Case Study
Streamlining operations with a comprehensive platform
TDIndustries chose Procore for its subcontractor-focused tools and seamless integration with their ERP system
The Challenge
TDIndustries spent some six years vetting various digital construction management platforms. They settled on a widely-recognized solution—one they still felt the need to augment with their own in-house tools. As TDIndustries’ ERP upgrade came to fruition, so did their realization that what they really needed was a truly comprehensive platform that offered today what their current platform only promised tomorrow.
The Solution
Having explored multiple construction management platforms, TDIndustries chose the solution with a developer mission devoted to subs, whose tool suite acknowledged the distinction between a Specialty Contractor and a GC, and whose open API allowed easy integration with their extensive new enterprise system.
The Results
- Single-source contract documentation assures integrity, security, and trackability of information
- With one standard across regions, workers no longer train to separate systems and processes between TDIndustries geographies
- Projected data and guided decisions with portfolio-wide project metadata collected for analytics
“There’s not a lot of technology that is subcontractor-focused. We really appreciate the relationship with Procore—the ability to give our feedback and say, ‘Hey, we want to use this platform, and this is what we need.’ The fact that Procore has a whole subcontractor-focused team that actually vets our needs—that really helped solidify the Procore decision for us.”
Morgan Fountain
Enterprise Project Manager
TDIndustries
From Post-war AC Distributor to ENR “Top Specialty Contractor of 2020”
Like most friendly giants, TDIndustries started off small. Founded by Jack Lowe, Sr. as "Texas Distributors Inc." in 1946, the company set up shop in Dallas repairing and installing heating and cooling systems.
Seventy-four years later they are ranked #45 on the "Top 600 Specialty Contractors of 2020" by prestigious industry-watcher ENR magazine. Over the decades, the company’s successes and expansion resulted in a dispersion of their resources. Multiple offices spread across Texas, Arizona, and Colorado used different project processes and management systems, resulting in document control issues, regional training complications, and a portfolio whose fractured data defied analytics.
The Search for a Single Truth
"We got to a place where we felt we needed to do something digitally in a way that we had not done before—that most of our industry had not done before, honestly," says Morgan Fountain, Enterprise Project Manager with TDIndustries.
In the course of their digital research, TDIndustries vetted— and even adopted—several different name-recognized construction software solutions in several regional offices. The variety of separate solutions soon became a problem. The time came to choose a single solution.
"Procore’s open API allowed us to meet our ERP with functionality so we don’t have to rebuild on the ERP side," says Fountain.
Procore’s tool suite likewise fit TDIndustries like a specialty contractor’s glove—bringing powerful document management to what had been a folder system, and enabling mobile BIM in the field.
"VDC and virtual design is such a big part of our business," Fountain continues. "Having a way to see that model in the field— that is very, very exciting for us. Having one system, one platform to manage all of our information, we’ll be able to manage and streamline information in a way that we haven’t before. The project management portion of Procore is very, very strong."
Senior Project Manager Logan Harper mentions another upside to collating project information. "Having the analytics capability in Procore was kind of like, ‘Wow. How can we harness this?’ It’s truly exciting to have that level of information."
Design-Build and a Devotion to Specialty Contractors
Keaton Laden, Mechanical Engineer for TDIndustries, speaks to the company’s strengths.
"What’s unique about TDIndustries is we have a vast engineering group with multiple licensed PEs," he says. "Our Design-Build capability, as well as our in-house engineering, allows us to shorten the schedule. That’s a huge selling point for general contractors and owners."
TDIndustries has also made use of Procore’s seamless partner integrations, including the Navisworks and Revit plug-ins, and inventory control innovator Milwaukee ONE-KEY™. TDIndustries is excited about using the specialty contractor-focused platform and powerful integrations, and is looking forward to harnessing the potential benefits of those seamlessly integrative systems.
"There are a lot of differences between a subcontractor and a contractor and how they proceed through a workflow engine," Keaton says. "There are a lot of nuances between how a subcontractor and contractor utilize a field platform. The announcement of Procore putting on that lens for subcontractors—that was a big win for us."
