Case Study

FRANTOM BUILDING

 

Ed and Emily Poulton are the owners of Frantom Building, a family owned and run building company located in the Southern Highlands in NSW. After converting their accounting system over to Xero 8 years ago, they were keen to explore how other cloud software programs could automate and streamline their business processes further.

We visited Ed onsite to chat about which software he uses and the effects this has had on the running of his business.

 

 

Frantom building is a custom building service which covers all aspects of your build, internal and external. The business was started in 2005 driven by Ed’s strong interest in sustainability and green building practices.

Frantom Building has grown to include a substantial group of qualified tradespeople and craftsmen, that specialise in everything from custom built homes, to extensions and renovations including heritage sites. Their offering is extensive and includes an architectural drafting service, plus specialist advice from Emily who is an esteemed Horticulturalist. Their mission is to always provide clients with their dream home within the set budget and perfectly suited to the client’s lifestyle.

 

The real product is providing peoples visions of what they ask for, and more.”

 

Ed and Emily contacted TradiePad in early 2015 after a recommendation from a colleague, keen to discuss options for progressing their business to becoming completely paperless. They had already swapped their accounting system over to Xero and were seeing the benefits that cloud software could provide, but the rest of their business processes were being handled manually which meant bottlenecks were still occurring.

They had investigated a whole range of cloud software programs which would integrate with Xero and stop the double handling of information happening between the office and job site, but they couldn’t see the forest for the trees, as the options all seemed the same and offered similar solutions and promises.

After a scoping session where we explored in detail their current processes, needs and future aspirations, TradiePad recommended a combination of two apps to solve their issues. G-Suite and WorkflowMax.

 

“We have been transformed in the last 8 years working with Xero and 2 years with WorkflowMAX. The changed process has been very difficult at times, but the ability to produce a report or track time cost is great.”

 

 

This suite of apps has really helped the team at Frantom Building communicate more efficiently, helping each job flow seamlessly from enquiry right through to invoicing and payment. Changing their methods to adapt to this new way of working did throw up some challenges, most people find adapting to new processes can be confusing at first, but with the ongoing guidance of TradiePad, Frantom Building has well and truly nailed it now and are progressing at full steam. Ed particularly loves how WorkflowMax tracks and records time live, providing up to date details instantly. It’s a real winner in his book and provides full accountability of his team members.

Since implementing this combination of software Ed has found that fewer questions are asked by trades, clients and the accounts department thanks to improved visibility across the complete job, he has finally found the end to end solution he had been searching for!

 

“TradiePad has given Frantom Building all angles of learning and adapted to our personal and business runnings to suit what we do and the ways we work.”

 

 

Frantom Building has now been running as a paperless business for the past two years and would never return to the old ways of working. Their staff numbers have grown to 12 employees. Ed plans to continue improving and growing his business, enjoying the constant challenges that building provides him, now without the headache of paperwork weighing him down.

We asked Ed what he would you say to other companies who are considering implementing technology into their business?

 

“Just call Tradiepad, they will fix you! Just tell them everything and hang on.”

 

Frantom Building is a TradiePad Toolbox client which gives them access to ongoing training and support services. Ed has found the Toolbox membership to be invaluable in helping the business stay up to date, expand their knowledge and solve any issues or questions which may arise in their day to day work.

 

 

If you are interested to find out more about Ed’s progress and what his company is up to now, you can follow Frantom Building on Instagram or Facebook.

Love the sound of WorkflowMAX or G Suite and wondering if it would suit your business too? Contact TradiePad and book a call to learn more about these software programs and how they could benefit your business.

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