As some of you may know, D 7 is always trying to better our company utilizing new hardware and software programs. Among other things, we have purchased large format scanners/plotters over the past couple of years and updated our AutoCad programs to keep pace with the large Architectural firms who we have been fortunate enough to work with over the years. If you are reading this, you have seen D 7’s new website which we believe is one of the best in our industry. In that vein, D 7 entered a recent contest held by Box.net to win up to 20 free Ipads, including free training for the Box.net program that is part of the contest.

With over 700 contest entries, the choice was difficult. We were thrilled when Box.net informed D 7 Consulting that we had been selected as the winner of the free Ipads, etc. We are now embarking on a new and exciting journey of improving our company. With that said, the plan is simple….take our work product and transition from days or weeks to complete paper work in the field to a matter of minutes or at a maximum days at best.

Here is a short version of what we are working on:

Step One:

Quality Assurance Observer watching the installation of a waterproofing membrane on a project in Los Angeles.

Typically, the Daily Report takes several days to get from the field to the client. We will be able to take the same report and have it in the hands of the client the same day! Furthermore, the photographs of the project that sometimes take a week, will be available to the client the same day they are taken! Imagine going from Lead time to Real time!

Step Two:

Use maps or other internet based satellite images for real pictures of the roof or building. This is already being done, however with Box.net we will be putting the information directly into the hands of our Admin staff that will not have to wait until the consultant comes back into the office to develop the report. The information provided by the consultant on our preprogrammed forms will allow the Admin to put the report on his desk for review within a day or two.

Step Three:

Time sheets and other documentation that sometimes seems archaic at best, will now be completely computerized. Our documentation for all services will be handled in a speed and efficiency that will far surpass any other way we had operated before.

Step Four:

Figuring out what to do with the rest of the time we will now have on our hands! Just kidding, my hope is that all of our clients will experience much better service that they will be touting our company as the only consulting firm to work with in the future. So the extra time will be spent working on new projects for new clients.

We want to thank the people at Box.net for this exciting opportunity. You can check out the announcement at their website blog.box.net Look for more updates in the near future as we go through the month long program with Box.net. We will be putting up video of the process for you to view and hopefully gain a better understanding of the “future” of business that we know. Join us for the ride.