Digital Data Entry Solutions Keep Alternate Delivery Projects on Track

Providing updated, Inspection Daily Reports (IDR) on alternate delivery transportation projects once required either more workforce or more than 24 hours in a day. Double data entry – first written, then later typed – as well as downloading, printing, and physically attaching photos, combine to make the daily pace nearly untenable. This left clients without the latest data to help make informed decisions as projects progress.

Now, a new solution is helping Terracon professionals provide IDRs to our clients in near real-time, providing the most current information throughout the construction process. The digital, modular IDR form can be customized to meet the unique needs of each alternate delivery project.

“The two biggest benefits to clients are data management and speed. Where you could fall days or weeks behind in data entry, with the digital report, information is entered once. We also can include pictures, tagging their location when they’re entered,” Michael Jenkins, P.E., Terracon’s national director of construction engineering services, said. “Clients can now see exactly what happened (in near real-time).”

An Inspectors Daily Report that Keeps Pace With the Project

Creating the IDR on an alternate delivery project was once a study in redundancy. Notes from a field book would need retyping in an IDR. Any necessary photos would be printed and placed in a folder to be paired with the corresponding IDR at some point in the future.

Our data collection software integrates the reports into our team’s smartphones. Photos are automatically embedded and attached. The report is also modular, so new sections can be easily added and tracked by activity code. Crews, costs, and locations are all automatically attached when the data is entered into the form, making it simple to filter and find specific information quickly. When work wraps for the day, the IDR is ready for review.

When project hold points are reached, Terracon professionals can quickly incorporate checklists into the IDR to validate all requirements are in-place before the project proceeds.    Terracon IDRs are tagged with up to 14 items of live data, allowing the reports to be quickly and easily filtered and sorted to however the user desires. If and when audits arise, we can easily and quickly provide the necessary information.

Construction material deliveries also need to be tracked from the moment of arrival until they become part of the project. The materials-receiving process we’ve developed allows our professionals to collect all delivery information and certifications with their mobile devices. This information is then automatically fed to our materials tracking database such that the team always has a live view of the amount of certified materials on site. We can take photos and track all pertinent information, including pay, items, quantities and more for an efficient and transparent process.

Easy Access to All Your Project Data

The value of project data rises when it’s easily accessible. Terracon Compass, our project collaboration portal, gives clients secure access to see all of their project quality data with just a single password. We also offer a web-based data analysis and management tool, iTRAMS, that lets the entire consulting team quickly sort, organize, compare, and filter large data sets.

The professionals in our alternate delivery division understand the pace and timing of these projects. Our digital IDR – and other digital services – give you the tools to maintain a quality project, provide timely data that helps prevent rework scenarios, help contractors save money, and keep essential alternate delivery projects on track through their transparent quality processes.

Let’s partner together to keep your next project on track.