On March 29, 2022, we went to meet Arnaud Decarroux and Nicolas Borgnano, co-manager and head of job site at Decarroux Travaux Publics. Kraafteurs for more than a year, they tell us about their experience.
Decarroux Travaux Publics is a family-owned SME with 35 employees located in Haute-Savoie (French Alpes). Created in 1969, it is specialized in the construction and maintenance of public and private infrastructures (roads, networks and platforms), with a focus on water supply.
"On this site, we are setting up a column that will be used to raise water in the green valley. The challenge is that we have to raise it to 50 bars in a pressure test, which is phenomenal" explains Nicolas. These water projects are never set in stone: we have to adapt every day to the technical challenges, the existing networks and the type of soil encountered.
"I had been thinking for a while about how I could improve and streamline communication in the company" Arnaud begins. "We were spending too much time looking for information and compiling it at the end of the project. (...) We often have to exchange information with the project managers and project owners to make adjustments. This implies being able to communicate quickly and to be able to find the history of everything that has been said (...), not only to alert about problems but also to inform the client about what is happening".
"Everybody use Kraaft throughout the company. Whether in production, the design office, administration, topography or even mechanics (...) All the teams have taken the tool in hand very quickly because it is user-friendly and ergonomic" begins Arnaud.
The principle is simple: for each job site, the construction company creates a conversation on Kraaft. The teams upload photos, videos or voice notes. The mobile application takes up very little memory, it works without an internet connection and the interface, close to WhatsApp, is taken in hand in a few minutes by everyone.
"On each conversation, there is me, the team leader and the excavator operators," says Nicolas. The excavator operators take pictures when they find rock or water. "We're thinking about also distributing the app to truck drivers," continues Arnaud. "Kraaft would bring a simple solution to optimize our deliveries (...) I also create conversations for pre-construction visits: I do my scouting with photos and voice notes, it serves as a reminder for the estimate".
The application allows to centralize all the information from job site. Whether it is for Arnaud who uses it "to have an overview of everything that happens on the sites". The secretariat manages the PPE, the particular requests of everyday life, or the design office for the modification of plans. At any time, the history of job site is traced in the Kraaft news feed.
"We work for water administration of Rocailles et Bellecombe. On each job site, I create a shared conversation with the client and all the interesting information I pass on to them as the day progresses" explains Nicolas. "The client has welcomed this. We set it up with three technicians and everyone really enjoyed it."
"During the as-built drawings and site account, it allows us to argue the differences in the services to be invoiced .And in the as-built drawings it provides a history of what happened, which is important for the traceability of the work," adds Arnaud. "Kraaft I also use it to make a video before starting the work to show everything that has cracked or been damaged", says Nicolas.
Having the possibility of inviting contacts from outside the company ( through free licenses) makes it possible to offer a differentiating and quality monitoring service for customers. "They were very enthusiastic about it because it allows them to work in transparency and to communicate quickly," continues Arnaud.
"We send more photos and reports. It looks more professional and surely we win points. It's a plus for us (...) which may be the norm in the future". (Arnaud Decarroux, co-manager of Decarroux Travaux Publics)
Kraaft allows you to add milestones to the job site conversation that need to be validated, or forms that need to be filled out. "In Kraaft, I create tasks, usually three. One for the DICT, one for the plans and the third for the road orders. The advantage is that, when we have a doubt about the plan, we don't have to run to the car (...), if we have a control, the DICT, the by-laws: we have everything in our pocket on the phone, so it's practical" testifies Nicolas.
It also allows the customer to make their own follow-up checklists. "My customer uses the photos to find out about all the cast iron pieces we put in the manholes and I think it makes his job easier too" concludes Nicolas.
"Today, we have had a taste of it and we are not turning back. Those who use it stick to it because it is an easy tool, not a constraint" (Arnaud Decarroux, co-manager of Decarroux Travaux Publics)
✅ Easy adherence of the entire company to a field tool
✅ More responsive and transparent collaboration with project owner/manager
✅ Better traceability of hazards and as-built drawing at the end of job site
✅ Better collaboration with the design office on plan changes.
✅ Time saving on the generation of geo-located and time-stamped photo reports
