Foundation Software headquartered in Strongsville, Ohio offers their construction accounting and payroll software. The vendor states that their job costing construction accounting software is designed to be easy to use and provides the accounting and management tools needed to run a successful construction business.
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HCSS
Score 9.5 out of 10
Mid-Size Companies (51-1,000 employees)
HCSS is a construction software suite. It includes functionality for bidding, time card and project management, safety, planning, scheduling, equipment management, and data warehousing and reporting. Each module can be purchased separately. The suite can be hosted in the cloud.
The previous program we utilized, ADP Payroll, for payroll could not handle any of the job costing functions that were required. Simply put, the costs were not going in the right buckets and causing all sorts of issue with our reports. That was the main reason we switched back …
Personally,
I did not have a hand in deciding the software, but for our company is has not
led to increased productivity or made things easier. It has been more difficult
We did not try any other software. In discussions with employees that have worked with other companies, they said to go with the Cadillac of softwares from the get-go, and that's what we decided to do. We wouldn't have it any other way now that we have used HCSS.
We've used Sage in the past and even though I would say it's on par, it did not provide the integration that we needed for our new systems and databases.
We used to use Estimating Link. It was very helpful in our transition to a larger company. It was like HeavyBid light, but also a fraction of the cost.
Occasionally I have come across an individual you is a spreadsheet user for estimating. and has not used heavybid. Usually after a little bit of orientation the individual can readily see the increased efficiency and the potential for less errors. I have also talked to …
We researched other software companies but none provided the depth of support and knowledge that HCSS brought to the table. HCSS is also always growing and listening to its customers. Customer support seems to remain the backbone of the company that is always striving to grow …
I've looked at a couple different software systems, both at this company and others, and nothing has compared to Heavy Bid and Heavy Job. The versatility and functions of both are truly amazing and have helped us in many ways. Other systems just don't compare.
Other estimating products I have used consist of ICE/MC2 and MS Excel. ICE was not a good fit for our company, as they have awful technical support and offer very poor training. MS Excel is great for simple estimates where there is not a lot of data being compiled. However …
In general, HCSS has allowed us to grow to a point with technology as a company where we're now confident in pursuing more advanced technologies to help in other back office areas. We have also been able to grow our IT support team to open new doors for us that didn't exist …
We are a multi-million dollar company with 12 various divisions. This software has proven to be beneficials in many ways through out all the various uses in all of our divisions of the company. There is an ease of use that comes with using foundation that we have not found in many other software's
Our operation uses several pieces of what we call specialty equipment (not used every day on every job). The foreman when finished will give a location of where this equipment is left, this many times can be very vague and lead to a lowboy driver trying to block around to find the piece or driving down a street he cannot get turned around in. With the GPS devices, the driver can pinpoint exactly where the unit is and if he has room to turn around at that location.
#1 is support! HCSS is by far the best software support of any product we have ever used. Unlike most software companies HCSS utilizes their support calls to help upgrade their software. When you here them tell you that they will write down a particular issue you come across during a support call if they can't help you then and there they will research and get an answer to you extremely fast. If the software will not do it, you can bet there is a good chance it will be on the list of enhancements you will see come out in the near future.
Estimating software is very extensive. Their software is capable of handling the smallest estimate all the way to the largest joint venture estimate. It has advanced features that make it extremely useful for analyzing job materials, subcontractors etc.
HeavyJob is an extremely useful tool for the field to keep the office up to date with job costs. Everything is at the Foreman's fingertips on Tablets to allow the information from the field to get uploaded to HeavyJob manager which then can export to accounting. We are also able to give our Foreman the ability to deal with the Daily and weekly safety needs (Tailgate Meetings, incident Investigation, observations etc.) right on the Tablets thru HeavyJob.
All their apps are on mobile devices. Although there is not a clear company policy on Android versus iPhone. Updates for features lag behind on Android. Some apps are exclusive to one platform making it hard to fully interconnect all programs.
There are some things it lacks, certain reports or history audits. I have to call them to do certain things-submit a ticket and wait on someone to call back instead of getting someone immediately. Especially if it's urgent. I have to wait on them to push an update-and they usually run a week or 2 later- to pull quarterly or annual tax forms.
Foundation is a fantastic software for our varied business. The fact that its feature set has allowed the ability to be tailored precisely to the requirements of our various divisions is the main reason we continue utilizing this software. Our company's financial administration duties, such as billing, invoicing, and trust accounting, have been greatly streamlined by Foundation's powerful and user-friendly accounting module. The synchronizing of data and allows for efficient workflows with other systems. This software greatly simplifies our processes and allows for efficiency and growth.
As mentioned, user interface appears messy and complicated at initial onset. Training is necessary but becomes easy to maneuver through after solid daily use.
The people at HCSS who I interact with, whether it is a support technician, product manager, or the HCSS President, Mike Rydin, are as passionate at making construction management for heavy civil contractors a valuable experience as I am. They want to get us emphatic, project management addicted people in to tell them why their product is not working, and work with us to design the software to work for us. HCSS is good for the heavy civil contractor; it is going to help us to manage our projects with precision, accuracy, and accountability.
It is critical to select the right team to take to HCSS for implementation. They take very good care of you and your team and listen to all of your concerns. During implantation we often discuss wants and needs with VPs and Officers as they pass through to check on our progress.
We researched other software companies but none provided the depth of support and knowledge that HCSS brought to the table. HCSS is also always growing and listening to its customers. Customer support seems to remain the backbone of the company that is always striving to grow with the industry.