The Bank of England has forecast a “very challenging” two-year recession – but technology presents an opportunity.
Archdesk has launched Archdesk Essentials, a product for specialist contractors to help them during the recession and beyond.
Construction is often the first industry hit by a recession as investment into infrastructure, development and refurbishment declines.
Archdesk Essentials is a business and project management platform for contractors. Everything is managed in one place, with tools like dashboard reporting on live project financials.
This solves a big problem that will hurt more in a recession where rising inflation and material costs drive people out of business.
Most firms don’t know how much money they make or lose on projects until they check the bank once it is finished – when it’s too late.
Adopting technology like Archdesk gives insights into where they make and lose money on projects. Instead of cutting margins, contractors produce bids based on efficiencies.
Starting at £300 a month per user, Archdesk Essentials is available ‘out of the box’. Contractors can be up and running almost immediately instead of going through a longer implementation period.
The user-based pricing means firms with a few employees can use a critical technology that scales with the business. Costs are clear from the start so nothing unexpected will bite them later.
Key Features include:
- Dashboard reporting to see everything happening on projects, estimates and contracts on a single dashboard.
- Financial Management to track and manage expenses, profits, payments, invoices and orders on projects.
- Project Management to create a programme of works for projects, overseeing scheduled tasks, resources and responsibilities.
Michal Mojsesz, CEO of Archdesk, says: “Essentials is our response to the recession. Digital tools like this could be the difference between contractors leaving the downturn stronger than they entered it, or collapsing in 2023.
“We have spoken with thousands of smaller contractors. Most do not feel equipped to adopt our flagship configurable product but pushed for a turnkey solution. We knew we had to answer.”
Over 50% of construction companies have 13 or fewer employees, according to the Office for National Statistics. Many see the upfront time and money cost as a barrier to entry – even if the long-term payoff is clear.
At the same time, many still rely on spreadsheets and a mix of siloed tools. It is partly why 95% of data captured in construction and engineering goes unused, according to an FMI white paper.
This data becomes invaluable when a recession hits, while firms battle rising materials costs and a skills shortage. It finds opportunities to exploit and warns them when things might go wrong.
Archdesk Essentials lowers the barrier to entry into technology. It gives specialist contractors access to construction-specific tools that improve their business management.
Construction had the highest number of insolvencies in the 12 months preceding Q3 2022. That’s 3,949 companies and 19% of all collapses in that period. With a recession looming, contractors need to change how they operate.
“Now, more than ever, contractors need support from digital technology,” says Michal.
To learn more about Archdesk Essentials, please visit: https://bit.ly/3Xqhis9
