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Making Sense of Mobile Technology Again
By John Goecke
StratusVue
The construction industry is filled with talk of the mobile jobsite these days. Tradeshows, advertisements, and publications are filled with companies touting what new technology will bring, and people are listening. Do any of these statements sound familiar?
"I need an iPad for the jobsite."
"We need to use that new app for punch lists."
"Now I can just share files using my phone."
There’s a mobile gold rush happening, but similar to the original one, it’s a little like the Wild West at the moment. With all the potential benefits mobile solutions bring, there are risks as well, and contractors need to address these at the corporate level. In the coming years it will be a challenge to wade through the hype to effectively select and implement technologies and policies that bring value to the organization without significantly increasing problems.
The Corporate View
Most mobile technologies today are still what are called "point solutions," meaning they were built to accomplish a limited number of specific points or tasks. The increasing choice and simplicity of selections in the App Store or Android Marketplace make it easier than ever to download and start using a bunch of these point solutions across the organization. The problem is this results in project and company data being scattered all over the place. This fragmentation becomes a serious concern at the business level because it is difficult to keep documentation reliably secure and backed-up. In addition, when information from these various sources isn’t synched back to central enterprise solutions the corporation loses the ability to analyze that data to make better decisions. To reduce risk and improve analysis, these point solutions need to be tied back centrally and islands of lonely data eliminated wherever possible.
The Evaluation Process
Most mobile software review today occurs off the grid, when maverick project engineers download apps and try non-standardized solutions. Even if they mean well, doing this without an overall strategic view just confuses things. Why do they take it upon themselves to do this? In many cases it is because the traditional process for selecting software for the organization is too slow and built on the consensus that it is hard to achieve. To keep up with the pace of change, contractors need to devise more dynamic evaluation processes for mobile technologies that allow for quick trials while keeping the big corporate picture in mind.
Device Selection
One of the big decision points for contractors today is:
-Do we supply mobile devices to employees? (controlled, but expensive)
-Or do we go with a bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policy? (cheaper, but chaotic)
Based on the cost implications most are opting for BYOD, but this means that all multiple device types need to be supported. Some apps are only developed for Apple or for Android, not to mention other platforms like Microsoft and Blackberry, and there can be delays between the introduction and updating of apps between platforms. This makes it hard to come up with a corporate standard.
But there is a solution to this challenge. Application providers are increasingly releasing web-based apps that use responsive web interfaces. Responsive programming methodology enables applications to display differently based on the device or size of the web browser window being used. So without requiring multiple apps, the data can be accessed equally well on any type of device – mobile or not. From a corporate standpoint, the ability to remain device agnostic takes a lot of administrative pressure off and gives users the freedom they desire.
Technology Selection
While the consumer market has clearly gravitated toward Apple and Android products, the truth remains that the corporate world is still largely dominated by Microsoft. Whether it is Windows, the Office suite, or the .NET environment, companies have been using and become accustomed to solutions out of Redmond, Wash. As a result, there are some efficiencies to be gained from choosing mobile technologies that run on the Microsoft platform. This is why there has been some momentum recently behind the Surface tablet in the construction space. Although the original RT release was a disaster, the newer Pro version seems to have most of the issues resolved. The Surface provides the first clear mobile bridge to most corporate enterprise solutions and desktop devices. If software developers begin to embrace this tablet and create meaningful apps for it, contractors should strongly consider it as a viable candidate for their needs.
One other challenge for mobile technologies is that many software solutions still don’t interface well together. Improving the portability of data between solutions is a major initiative for the industry, as evidenced by the AGCxml and COSA efforts. Both of these are working to create standards for the market so that information can more efficiently be shared across technologies. Therefore, as these initiatives progress it will become increasingly important for companies to select solutions that adhere to the standards and "play nice" with technology from other vendors.
Alternative Solutions
While most of the talk about mobile solutions is centered around smartphones and tablets, we shouldn’t forget that the point of all these products is to get information into the hands of people where they most need it: on the jobsite. But do we really want everyone on-site to be walking around with tablets? They’re not made for that environment, so the chances for damage and theft are extremely high. That’s why an alternative such as the Knaack Data Vault should receive strong consideration for jobsite productivity. Knaack is a trusted industry brand that knows how to build products for the jobsite, and the Data Vault is no exception. Built to include a computer, monitor, router, and printer, it can be wheeled or lifted to convenient site locations for plan reviews and toolbox talks. And with this kind of solution, drawings or details can be printed without heading back to the trailer or risking the damage of an expensive tablet. The point is, do your homework because there may be options better than the ones that get the most buzz.
The Path Forward
Mobile technology and jobsite-enabled computing for construction are here for the long term. If you choose to ignore or be too cautious about this trend, you will likely find yourself at a competitive disadvantage very soon. But as you survey this changing landscape of technology options, keep some of these points in mind so that you can make choices that are timely, but also strategically smart at the corporate level. |
