We are very happy with BuildTools using it since 2013.

BuildTools has a great budget module which ties to the financial system, a great purchase order system and change order tracking.

The selection module could be tweaked to include more features (text formatting for example and list building within descriptions)

We have been able to tie together multiple geographically dispersed staff and simultaneously dispense with multiple different tools/desktop based software. It has increased our ability to monitor work performance, share experiences and ensure continuity of work during staff absences as all project information is always available to all permitted users from virtualy any device.

BuildTools has far more features than other systems we compared in its class. This has allowed us to perform not only almost all major business functions: selections & client management, change order documentation, communications, bids procurement, budget monitoring, scheduling, and invoicing but also other important but less well promoted capabilities such as daily logs (for health, safety & schedule deviation monitoring), meeting minutes that permit tasks to be assigned & tracked (for use with clients, subcontractors/suppliers, or internally) among others. This combined with the product's progressive incremental improvements and willingness to occasionally make changes based on our own suggestions or requests add up to good value.

The advantage of having so many features can also be a detriment to new users, for whom learning and navigating the system may be overwhelming at first. This is exacerbated by weak FAQs/video tutorials and lack of proactive hints/suggestions as to how to get the most out of the software. However if one is patient and implements the system section by section as each are successively mastered and while doing so makes use of the excellent and always responsive (and free) support staff, then this shortcoming can be overcome, revealing all of the features and capabilities.

Being able to communicate effectively to our trade partners and clients. Keeping the project managers of each job on schedule with their daily logs and for purchasing by sending PO's to trade partners to be confirmed as well as change orders to be reviewed and approved by the client.

I like that our clients and trades can see the progress of their home as it is being built from start to finish. They can access anything from building permits to daily schedules and pictures of progress. It's a wonderful way to schedule your trades in advance as well to ensure they will be there when they are needed and lets the clients know who will be out at their home and when.

There is no way to create a master schedule for all the jobs for in-house use in terms of accountability. We would like to be able to put all current jobs major scheduling items on one grand schedule. I was told by September there was to be a new roll out of the software including using the schedule as we need and my company would be a tester of that roll out and I have not heard anything since then. There is also little pains such as when pictures are uploaded they get turned sideways no matter that the original orientation was straight up.

We're a small design build company focusing on high-end remodeling and custom homes. We produce design in house, and then provide construction services with in-house project managers and carpenters, as well as subcontractors performing the work. Every client goes through the same process, however, since each project is unique we always have unique tasks to accomplish for each job. We chose a BuildTools primarily because of their task management feature, which is outstanding. From my perspective, it is the only option out there with a Meeting Minutes feature tied to tasks, scheduled events, users and deadlines. We had previously used two other programs that were awesome and I have nothing bad to say about them; it simply came down to the task management feature between these programs. This feature is fundamental to our productivity. The task feature is an undersold feature of the program Working Gantt Chart versus Published schedule. This means I can go in and edit a job very quickly, with drag and drop functionality; I can pull lines for dependencies, easily move items up or down, and group according to my will, with indent and outdent capability. I can play around with different scheduling scenarios, without huge save and alert times. When the schedule is firmed up, I can Publish it and send out notices and so forth. Its a great Gantt Chart and very similar to MS project. There is a Quick Book sync; Purchase Orders and Change Orders are tied to the budget, and eliminates double entry. Picture sharing is very easy and fast, and not limited to 3-4 at a time. Messaging is also very easy, where I can send an email directly from my schedule, selections, and tasks. I can then see this thread in the the aforementioned sections, or in the messaging center. This is also an undersold feature of the program, and it worked really well. Another point of interest, BuildTools operates on a unique database structure, which avoids having to open and close a window every time you want to reform task. There is a marked difference in productivity and performing tasks. The leads and prospect section is also very useful. There is also no limit on the number of projects, so I can keep all of our projects (large or small) in one place. The leads feature needs some work, but they are pursuing it. Our transition into BuildTools was very easy and fast. Customer support has been very good and steady. They are a small, but growing, company and you can see the commitment to customer service. Using this product has directly led to increased project size, as well as increased productivity from our internal team and subs/suppliers. I can't stress enough the positive effect of their task management system. I highly recommend Buildtools for remodelers and custom builders.

The ability to manage multiple projects in real time has enhanced our capacity to scale our business and improve profitability.

Total construction scheduling, document storage, bid package, and cost accounting

Would like the ability to add data fields to align with internal processes