Bowen Engineering

Bowen Engineering Gets More Than it Bargained for with Tool Tracking Program—ToolWatchs positive results extend beyond the tool warehouse

Situation

Any good project superintendent knows a job will never get off the ground unless his men have the right tools. Ask Scott Runion, a 16-year veteran with Bowen Engineering, a large Indianapolis-headquartered general contractor that handles water and wastewater treatment plant projects in addition to concrete, mechanical and earth work. Between keeping a job on budget, supervising its progress and making sure his men are safe on the job site, Runion has his hands full.

But keeping the right tools in his crews hands wasnt always easy. Not long ago, tool guy was just another hat Runion had to wear, taking focus away from the things that matter most on the job. When a job started, Runion was off to the supply house to collect the tools and supplies his guys needed for the project, not necessarily a quick task since most wastewater treatment plants lay outside large cities and have few large supply houses nearby. And since Runion supervises as many as five jobs simultaneously all around the city with his foremen switching tools weekly, Runion easily could spend entire days running around town to take physical inventories and get tools where they belonged.

Solution

All that changed when Bowen started using ToolWatch, the tool management system the company had purchased two years prior and never implemented. Run out of the main tool warehouse by shop manager Mat Valentine, ToolWatch helped the company get a handle on its extensive tool inventory. Though he didnt expect it, Runion got a handle on his job sites from ToolWatch too. It let him hand over his time-consuming title of tool guy to Valentine and helped return his own focus to running his projects.

Rather than a run to the supply house at project starts, Runion sends Valentine a list of tools hell need and the crew truck shows up stocked with tools. Valentine also sends his project superintendents weekly reports that detail which tools they have and on which sites they are located. This report signaled the end of Runions racing from site to site for tools. A quick glance at the report shows him exactly what he needs, and a phone call gets it heading to the right location.

In addition to saving precious time, ToolWatch has helped Runion better manage his projects bottom lines by keeping track of his tool rental charges. Now when the job is done with a tool, the tool is immediately sent back to the warehouse so that his project is no longer being charged for it which consequently makes it available for other company projects. Employee accountability has soared with ToolWatch. Since ToolWatch lets the company track which employees are responsible for each tool, they have to answer for misuse. And Runion keeps close watch over the tools his projects are charged for. Im not going to let the guys abuse the tools that Ive already paid for; I make sure they take good care of them. Our tools are in better repair now than they have ever been.

Result

Tools in good condition showing up in the right hands when they are needed is an impressive return on its own. And when management comes looking for the numbers to back up the investment, ToolWatch delivers those too. Bowens spending on small- and medium-sized tools has dropped to just $68,000 annually, from $750,000 annually before implementation—thats an astounding 91 percent reduction in tool expenditures. At the recent wrap up of a two-year, $15 million job, the company only had to replace $1,000 worth of tools, a clear testament to the increased attention being paid to tools on the job site.

But if you ask Scott Runion what he likes most about ToolWatch, youll find its not the numbers that matter: ToolWatch made things easier and more efficient. It put me in control of the tools on my sites.

Bowen Engineering