
Your choice of construction procurement software can have a significant influence on the costs, productivity and success of your projects. If you’re looking for a software solution to enable the management of procurement on your construction projects, you want to make sure your teams are armed with the right amount of power and ease of use – after all, a significant amount is riding on what happens in procurement. For most major projects, a substantial portion of the total project costs are issued through purchase orders and subcontracts. You really need to get that right!
Asking the right questions
Here are 10 key questions you need to equip yourself with when performing a software evaluation on construction procurement software systems:
- Can the system be used for procurement of hard items like materials and equipment; as well as for subcontracting services?
- Does the procurement system integrate tightly with the project through cost codes and the Work Breakdown Structure?
- Does the system have an integrated Purchase Requisition module? And, can Purchase Requisitions be initiated from various sources such as:
- the Project Budget
- Change Orders
- The Jobsite as a Field Requisition
- An export from a Drawing Package
- An Import File
- Does the system enable Purchase Order Revisions? Can the Revisions be connected to a project Change Order?
- Does the system include an Expediting module for the procurement team to ensure the timely delivery of goods to the jobsite or warehouse?
- Does the procurement solution enable the recording of receipts separate from invoices in order to show incurred cost at the time the goods or services were delivered?
- Does the procurement solution provide powerful Accrual reporting?
- Is there a multi-stage workflow module for purchase order approvals? Do approvals include signing thresholds, custom designs, and notifications?
- Is there warehouse and logistics capability? i.e. Can goods be procured to a warehouse, then distributed to jobsites from there?
- Does the solution provide powerful, customizable reporting that you can tailor to your own reporting needs?
There are obviously many more questions that could be added to this list, but this is a good start to help you align your top requirements for a construction procurement solution.
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