Platform on civil engineering, underground infrastructure, energy, construction equipment & construction machinery
Companies in civil engineering derive their right to exist (and continuity) from the people and machines that work for them every day. Not for nothing are they often called the capital of the company. Excellent equipment management and advanced personnel management (HRM) are therefore often spearheads of well-run civil engineering companies.
As one of the largest and fastest growing software houses in the Netherlands, Bouw-Infosys provides specific industry solutions for the civil engineering sector, among others, with which that capital can be efficiently managed.
"Material management does not stop at recording hours of the piece of equipment on a project and of course starts well before that," says Arno Berwers of BouwInfosys. "It starts with questions like: when are we going to invest in which piece of equipment, what is the expected contribution of that piece of equipment and how long do we expect to deploy the piece of equipment?"
Material management is clearly much broader than just timekeeping. It touches so many parts within the company. Berwers explains, "It affects liquidity at the time of investment, it must be depreciated in the fixed asset registration (and thus affects the financial administration), the necessary inspections of the piece of equipment must be kept up to date, and the equipment must be properly maintained. In addition, the equipment must be scheduled simultaneously with an associated operator on the appropriate projects. The operator's final hours, which he records on the phone, must of course be charged to the project and generate revenue for both the piece of equipment and the operator."
That's where the power of a truly integrated ERP system comes in. Construction-Infosys has dealt with this axe thousands of times. "We develop solutions that help in managing capital efficiently. From simple scheduling in a graphical drag-and-drop plan board to recording inspections on the job." The most important difference from the traditional way according to Berwers: "That it is fully integrated with the back office to take maximum advantage of one-time entry and reuse of information."
Getting this right is also paramount when it comes to personnel management. "Especially in these times when good employees are scarce and you have to get and keep them on board. With our so-called fleet review it is immediately clear where the company excels in the field of personnel (HRM). It gives automated insight into the employee base, its composition in age/service years/training/salary etc. and enables you to act proactively where necessary."
According to Berwers, salary has long since ceased to be the determining factor in getting and keeping the best people. "Employee Self Service, that is totally of our time. Employees expect an (intranet) environment in which they can manage their own affairs. Not only to register hours or request leave, but also to upload documents themselves, view or request training. Just chat with the HR department to find out if you get a day off when your brother or sister gets married. And those are just a few examples. Can't offer that? Then the grass is soon greener on the other side."
"A good and integrated system makes an HR employee's life a lot more pleasant. The system signals in time when contracts expire, anniversaries take place, documents expire or certificates need to be renewed, upon which the HR department can act proactively. So much more pleasant, efficient and transparent than using all kinds of separate applications for that." Berwers concludes, "Are your people and machines also your company's capital? And do you want to excel in materials management and personnel management? Then you've come to the right place at BouwInfosys!"
