#1 most frequent
United States of America
77.3%17 installations of 22
What is NoteVault?
NoteVault is a construction reporting tool with three components. The Notes! app is supported by an audio-to-text translation service, and the Crew! app allows users to track labor, materials, and equipment quantities. The AlertMe! app supports group calls for issue notification.
Categories & Use Cases
Videos
Top Performing Features
Photo documentation
Users can document construction progress and/or issues by uploading photos from the field.
Category average: 8.4
Jobsite reports
Users can create and share reports on jobsite safety, daily progress, etc.
Category average: 8.3
Areas for Improvement
Who Buys & Uses NoteVault
#2 most frequent
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
9.1%2 installations of 22
#3 most frequent
Canada
4.5%1 installation of 22
Definite time saver for Superintendents
Pros
- Being able to take unlimited pictures every day and provide short or lengthy captions for each picture
- Ability to edit and correct a daily report, and have it reissued with new information
- Customer support has been excellent
Cons
- There are times when the uploads from the cellphone are slow, but that does not occur too often
Return on Investment
- Daily reports get published the following day after downloaded to NoteVault.
- From an executive standpoint, I am able to track the progress of each project on a daily basis and to be able to focus my efforts to the project that needs help.
Other Software Used
Procore
Notevault is helping our Mechanical company save on overhead costs and lost time for project documentation
Pros
- Notevault is fantastic at being able to access status and overview of projects and reports for the whole project, to keep tabs on production and where we are at in the sequence and how it's being effected by other trades. This has been a huge time saver when any job issues have come up.
- Since the field lead has to document and photograph job status daily, and since it GPS locates where the report is being done, it's been great for holding workers accountable for their hours and production, without requiring constant supervision.
- It's also been fantastic for proving quality and condition of our work. My workers notate and photograph project status and condition daily, so if there's any question of damage by other trades, sabotage by other trades, or other issues, we have plenty of ammunition.
- Note vault is also great because of how it allows us to save PDF Versions of the daily reports to send to interested parties or customers to show status and conditions. Hard to argue with pictures that are time/date stamped.
Cons
- The labor interface has a bit of a learning curve. It does take some training for both apps but generally the guys can get a handle on it.
- Adding pictures can be a bit clunky at first, but the guys seem to work it out fast. Like anything, the guys with aptitude for electronics grab it faster than the older guys who are used to old school methods
- I'd prefer the apps combined into one function.
Return on Investment
- Great return on investment simply because field leads are no longer spending an hour at the end of each day in the truck trying to remember what they did all day, and handwrite a daily report that details it. Information is more accurate and faster since they daily report 'as it happens'.
- Integration of the pictures into the final report as archival and real world examples make it far easier to justify billing and site conditions
- Being able to email reports direct to the customer without having to prepare or translate has save countless hours of office overhead and made the entire process much more efficient.
Other Software Used
QuickBooks Pro
NoteVault Works For Us
Pros
- As a delay has occurred in the field, the foremen are able to report it immediately. The project manager now gets this information as it happened, not just trying to remember the next time they talk or see each other.
- As an RFI arises, the foremen can ask their questions immediately so that the PM can address it right away.
- We input our manpower on a daily basis, which helps us project where we are as it pertains to hours on a job.
Cons
- The app could be a little more similar to the desktop version. There are a lot of features on the desktop version that aren't available in the app. This does keep the app a little manageable, but being able to work with manpower on the app, could be useful.
- Needs an app for the iPad. The phone version on the tablet works but could be updated so that more features are available using the app. Kind of a mix between what's available on the phone and desktop.
Return on Investment
- The cost is very reasonable, considering it actually saves our foremen time, in lieu of sitting and writing for an hour. This allows him to concentrate on what he really needs to be doing, which is, running the work.
Other Software Used
PlanGrid
Notevault review
Pros
- Enhances safety; instead of writing notes, with my head down buried in a notebook, I am aware and looking around. I work on highway repair projects next to live traffic and all types of construction equipment moving in all directions and overhead.
- Documentation; I got in a dispute with a contractor recently and won it immediately by showing my Notevault notes with time stamped photos of the disputed work.
- Communication; I can keep other support staff back in the home office up to date with project developments and they get to see what is going on .
Cons
- Difficult to bring back reports from the archives. I don't archive any more; I just sequentially date my projects and keep them all live.
- Notevault is set up for normal work shifts. But I mostly work night shifts from about 10 pm to 6 am. You then have to sort and filter the notes from two separate "days" in the system to get a coherent report from a single night shift. I live with it, but I don't like it.
Return on Investment
- Settling one dispute with a contractor paid for the year's subscription. I find that I frequently go back and pull out photos for various purposes, but it's hard to put a value on that
NoteVault - Tried and True!
Pros
- Notevault is super easy to use and I am able to enter every aspect of each project that is needed into my list of active projects.
- NoteVault lets us stay on job sites and still get our construction reports done by dictating notes throughout the day.
- Notevault makes it easy to automatically send the reports at the end of the day to everyone who needs and requests them.
Cons
- If we could export labor info over several weeks into excel, Notevault would be even more exceptional.
Return on Investment
- It has made it easy for our guys out in the filed to report all that is needed for daily reports so there is no scrabbling to remember and report at a later time.
- NoteVault has had no negative impact for us at all.
Alternatives Considered
None