Maximizing visibility for efficient project management

The Challenge

Keller Construction’s progress was being slowed by an ill-fitting ERP with limited capabilities, reluctant adoption by users, and lots of sluggish paper.

The Solution

Keller’s configurable cloud-based platform can be tailored to closely fit each individual build, while yet maintaining a cross-project standardization that boosts efficiency.

The Results

• Clients gain confidence with full project visibility, leading to smoother collaboration and faster decision-making
• Open API allows using only the best tools for each task, improving project efficiency and reducing unnecessary steps
• Continuous improvements through the SaaS model keep the platform adaptable, ensuring teams stay ahead of evolving project needs

Oilfield to Greenfield

Kyle Konsorada came to the construction business from a high-pressure manufacturing environment. Literally. "We made blowout prevention equipment for the oil and gas industry," he says of his former gig. Risk and competition leaned on the daily ledger like schoolyard bullies. Purity of process was key. "We’re Canadian, and there was a lot of global competition. Our efficiencies grew out of sheer necessity." Today Konsorada is VP of Finance & Administration for Keller Construction Ltd. of Edmonton, Alberta. Pivoting to the construction space, Konsorada’s expectations drew on his specialty manufacturing experience—lean processes and single touch workflows. What he found in construction was an eye-opener.

"We were using an ERP that a lot of our people didn’t find very user-friendly, which then led to ‘workarounds.’" These workarounds most often manifested as the dreaded P word—Paper, complicating and slowing progress. Konsorada was amazed and frustrated. "I just didn’t see why we couldn’t have lean processes in construction—why we had to have people touching things multiple times, why we couldn’t automate workflows..."

Visibility Onsite—No Matter How Far Away You Are

Keller Construction found a new platform, one that was user-friendly, cloud-based, and offered complete visibility into the build, for both jobsite teams and offsite owner. "We build a lot of gas stations for a large energy company we work with," Konsorada says. "They want full project access." Being able to offer the owner complete real-time visibility into the project is one thing. Imagine what a Project Manager could do with a cloud-based construction management platform that offers detailed, real-time insight into the project. No need to imagine, actually. "We gained significant efficiencies with Procore’s streamlined workflows, Konsorada explains. "We were able to manage a large scale convenience store renovation program across Western Canada—100 locations—with a single project manager."

Open API: Configurable Toolkit that Fits Like a Glove

Konsorada loves continual improvement. "I’m very passionate about this stuff," he says. "Procore’s open API is huge for me. It’s the democratization of development." Say again? "Procore’s API makes it a free market. The old systems that try to do everything—you’d invest all this money up-front so you’re psychologically handcuffed to the investment. And they can’t be an expert in everything. They’re maybe really good at accounting, say—and then they sort of add on some halfway decent construction functionality—but it’s not the best."

Procore’s open API (Application Programming Interface) allows plugins of niche best-in-class construction solutions to be added or removed based on the project. No more committing to an elephantine system trying—and failing—to be everything. And Kyle Konsorada knows blowout prevention. It’s about masterfully controlling the flow.

"Procore was very smart to have embraced the open API model. Instead of trying to do everything, you’ve created an ecosystem where cutting-edge applications from third-party developers integrate seamlessly with Procore workflows. This approach gives us the ability to keep our users equipped with the latest technology while remaining on a platform that is already familiar to them."