The potential for mobile apps in the construction industry is great, offering companies the ability to gather data easily on mobile devices. Still, one of the biggest challenges the industry faces is being able to easily integrate that information pulled in an app with traditional enterprise systems in the office. However, this is all changing, as more construction companies are putting apps to work.

Take the Ritz-Carlton Montreal renovation project, as an example. Pomerleau, www.pomerleau.ca, Saint-Georges, Que., is providing the construction services for the conversion of 230 hotel rooms into 130 luxury rooms and suites, and the extension of the existing facility to include 45 residential condominiums.

Eric Lessard, IT director, Pomerleau, explains for the hotel phase of the renovation project the builder used in-house spreadsheets to manage data associated with inspection processes, which was very time consuming. For the residential phase, the company decided to take a slightly different approach.

With the Aconex Field app, Pomerleau is able to capture construction defects and other issues on iPads at the jobsite, which means it is able to close out issues faster. Lessard says, for the residential phase of the project, the punch list is complex, which means managing data effectively using mobile devices was essential.

Aconex, www.aconex.com, San Jose, Calif., first launched its Aconex Field app last October. The Web-based field-management app is available either as a standalone product or with the Aconex Online Collaboration Platform, and can run on iOS or Android devices.

An app such as this enables contractors to easily share data inputted on a mobile app with the backend collaboration platform in the office.