In construction, compared to other industries, overhead costs may be the major deciding factor for the profit share of contractors. From the Construction Financial Management Association’s record, it is clear that the average pre-tax profit for contractors is very less. For general contractors, profit is about 1.4 to 2.4 percent and for subcontractors, it is about 2.2 to 3.5 percent. So it is clear that profit margins are inversely equivalent to the overhead costs. To increase margins, abating overhead is crucial.
Expenses like material costs, & labor costs, etc. are unavoidable but other expenses can be reduced or diminished by using the right Jobsite technology. Construction cameras could be the right technology that can help in reducing overheads, value-adding, and cost-saving.
Have a look at key areas where construction cameras can help save money;
1. Cost-Effective Project Site Surveillance
24/7 surveillance is considered a necessary factor for construction firms as theft is on the rise every year. Construction projects involve the use of costly tools, machines, and materials that can be the target of opportunistic thieves. This may be costing firms thousands and influencing schedules.
Hiring a surveillance agency is not a cost-friendly solution for large sites. Also installing fencing is expensive and sometimes ineffective.
But construction cameras can provide 24*7 surveillance, without human intervention and video footage can be served as evidence of everything that happens on the job site.
2. Insurance Cost Reduction
When you declare to the insurance company that you’ve had a CCTV or construction camera installed, you may notice that your insurance costs go down. Placing high-quality cameras guarantees your insurance company that you’re taking all significant steps to protect your premises, property, and employees, therefore making your company less of a liability to them.
3. Inhibits Multiple Kinds of Theft
Construction Cameras not only help you fend theft after working hours but also help in defeating insider theft. Cameras installed at the entrance can track the buddy punching and additionally workers can be obstructed from stealing the supplies, tools, or materials.
4. Eliminating Unnecessary Travel Costs
Either it’s the project manager driving between job sites, or a stakeholder flying to a different state to see the project’s progress. It all consumes time and money. This adds up additional costs for the construction firms.
Installing a good quality and cloud storage construction camera can solve this problem and helps in better tracking the project’s progress without physically visiting the site. Project managers can keep an eye on the project progress through time-lapse videos, and address any issues or potential scheduling misfortunes, saving time and easing to retain projects on track.
5. Simplifies & Supports Compliance
Photos & Video footage helps in eliminating the time-consuming manual processes and documentation. Advanced camera systems like OpticVyu provides a feature that automatically transfers video and photo to cloud-storage, which can be used as proof of compliance in case of an audit. An additional feature like timestamping lessens the time it takes to discover evidence of compliance during audits.
6. Cost-Saving Efficiency
Construction cameras offer improved communication, simplified documentation, and streamlined scheduling & logistics. All these results in improved efficiency (maybe called cost-saving efficiency), as all this helps in reducing time spent and keeping the project on track.
7. Post Construction Marketing
Especially applicable for real estate projects where post construction project marketing plays an important role in selling the flats & appartments to end customers. To achieve this, marketing agencies are hired. Such marketing efforts & charges can be easily avoided by creating time-lapse video & simply showcasing it to the end customers through social media, websites, etc.
