Technology
Procore Releases New Preconstruction and BIM Tools, Offers Lowe's Discount
Closer integration of acquisitions such as Esticom included in new features
Procore has added the first new features for its cloud-based construction management software platform since the firm's initial public offering in May.
Among them is Procore Preconstruction, a new tool that pulls together document management, drawings, 3D model data, design coordination, takeoff, estimating, prequalification, bid management, project costing and analytics tools into one cloud-based preconstruction platform.
""This is a solution tailored for owners, general contractors and specialty contractors who are interested in winning and building more profitable projects. says Aaron Lober, senior product marketing manager at Procore.
Lober said the company's recent acquisition of Esticom has been integrated into the Procore platform, with estimating and takeoff now integrated directly into its project job costing module. Allowing users to connect estimates from bids into financials and automatically create budgets and prime contracts was a long-term goal that's been delivered in this round of new features, he said.
"It’s improved communication between estimators and project teams," said Thomas Bencteux, continuous improvement coordination at contractor Grimard in Quebec. "We used to waste time recreating budgets at the beginning of a project, but now with Esticom we just hit transfer to
Procore.”
Procore also announced new tools for quantity take-offs and benchmarks within Procore Analytics. Building Information Modeling enhancements include a "follow me" feature in feature in Procore BIM that allows users to work together on design reviews and see exactly what each other are seeing in the model. Procore added a dynamic 2D views feature that makes it possible for any user to create 2D drawings of the design on the fly from the 3D model.
"The superintendents in the field still read 2D," Lober said. "So, as they're looking at this model, they're like, 'that's great, but I need to see what the 2D image is,' so the ability to be in the 3D model, to snap from 3D to 2D and start looking at 2D images was a huge thing that the supers and the field users of BIM were really asking for."
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Jim Sinai, Procore senior vice president of marketing said the company has added new marketing teams and channel partners in Singapore, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. As part of its international expansion, a new action plans feature has been created within the software firm's cloud platform to help customers meet the needs of international standards such as ISO 9001 and keep them in compliance with regional safety standards.
Procore's also announced a new partnership with Lowe's home improvement stores, which is now offering Procore customers in the U.S. a 5% to 20% tiered discount on building products sold in its stores and on its website when purchased using a Lowe's business account.
