Collecting and sharing more accurate project information with mobile apps

Challenge: Paper processes hinder efficiency

Ballast Nedam regularly undertakes multi-million euro projects, building some of the most innovative and ambitious commercial, infrastructure, and residential structures in the world. On these massive, complex, and prestigious projects, the company has to follow meticulous quality management procedures to ensure the quality of the finished building and the safety of workers.

Day in and day out, the company’s employees need to collect a large amount of information on building sites and perform quality management tasks (called registrations), ranging from reporting potential safety issues and checking regulatory compliance to recording deviations between plans and the actual build. All the data collected on construction sites then needs to be collated, sent to the relevant teams, analyzed, and acted upon.

Ballast Nedam used to undertake all these different registrations using a variety of paper-based forms and manual processes. In addition, it had a few isolated apps for specific processes that had been built using a range of different IT packages from multiple vendors. The company wanted to replace this disjointed approach with a single business process automation platform that it could use to support all necessary registrations, for all job roles and all construction projects, across the entire business.

Solution: Process consistency & a brighter future

The company used INDOCS, a pre-built K2 Software solution that gives end users the ability to use SmartForms and workflows in the field on mobile devices—even in locations without an internet connection. INDOCS also provided technical support and training.

SmartForms and Nintex K2 Five workflows prompt employees to undertake inspections and send details directly to the right person. They can view building plans, mark locations on plans, open check lists, red-line areas, classify issues, describe actions required, and assign a subcontractor to fulfill tasks—all from a construction site via mobile devices.

As all the information collected is in a consistent format, Ballast Nedam can then use it more effectively in its business intelligence system—to identify patterns in quality management issues, learn from its experiences, and take steps to further improve quality in future projects.

Ballast Nedam expects to make considerable time savings, primarily by eliminating paper-based forms and processes, but also by adopting a standardized and automated approach for all registrations across all project sites. Inspectors and project managers save time, by identifying actions and assigning them in the field in one automated workflow.

Critically, Ballast Nedam anticipates that its Nintex K2 Five workflows will improve health and safety on construction sites. One of the new processes for Health, Safety, Security & Environment inspections will allow employees to monitor compliance with regulations, quickly collect information about safety concerns, send notifications immediately to the relevant team, and ensure all necessary steps are taken to correct the situation.

Den Heijer anticipates Nintex K2 Five will help Ballast Nedam deliver better customer service by improving traceability and verifying project phases. The company can use the Nintex K2 Five workflows to record evidence of compliance with regulatory requirements more efficiently and more easily collect pictures to provide proof that key project phases have been completed correctly. As den Heijer says, “It takes just thirty seconds to document key steps in a project with Nintex K2 Five, so it is possible to take more frequent, more detailed records for our customers.”