Nittedal Municipality

A maintenance job starts with someone looking at the building. If the job is going out for pricing, the contractors have to see the same thing.

In practice that means several people driving to the same building to look at the same roof, in a slot that has to suit everyone. On the longest routes, more time goes into travelling than into the visit itself.

Now one visit is often enough

Tommy does several site visits a month. These days he mostly does them alone. Scans, measurements and photos become documentation the contractors open whenever it suits them — without travelling.

— I avoid many inspections with contractors, which they also appreciate in their hectic workday, Tommy says.

Documentation that outlives the job

For a municipality, a site visit is rarely just a site visit. The condition of a building is also a budget argument: if a roof is to be prioritised this year rather than in two years’ time, someone has to be able to show what the situation actually is.

Once a visit has been documented with measurements, photos and a model, it stays there. It can be pulled up again when the next budget is set, without anyone having to go out and look at the building again.

He is open about still learning

— I’m still in the very early phase and fumbling a bit, but I’m getting better every day, Tommy says.

Feedback from the contractors has been good. That is the real test: the tool has to be worth something to the people submitting the quote, not only to the municipality asking for it.

— The contractors have given great feedback too — I bet you’re going to gain a lot of new customers from this, Tommy concludes.