Birmingham, AL - October 15, 2019 - Command Alkon, the Leading Supplier Collaboration Platform for Construction's Heavy Work, and Infotech, a leader in infrastructure construction software solutions, announces a new collaboration partnership. Eliminating multi-part paper tickets for heavy materials, removing poor data capture quality in the field, automating information workflows between software applications, and boosting real-time decision-making across a many-to-many buyer, seller, and hauler community are shared goals of the companies working more tightly together.
"With Command Alkon, we are looking forward to accelerated data capture and reporting standards through automated e-Ticketing processes," said Chad Schafer, Senior Director of Account Management and Sales at Infotech. "This partnership brings in unique synergies, giving Infotech an opportunity to offer a significant technology-advantage for the construction community."
Highway projects historically involve paper and wet-ink signatures for documents and other approvals; leading to redundant work, information silos, and data entry errors. Despite technology advances, transportation agencies and contractors have remained dependent on printed material tickets in order to facilitate orders and payments between stakeholders.
"I'm excited about what this relationship means for heavy civil infrastructure projects," said Will McClave, President of Infotech Systems. "When the heavy construction community works more closely together via digitization, significant productivity and safety gains will be realized by all stakeholders."
With the collaboration partnership in place, heavy material data flows from material suppliers' systems will digitally flow into construction management software supported by Infotech, automating inbound heavy materials management for State Departments of Transportation (DOTs) saving hours of time in the field and office. Connectivity is enabled by the CONNEX Platform. Further aiding the movement to digital, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is supporting e-Ticketing programs through their Every Day Counts initiative.
"We are thrilled to partner with Infotech," said Steve Cox, VP of Business Development at Command Alkon. "Together we are working to bridge the e-Construction gap that exists between the public agencies who build our nation's infrastructure and the heavy building materials suppliers that provide the concrete, asphalt, and aggregates that are so critical to these important projects."
The Iowa DOT is currently piloting digital workflows for heavy materials on a project, enabled by this collaboration partnership. Cedric Wilkinson, Senior Engineer Technician at IDOT, plans to eventually deploy a Developmental Specification to make e-Ticketing the standard on all major infrastructure projects in the state. "Through electronic signatures, real-time communications, secure file sharing, mobile devices, and web-hosted data archival and retrieval systems, IDOT has realized significant benefits across time, money, processes, communications, payments, and execution," stated Wilkinson.
"The feedback on our joint e-Ticketing project with IDOT has been gratifying," states Cox. "Not only have we helped Iowa remove paper tickets from the I-74 Mississippi River Bridge project, but we have also delivered value to their concrete supplier, Hahn Ready Mix. It is a win-win story for all involved."
Hahn Ready Mix uses other Command Alkon systems to produce materials, optimize dispatch, and monitor real-time properties of their concrete while in transit to the jobsite. The CONNEX Platform streamlines information from these disparate systems in real-time, removing the need for inspectors to re-enter ticket information; hand writing data on a ticket, adding it into an excel spreadsheet, and then keying the information into construction management and ERP software. Now, ticket data is collected one time on the jobsite and flows right through, resulting in quicker documentation that benefits IDOT and facilitates faster payment processes that benefit the supplier.
"Implementing the e-Ticket was painless; it basically piggy-backs off the systems we already have," said Griffin Hahn, Sales Representative at Hahn Ready Mix. "IDOT has loved being able to get real-time e-Ticket data on their systems at the jobsite. If we can make the DOT and customers happier, that always works out well for us."
More details will be presented at ELEVATE - Construction's Heavy Work Conference & Expo - in November in Chicago. Visit theheavyworkconference.com to attend ELEVATE. More information on CONNEX is available at connexplatform.com.
ABOUT INFOTECH
Infotech bridges innovation and integrity by developing cutting-edge digital solutions for the infrastructure construction industry and providing expert statistical and econometric consulting services across multiple industries. Infotech's two core businesses, Infotech Systems and Infotech Consulting, use technology and data to bring transparency, integrity and efficiency to the people we serve. With a diverse workforce and collaborative, relaxed environment, Info Tech is a Gainesville-born pioneer of innovation, committed to its family of employees, customers and community. For more information, visit www.infotechinc.com or www.infotechconsulting.com.
ABOUT COMMAND ALKON
At Command Alkon, we believe in building an amazing world. As the Supplier Collaboration Platform for Construction's Heavy Work, we're dramatically improving how contractors, bulk material suppliers, logistics providers, jobsite inspectors, project owners, and more interact. Our See Together, Work Together, and Grow Together capabilities deliver increased productivity, real-time visibility, keen business insights, and certainty of outcomes when building the things that matter.
