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Hard Dollar Enterprise Software
New package helps contractors track
resources and personnel
By Elaine S. Silver
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| Hard Dollar software
product manages important information across multiple
projects using real-time input of information, combined
with a program that displays current resources, cost,
schedules and cash flow. |
Be careful what you wish for. Today, many construction company
execs are fielding more calls for new work and bid opportunities
than they can handle. The trick has become how to manage company
resources to meet the demands of a booming construction marketplace.
President and CEO Alistair Johnson-Clague of Hard Dollar,
a software service provider in Mt. Laurel, N.J., has a vision
of helping contractors make the most of what they have.
"What people are struggling with now is managing the
jobs they have," Johnson-Clague says. "It is a challenge
for all growth companies. How do you take on new people and
bring them into what you do? How do you optimize the resources
for the opportunities that are presented to you?"
Johnson-Clague adds that accurate visibility is the key to
using those resources correctly. A new product from Hard Dollar
offers a way to manage important information across multiple
projects. Visibility comes through real-time input of information,
combined with a program that displays current resources, cost,
schedules and cash flow.
"Someone in one office is working on the project schedule,
and someone else is working on cost," Johnson-Clague
says. "The information they input will instantly affect
the cost, cash flow, etc., and those changes will be visible
to anyone looking at the project numbers."
That visibility gives project managers accurate information
about where to put personnel or helps identify scheduling
issues before they have a negative impact on a project's bottom
line.
"For example, wireless field data collection gives us
an immediate snapshot of people, equipment and resources,"
he says. "If we are running 8-in. duct tile, we would
put in the number of hours the team worked and then see at
the end of the day if we made or exceeded our goal. A superintendent
looking at the numbers for all the jobs in the field can see
which had the lowest productivity and know where he needs
to spend more of his time."
Johnson-Clague says that, too often, management decisions
are reactions to situations, not the result of careful planning.
He adds: "When a manager says, 'I'm going to rent some
more equipment and get some more people,' and he rents $6
million worth of equipment that sits around for a week doing
nothing, he's operating without the necessary information
to make his business effective."
Hard Dollar takes the guess work out of those crucial decisions
and helps a company optimize its resources through an integrated
solution. The system is XML- based and collects information
from other systems, including Primavera and Microsoft Project
Professional, taking the information that a company already
has and using it well.
"Companies usually have all the information they need,
but it is in five or six different systems," Johnson-Clague
says. And Hard Dollar can be deployed quickly. "Training
takes about as long as it takes to work a Treo," he adds.
Cost depends on the number of sites, from an entry-level
price in the mid-$100,000s and higher. It will be available
this summer.
Hard Dollar
309 Fellowship Rd.Road
Mt. Laurel, N.J. 08054
800-637-7496
www.harddollar.com
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