The Hidden Costs of Material Procurement
In the fast-paced world of construction, where every minute counts, have you ever paused to think about how much time your company spends on ordering materials for your various job sites? It's a crucial yet often underestimated aspect of project management that can significantly impact your productivity and overall bottom line.
Let's dive into the intricacies of this seemingly routine task:
Foreman's Request
It all begins with a foreman needing specific materials for a jobsite. This request may seem like a quick task, but it usually eats up 10-15 minutes of their busy day, as they reach out to the office or relevant personnel.
Office Coordination
Once the request hits the office, the real work begins. Staff in the office typically spend 15-20 minutes generating the purchase order in the ERP software and checking the stock in your warehouse (in case some items may be taken from the warehouse). Sometimes, you may also need to split the list of materials across multiple vendors and set up a separate PO for each one.
Shopping Around
If some of the items in the foreman’s list are uncommon, a purchaser may need to shop around across vendors. This means calling different vendors to see if they have the items of interest or request a formal quote. This could easily take 15-60 minutes depending on the individual circumstances.
Delivery Confirmation
After placing the order, another 10 minutes might be spent on follow-up calls or emails to verify the delivery details. Ensuring materials arrive as scheduled is essential to keeping your projects on track.
Onsite Handling
Once materials arrive on the jobsite, the foreman's involvement continues. They need around 15 minutes to inspect the packing slip, ensure that all items are there, mark if something is missing or damaged, and email the office a picture of the packing slip.
Invoice Verification
As the final piece of the puzzle, your team will spend 10-15 minutes scrutinizing the vendor's invoice. This step is crucial to ensure you've been billed correctly: the invoice has to match the delivery slip and the prices match what you put in the purchase order.
In Conclusion
Adding these increments together, a single material order can consume a staggering 75-135 minutes from various members of your team. When you consider the number of material orders your company processes in a month, it becomes clear that this process can consume a significant amount of your valuable time.
Field Materials is an AI powered software solution that revolutionizes the way you handle material ordering. With Field Materials, you can streamline the entire process, reducing the time spent on each order to less than 10 minutes. This significant reduction not only saves time but also optimizes your construction operations, allowing you to focus more on project execution and less on orders.
