The Story
Founded in March of 2010 by the principal owner of R&M Engineering-Ketchikan, Marble Construction is a general construction company that specializes in all phases of construction for private, state, federal and municipality-level work. With a specialization in heavy civil and vertical integrated services, Marble Construction continues to bring consolidated construction services under one roof–from design to final construction–to the Southeast Alaska area.
The Challenge
Joining the Marble team in 2019 after selling his own construction business the year prior, Kris Pearson became an instrumental figure in helping Marble open its branch office in Sitka, where he would take on duties as its operations manager. As the sole estimator in the office; in addition to being responsible for project management, acting as superintendent, and contributing to field work, Kris found Marble’s previous method of estimating through Excel to no longer be adequate for what the company needed
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Previous Solutions
Tired of dealing with the inefficiencies of Excel and recalling experience from a previous firm, Kris first reached out to HCSS for a quote two years ago. The response was disappointing. The price point suggested was too much for the level of work Marble was used to, and the system had not progressed substantially in the years between Kris’s last use of HeavyBid.
"I had used HeavyBid in the past with another firm, and Marble didn’t have any estimating software, and so I convinced them finally after 5 years to do something. I did some research and found SharpeSoft, and it seemed easier to learn than to try and relearn how to use HeavyBid. Marble said yes, and SharpeSoft has been working out for us ever since."
Getting in Contact
"I literally spent two or three days looking at different videos and clips and reviews, and this one seemed like the best fit from the information I could come up with on Google."
As this blog space has pointed out in the past, a suitable online presence is increasingly necessary for the construction software industry to thrive. Had SharpeSoft not contributed as much effort into establishing its presence online, it’s unlikely Marble Construction would have found the perfect software for its needs.
Interaction with SharpeSoft
“From the first phone call to getting set up was about 3 weeks, I want to say. Jonathan even worked to expedite the process to work with our schedule, which I appreciated.”
After spearheading the initial contact with SharpeSoft, Kris was able to hand the rest of the implementation process over to Marble’s office assistant, Abi. Despite navigating a new system with minimal experience in the construction industry, Abi and SharpeSoft worked together to get Marble exactly the information it needed, and added a new user to the Estimator incidentally as well!
“I’m pretty confident when it comes to building roads, I’m not very confident when it comes to using a computer. I put as much of it on Abi’s plate as I could. Most of the time, when I have an estimate or bid to do, I can just hand her the bid schedule and ask her to set up those jobs, then I take over from there."
Younger people grow up using computers and aren’t as well versed in legacy programs like Excel and especially estimating by hand. By making such an easy-to-use interface, SharpeSoft makes bidding easier for the new generation of construction professionals as well.
How has SharpeSoft Helped
“The two biggest things for me: number one is time saving. It’s infinitely faster than having to construct a spreadsheet every time. Then you have to change the formulas for everything depending on what you’re working on, and it becomes too time-consuming.”
“Additionally, you save the spreadsheet, you send it to one of your guys in Ketchikan or wherever, then they make the edits and you’re never sure which version of the spreadsheet you end up working on. SharpeSoft is so much more streamlined and user-friendly.”
“One of the things that’s been nice, when you’re using an Excel spreadsheet, unless you have a very inclusive one, you’re not going to have pre-built crews for different work items because it becomes too many sheets of Excel. I would have to go through our notepad first, and then write down this and this for such and such pipe. It’s so nice to be able to make a crew and just drag it in. Just the amount of time I don’t need to spend writing it down first and then typing it into each cell has been amazing."
More than simply helping with the work that’s already been won, Kris elaborates that implementing SharpeSoft has helped Marble Construction take on more work than ever.
“There’s a lot of times in the past where I thought a job would be too much effort for the end result, I would pass the work up. Whereas now, if someone wanted a simple driveway improvement, for example, I can set it up and crank the bid out in 45 minutes. Before, it would take 45 minutes just to get the spreadsheet built.”
“I probably bid more work now than I would have otherwise.”
Would you recommend SharpeSoft?
“Yeah, absolutely. But none of my competitors!”