High degree of usability, Extensive documentation, Training & support
Where ProCore can be better: Learning curve, Expensive pricing, Limited file sharing capabilities
Pricing: ProCore is known to be expensive and it is not known to have $0 plans.
WorkYard is a construction management tool designed to streamline workflows and projects amongst users in a construction management project.
What users love: Reporting, User interface, Ease of use, Customer Support
Where WorkYard Can Do Better: GPS reliability, Mobile functionalities, Integrations
Pricing: WorkYard does not offer free plans and there are some other fixed inclusions apart from the monthly tier pricing.
Raken is a cloud-based, mobile, daily reporting platform for Contractors
What users love: Ease of use, Data management, Simplicity, Ease of access
Where Raken can be better: Form design, lack of customizations, cumbersome report export,
Connectivity issues
Pricing: Raken has a limited period free trial. It does not publish its pricing but the market sources estimate it in the mid-range.
CoConstruct is a web-based and mobile construction project management software designed that has features to help address the various challenges that many builders and modelers encounter on their construction projects
What users love: Payroll & timesheets, Quick communication, Scheduling
Where CoConstruct can be better: Import/export, Cumbersome to setup, Limited integrations, Limited mobile functionalities
Pricing: CoConstruct offers 2 plans - Standard at $99 and Plus at $399 which makes it expensive when compared to other competitive alternatives.
Autodesk’s Construction cloud houses a host of broad applications and amongst these features, it has a set project management capabilities to foster stakeholder collaboration.
Autodesk Construction cloud is a broad suite of different applications and it is best-known for its document management capabilities. However, its project management capabilities typically include:
What users love: Construction document management, Single point of truth, Mobility, Ease of use
Where Autodesk can be better: Lack of simple automations, Lack of support for Microsoft Office (Desktop mode), Gated features under different pricing tiers, Lack of adequate integrations
Pricing: Autodesk is known to be expensive for small businesses as starting plans are relatively high in comparison with other tools. However, the enterprise edition is better priced.
