With projects spanning eight geographic regions, Manhattan Construction Company (Manhattan) desired enhanced visibility into their entire workforce. To gain the visibility they needed, Manhattan turned to Tempus Resource and its purpose-built resource planning features.
Manhattan’s preconstruction department was looking to improve resource utilization related to the estimating workforce. “Operations does projects that last six months to three years or more. But the team in preconstruction may work on a bid pursuit for a week or a couple of days,” explains Justin Bell, Senior Project Controls Manager. “So, the preconstruction workforce schedule and assignments have a much more rapid turnaround.”
As a result, the team was interested in tracking preconstruction team members’ availability, getting a full picture of each team member’s workload, capturing accurate timesheet data.
Prior to moving to Tempus, the operations group used Excel as its portfolio management system, which worked well but siloed the department’s information. To enhance its workload view, Manhattan selected Tempus Resource for a project portfolio management (PPM) solution.
Selecting Tempus Resource
For Manhattan, Tempus Resource stood out as the best PPM alternative.
“Most of the software I’ve worked with in the past has a database type structure,” explains Justin. “Tempus Resource is different. It’s engineered very well. The basic architecture of it is extremely solid. It just makes sense. And it’s easy to customize it and get data and reports out of it very easily.”
-Justin Bell, Manhattan Construction Company
According to Justin, other platforms focus on things like the web interface or some particular piece of functionality. They were built to handle simple matters such as assigning carpenters to a specific project. Tempus Resource, on the other hand, gives users a stronger foundation. It’s flexible enough to handle complex projects.
“Once we took a look at Tempus Resource, we had a high level of confidence that it was an excellent fit for our needs,” says Justin.
Implementing Tempus Resource
Implementation of a new software platform is often a hurdle for organizations. That wasn’t the case at Manhattan.
“Implementation was very easy,” shares Justin. “One of the real advantages of Tempus Resource is you can add it to your enterprise system without creating a massive amount of maintenance and customization. It’s quite easy to stand up.”
After an hour and a half of training, each regional group was up and running. The platform is simple and intuitive to use. Everyone caught on quickly and dove right in.
Gaining National Visibility During a Pandemic
Things happened fast when the COVID-19 pandemic struck in early 2020. “Projects popped up faster than normal and needed to be completed faster than normal,” shares Justin. “So, we had an increased need for knowing who was available and what the immediate needs were on an inter-regional level.”
For instance, Manhattan needed to move people who were working in Texas up to Oklahoma to complete a project on schedule. Then there were projects that were about ready to start but were paused.
“This all was sort of a stress test for resource planning that normally wouldn’t have been there,” confesses Justin. When it came to available personnel, Tempus Resource created visibility so Manhattan could see who is available or what is needed.
–Justin Bell, Manhattan Construction Company
With that visibility, managers could have internal discussions about which team member should be assigned to which region. Essentially, Tempus Resource allowed users across all regions to manage resources that were not inherently theirs to manage.
“It all works smoothly within Tempus Resource,” says Justin. “When we run the reports, it’s easy to see issues such as when someone is not assigned to anything or when someone is over-allocated.”
Displaying the Best-Case and Worst-Case Scenarios
Tempus Resource empowers Manhattan to produce a best-case and worst-case report. They assign to each new project a probability of winning it. So, when the data is exported, it is easy to forecast their resource needs. Then, managers can have discussions that validate and balance those needs to come up with the most accurate forecast possible.
One report is company-wide but broken down into eight regions. It shows the maximum and the minimum number of people needed day by day projected out for an entire year. This helps Manhattan determine their staffing needs over time. Then, there is a report that is a list of projects and what the resource needs and timeframes are for those projects.
“These reports make us much more effective at resource planning on a national level,” confirms Justin. “In the past, if you needed somebody, you had to guess whom to call or email. Now, there’s something to prompt you for it. The information is right at your fingertips.”
The Bottom Line
Justin is pleased with the impact that Tempus Resource has had on the organization’s project visibility. “I think it’s great, and I would definitely recommend Tempus Resource,” shares Justin.
“I’ve looked at other options in this market space. And if I had to pick again, I’d come right back to Tempus Resource.”
–Justin Bell, Manhattan Construction Company
About Manhattan Construction Company
Founded in 1896, Manhattan Construction Company is a fifth-generation family-owned company that provides preconstruction, construction management, program management, general building, and design-build services throughout the United States, Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. Manhattan’s portfolio of work includes sports, mission-critical, healthcare, government, education, laboratory, aviation, transportation, convention, casino, hospitality, warehouse, and distribution facilities. Manhattan is a 15-time Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) Accredited Quality Contractor (AQC), an ABC 2019, 2020, and 2021 Top Performing Contractor, a nine-time STEP Diamond Safety Award Winner, and a 2019 National Safety Excellence Award winner. www.manhattanconstruction.com
