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 Construction Rates Daywork App

  on android devices

   It's arrived...

UK Construction Daywork App

We sell a lot of our basic Excel Daywork Sheet Templates, so we wondered how we can give people more of what they want? More importantly we wanted to continue our efforts in decentralisation, increasing productivity and reduce risk, while offering the best value for money we can provide.

What did we consider?

As people spend an average of 4 hours a day on their mobile device, we thought that it would be great to use that Tech and users familiarisation to help improve on the humble Daywork resource record sheet.
Analysis showed that 432 million smartphones were sold in the last quarter 2017, 352 million ran on Android (81.7 percent) and 77 million ran on Apple's iOS (only 17.9 percent), so naturally we went with the Android open source code provided free by Google.

So before we started the tens of thousands of lines of code, we listed out how we wanted users to benefit, here the key benefits we wanted built-in;-

1.0 Provide a familiar and easy to use User Interface (UI)
2.0 Ensure that the User Experience (UX) is a positive one
3.0 Provide an auditable trail from start to finish
4.0 Increase the evidential value of the record, built-in naturally as part of the system
5.0 Provide a quick way to allow 'Pre-autorisation' of the use of a resource record sheets as part of the system, if the user requires
6.0 Provide a free Demo version of the App
7.0 Design a system that can pull the resource record into Excel for easy pricing
8.0 To ensure that the system could also be used to value the resource required in order to aid the pricing of variations or small projects
9.0 Allow the Smart Phone to create/edit multiple record sheets at the same time by being able to save and load records stored in the device storage.
10.0 Create an App that can, generate a record, email the record to the office for pricing so that a fully priced record can be emailed to the Client within 5 minutes 
11.0 Provide in-App help for improving the recording of record sheets
12.0 Provide an on site user App that is compatible with over 7,000 mobile devices, both phones and tablets
13.0 Provide in-device and website help/user manual for initial overview and in-use guidance

What does the App's Workflow Look Like?
 

Below is the simplified workflow and productivity timeline.

Excluding the 'duration of work' in under 10 minutes it's possible for your remote site team to open the App; input the required information; take photo's and send the complete record to your office (adding any additional information they required), then one of your office team import the record into our Excel record sheet, with a few clicks, then adjust the rates and email it to the Client.  The quickest we have achieved is 6 minutes.  That also excludes the pre-authorisation which adds another 1 minute mid-process.

How easy is it to use the App?

As stated above we wanted to make the App user interface (UI) really logical and simple to use, we also wanted the user experience (UX) to be a rewarding one.  Please feel free to read through the user manual, the manual is also available to read with one click from inside the Apps help section.

Here is the user manual click me to download the pdf file   

We don't like using Daywork, so is this App any good for us?

The simple answer is Yes!  There are many reasons for and against the use of Daywork Records, however, this App allows your remote site team to provide your office estimates of the resources that will be required to undertake specific tasks.  So within minutes your office will have very specific resource data to convert in to a lump sum quote or unit rates.  So it's not just for recording Daywork records. It's a bit of a force multiplier.  The fact that it's designed for Mobile Phones and Tablets, means that the information can be taken while in the work location, this removes the need for taking notes and going back to the site office to retype the information into a laptop from site notes.  You can use it internally to keep track of how much specific tasks are costing.  It can aid preparing variation prices or estimates by viewing historic records.  Whichever way you wish to use our Daywork App, it's bound to save you valuable time and money, time and time again.

What do you get and what happens next?

Once we have received payment, we send you our Excel Daywork Template by email.  Inside the Excel template you can click to reveal the Activation Codes, you then type the code as directed into the Excel template.  The Excel template is then activated for 364 more days.  You can then type the code for each user into the free 'Demo' Construction Mobile Daywork App, the App is then unlocked and fully activated (in the case of multiple Mobile App users, a different code for each App is required).  The Construction Mobile Daywork App (Andoid) is freely available to download and use in 'Demo Mode' via the Play Store.  When you enter the unique Activation Code in the App, the App automatically goes from 'Demo Mode' to 'Fully Activated Mode'.  The Mobile App and the Desktop Template are both required in order for the system to work.  One will not work without the other, you need the Excel template to be opened on a Laptop or Desktop in order to get the Activation Code.  The Excel template will not run correctly on a Mobile Device as the versions of Excel, that run on such devices, do not have all the functions required to allow communication with the Mobile App.

Where is the App, how do I get it on my mobile/tablet?

Click here for the link to the Construction Daywork App on the Play Store

More Reading...  Some Interesting Information on Daywork Rates...

Remember that there is a big difference between a daywork rate and a specialists tendered hourly rate used to build-up their measured rate items measured in m, m2, Nr, item, PC Sums or the like.  The daywork rate is often negotiated down to the lowest of the competing contractors.  This can be counter productive if the specialist can then demonstrate that their Bill of Quantities (BQ) rates are made using a higher rate.  This can be demonstrate by Labour Histograms, Programmes and manufacturers prices, invoices and product data. There is no consistent all-in daywork rate as it depends on many factors the main one being the specialist overhead and profit (OH&P). 

The real test of a Daywork Rate

A specialist may look to command a rate which is much higher than their actual costs, this can easily be tested if they are a limited company which has been trading for 2 years plus.  The companies accounts are submitted to Companys House as a matter of public record and are verified by their Auditor.  These accounts show the turnover, workforce levels for the year and the costs including actual OH&P.  By dividing the turnover by the work force hours this gives you the company's fair and reasonable return per hour all-in for all labour materials and OH&P. The abstraction of materials and sub-contractors costs will give the daywork rate including OH&P.  As you can imagine this will be a different rate for all specialists as each will have their own unique 'footprint' of overhead, profit and costs which are governed by how they operate and their efficiency.  The cost of financing their operations will also be included where they operate on bank funding.  Any company that is cash rich will also generate profit from interest etc.

 Common Misconceptions of Daywork Rates

People often have a rate in mind for a certain trade for instance £25.00 per hour for a Painting Contractor.  This is illogical as described above the 'footprint' of the specialists costs and how they operate means that their rate is a provable and testable fact that cannot be disputed or questioned once the proper tests have been correctly undertaken.  Likewise, the addition to nett costs of a percentage is also similarly without basis.  A main contractor my add 3% for OH&P, however, a main contractor turning over half as much may have to recover nearly double this percentage.   A specialist turning over as little as £8 million with 30 Head Office staff and a Workforce of 70 directly employed people may need to recover 35% on top of their net cost in order to properly recover the cost of working on time related tasks.

Professionals should test Daywork Rates

A professional who is providing advice to a Client or a Contractor who is working on an open book or cost plus basis has a duty to avoid professional negligence claims to test daywork rates of each specialist in order to demonstrate 'fair and reasonable' rates are paid and value for money is obtained.  It is also true that a breakdown of tendered rates is not a true test of a valid rate as the use of public records of audited accounts is the only true way to ensure that value for money is obtained.  It can also be establish if the contractor tendered at a loss which should also be applied to all variations and can be used to defend a claim should one be correctly applied for under the terms of the contract or under common law.