This case study explores how MRU Consulting's custom software solution has accelerated Shadforth’s Civil Engineering’s digital transformation journey. It highlights MRU's commitment to tailored solutions, operational efficiency, and an agile approach to personalized support.
80% Reduction in Timesheet Processing: Digitization and automation have significantly cut processing time, allowing the finance department to work more efficiently.
Improved Financial Management: Integration with existing systems including Viewpoint, together with new invoice automation & job costing features, have streamlined finances by improving budget control & cost savings.
Shadforth Civil Engineering Construction, a family-owned civil construction company with almost 1,000 employees based in Queensland, Australia, has been growing steadily under the passionate leadership of their progressive CEO, Ray Shadforth. Central to this growth is an unwavering commitment to their Digital Transformation journey and a focus on ensuring a safe and supportive work environment through their charter ‘The Shadforth Way’. With increasing competitive, workforce, and regulatory challenges facing their employees and contractors, Shadforth are always seeking continuous improvements using innovative, digital solutions and partnerships.
Managing a diverse and distributed workforce was a complex task for Shadforth,reflecting broader challenges faced by the civil construction industry. PaulLeerentveld, the IT Special Projects and Business Analyst, joined Shadforth in 2014when the company had around 200 employees. High turnover rates among personnelare common industry-wide issues, making it difficult to ensure everyone has thenecessary documentation and training. "In the civil construction sector, managing theconstant turnover of staff and contractors poses significant challenges for safety &compliance," Paul explains.
The existing system was not only time-consuming but also prone to errors, leading topotential project risks. Employees in the field faced significant challenges as they hadto use laptops with VPNs for access. "Our team on-site had to carry around laptops andconnect via VPN, which was cumbersome and often unreliable," Paul notes.
Timesheet processing was another challenge. The manual, paper-based timesheetsystem required a full day of work from their finance team to process. "Timesheetprocessing used to shut down the entire finance department for a full day every month," Paul mentions.
The task of processing up to 10,000 invoices per month manually was labor-intensive, often causing delays and inaccuracies in financial reporting. "We didn’t have a streamlined way to process invoices, and the manual input was time-consuming, taking two minutes per invoice to match a PO," Paul states. This inefficiency impacted the finance team's productivity and supporting project managers with financial insights
Shadforth also faced challenges managing its 1000 pieces of equipment and vehicles, across multiple job sites. Existing telematics equipment systems lacked the necessary features for real-time tracking and effective resource allocation, which directly impacted project timelines. "We tried using the Cat and Komatsu telematics systems, but they weren’t integrated enough, which led costly project delays," Paul explains
Finally, employee performance reviews and the onboarding process was difficult to manage. "HR lacked a streamlined way to track employee progress and ensure everyone was on the same page during reviews and onboarding," Paul mentions. This inefficiency in managing employee onboarding and development led to inconsistencies and missed opportunities for timely interventions, affecting employee growth and compliance.
Recognizing the need for a robust solution, Shadforth engaged MRU Consulting, theirtrusted partner for over a decade, to develop a comprehensive system, now known asShadConnect. Initially aimed at solving the safety & compliance challenge, this systemover time added new capabilities, including job costing, HR performance reviews, andplant management. ShadConnect also ensured seamless integration with other systemslike Viewpoint, Fleet Pursuit, and BFA (Bulk Fuels Australia).
An important technology design decision was to separate employee and contractoraccess. "Unique portals were created for employees and contractors to ensure that eachgroup had access to the tools and information relevant to their roles," Paul notes. Thisalso improved security as access to sensitive information is now based on user roles
Additionally, maintaining a consistent employee experience (UI/UX) across differentsystems and devices was crucial to ensure that when changes were made, there was noneed to retrain their workforce.
The implementation process began with workshops to understand Shadforth's specific needs. The MRU team, led by Michael Usov, worked closely with Paul and his team to design a system that would streamline their processes and meet their requirements.
Job costing highlighting detailed budget allocation and expenditure tracking
Since implementing ShadConnect, Shadforth has seen significant improvements in several key areas:
Shadforth's partnership with MRU extends beyond the initial implementation. With a commitment to continuous development and support, MRU ensures ShadConnect evolves with their needs, as well as builds on the core values of ‘The Shadforth Way’ that empowers people to ensure client success. Paul comments, "MRUs commitment to innovation and digital transformation, along with their focus on our employees' needs, ensures ShadConnect is a valuable asset to our operations and supports ‘The Shadforth Way’.
ShadConnect's design ensures that it can scale with Shadforth's growth. The system's architecture supports increased data loads and additional features without compromising performance. "As we expand, ShadConnect scales with us, providing consistent performance and reliability," Paul says.
Shadforth's partnership with MRU has transformed their operations. ShadConnect has not only addressed their initial safety and compliance challenges, but with the new capabilities, has dramatically improved overall operational efficiency. The custom software solution, ongoing support, and scalable performance offered by MRU have been instrumental in driving Shadforth's success. And as Shadforth continues to win new business, ShadConnect will play a crucial role in supporting that growth, ensuring they remain a leader in the civil construction industry
Looking ahead, Shadforth plans to leverage the vast amounts of new data collected to gain future insights. "We are excited about the potential of using new data collected through ShadConnect to predict trends and make proactive decisions," Paul explains. Additionally, because Shadconnect’s architecture is flexible, they can easily replace backend systems while maintaining a consistent user experience – allowing them to seamlessly transition without needing to retrain nearly 1,000 users. This commitment to innovation and efficiency is a testament to Shadforth's dedication to their employees.
ShadConnect welcome screen
For other businesses considering their own Digital Transformation, Shadforth's experience demonstrates the value of partnering with a dedicated and innovative digital solution provider like MRU. "I would tell anyone considering embarking on their own Digital Transformation journey, that MRU’s flexibility, responsiveness, and ability to meet your unique needs, have been critical to our success," Paul notes. Their ability to deliver customized, scalable, and robust solutions that require minimal support, while significantly improving operational efficiency, makes them an excellent choice to streamline processes and create a safe and supportive work environment.