Dashboarding and Workflow Automation SaaS Platform for a Structural Steel Fabricator

Project Description

We offer a complete range of structural steel fabrication services from estimating and engineering to fabrication and installation. By integrating all these services under one roof, we are better able to control the production process and the quality of our steel structures, while staying on time and within budget. 

We would like to build a SaaS platform that will have three major components: Dashboarding, Workflow Automation, and Scheduling.  We are looking for a lean solution.

PHASE 1: DASHBOARDS

We would like to create the following dashboards from data to pulled in from our in-house software:

• Backlog by department
• Cashflow projections
• Cost vs estimate by job
• Projected gross profit
• Risk predictability
• Unit rates

Some of these dashboards would be updated in real-time, while others with a daily or weekly frequency. The dashboards will be accessed by 10 users.

We would need someone to work with us to develop wireframes and then the actual dashboards. We would like a system that would allow us to add additional dashboards as new questions come up.

Please describe your experience in building dashboards in the past and what technology stack you would use.

PHASE 2: WORKFLOW AUTOMATION AND REPORTING

We have information from various departments that we need to share we each other. Currently we use Maestro for accounting, FabTrol for Estimating & Steel Purchase & tracking shipment. We also use Tekla Detailing software for our steel detailing/drafting to produce shop drawings and download information for CNC files as well as download to FabTrol. Our problem is we enter the same information various in multiple software’s and waste a lot of time gathering information. This information is stored in many locations and is very hard to retrieve and get back useful information. We require a system that allows us to enter information the 1st time and share it with the right people, and automatically create reports that puts the right data in the face of the those who need it. We are currently trying to use SharePoint to pull us all together, however we are open to alternate solutions.

PHASE 3: SCHEDULING

We are working with 3 departments working on multiple jobs to synchronize delivering jobs on time:

1. Steel detailing/drafting
2. Steel fabrication
3. Steel Installation

The start date of steel install is constantly changing as a result of site conditions beyond our control. Our goal is to be able to manage our departments schedules in order to be able to deliver our steel on time for the site installation date.

We have tried tracking in Microsoft Project and find it too difficult. We have also tried making excel spreadsheet but finds it takes too long to input the necessary information and make changes which are happening on a daily basis. We require this management tool to be giving us updated information as things are changing.  We also need the ability to assign resources to each department and monitor areas of concern.

Please propose how you would tackle this project and what additional information your require to provide some kind of a ballpark estimate in hours.  We would like to know your past experience performing similar work.  Please also provide details of the technology stack that you would use.