Constellation HomeBuilder Systems vs. ConstructConnect Bid Management

NEWSTAR and its ecosystem are well-suited for any
homebuilder looking to manage end-to-end operations with software they can rely
on. It is a powerful tool supported by many modern integrations to benefit the
entire homebuilding business. It would be less applicable for businesses like trades or commercial builders

SmartBid is also very useful for conducting sub-contracting analysis and management simulations in the didactic field. The procedures for sharing documents are helpful, but the graphic can be improved. Many forms can be pre-filled. This helps a lot in saving time and money! SmartBid is great for exporting and/or sending single or mass emails. However, as mentioned, it would be useful to simplify some pre-construction processes and improve the overall communication

Incentivized

• BuildTopia excels at contract management. Every part of the contract process is able to be managed electronically from initial signing to closing, and can even handle more special cases like contingencies.
• BuildTopia manages all of our construction efforts well. All of our floorplans are pre-build in the system, so all we have to do is go in an build out the construction schedule from a pre-made template, and make any alterations from there.
• The selections process is always a headache, but BuildTopia makes it pretty painless. Everything is loaded right in to the system while making selections with the client, and more detailed things, like non-standard options, are easy to load in and process.

Incentivized

• It's very easy to set up a job and manage who receives solicitations. You can also keep detailed notes on who've you contacted and see if they're actually downloading and reviewing the documents.
• You can add a confidentiality agreement clause which they must accept before accessing the documents. It then stores this information if it ever needs to be accessed. This is much cleaner and easier then sending out a NDA form and having the subcontractor return it before actually sending drawings/docs.
• You can send Invitations to Bid and set it up to continue sending these ITB's until the subcontractor responds. However, this can also be a negative point because once you set up a delayed ITB, it doesn't update as the subcontractors view and respond to the ITB's. So if a sub is "Not Responded" and you set up a delayed ITB to fire off every day for 5 days, and the sub responds after day 2, that sub will continue to receive ITB's for all 5 days.
• Uploading drawings is quick and easy. It's especially convenient if you link to one of your cloud services such as Egnyte, Google Drive, etc.
• The search tools are quick and easy and often very accessible from any page.

Incentivized

• Requests for platform enhancements, while easy to submit and get approved, are slow to be turned around...often a year or more passes before they're implemented.
• BuiltTopia, while good for sales and construction, is missing one large thing...a CRM component. The system allows you to manage clients and prospects, but options for email marketing and other CRM-related efforts are lacking.

Incentivized

• Create sub categories under other trades that allow to better narrow down the exact jobs you are looking for.
• Not send repeatetive emails for the same projects.
• Make the service more affordable to small business's looking to grow.

Incentivized

The implementations for Constellation’s products are
very well-organized and help make the learning curve as simple as can be.
NEWSTAR is an incredibly powerful platform and the integrations we are using
are modern and easy to adopt.

SmartBid has an excellent support team that is always at your service. Any problem I've had (when I've even had them) has been resolved almost immediately, along with tips on how to avoid them in the future. If you're looking for a program with excellent customer service, look no further than SmartBid.

Incentivized

iSqFt is a solid competitor in the bidding/estimating platform world but as a user, Building Connected is the front runner. iSqFt lacks on the collaboration side and isn't as easy to use and access as its competitors. Building Connected is used by most of our clients so it's easier to use because there is more information in one place.

Incentivized

• Overall, our company has saved money by being able to shut down all the various platforms we were using for different departments and transition to just BuildTopia.
• Company efforts are more efficient, with all pertinent information being in one place and able to be viewed by everyone as needed.
• Efforts of the sales team are better able to be managed and reviewed from afar whereas we only had physical paper trails before.

Incentivized

• SmartBid helps eliminate jumping all over the place, all your invites are on one system.
• It allows us to see who and how many general contractors are bidding, let’s us know if it’s a job worth spending time on.

Incentivized