Procore is one of the best construction management software solutions available on the market. However, it comes with a hefty price tag and many companies want to see a quick return on investment. Here are some best practices to help your company save time throughout a project’s life cycle, ultimately saving money.
1. Fill out Companies being added to the Directory entirely.
Often when a company is added to the Directory, the person adding them does not complete all the required information. It may be missing vital details that will be helpful for reports and other processes such as Punch Lists, Submittals, Invoices, and more. If you do not know who a specific contact is, or information required about a subcontractor, a quick 5-minute phone call to hash out these details can save several hours of project time on each job. The text topic covers just one example of what happens when a company’s directory profile is filled out entirely.
2. Create & Use Punch List Templates.
Prior to any punch lists being created, assemble a team of individuals ranging from field staff to office staff to help create Punch List Templates. Procore has a standard selection of items that are in the Punch List tool by default, but they might not cover, or even apply to, your company’s work. To do this, go to the Company Tool’s Admin page. On the right panel under Tool Settings, click on Punch List.
From here, you can modify & create new templates along with adding Trades to each template. You can either use a trade for an entire section or assign a trade to each individual template.
When field staff and others are walking around the project creating Punch Lists, they no longer need to modify or type the punch list items name for many of the items. If there is a Trade assigned to a subcontractor with a commitment, they will be automatically assigned to that punch list item. There may be some unique items that are not covered by your company’s templates that are unique to a project. However, your Punch List templates should cover 95% of the items you encounter.
3. Create Locations early when starting a new project.
Using locations in Procore serves multiple purposes. Often, we see our clients naming Punch List items, Observations, and more such as Room 1049 – Paint & Patch Drywall and Room 1049 – Fix Ceiling Tile. While these are easily identifiable from a title, it is difficult to run reports generated from Procore using this method. You can easily add locations by going to the Project Level Admin Tool and clicking on Locations on the right panel.
From here, you can enter in your own locations & tiers, such as Building #1 > 1st Floor > Estimating Department > Room #1049. These locations can be assigned to Observations, Inspections, Punch Lists, and many more. You can create reports & easily filter them by location or provide a report of only open items that may be in a certain dept. or need to be completed prior to move-in by the client or owner.
Using the best practices above, your company will notice an immediate improvement in their workflow. Let Procore take care of the automation and repetitive tasks for your company and projects while your team focuses on the more important tasks. Check back on our website periodically for more useful Procore tips, best practices, and support or feel free to contact us if you are looking for consulting or training services.
