Frank H. Dale Limited (FH Dale) is a UK subcontractor that started using Fieldwire to review real-time health and safety and quality information from site activities. What began as a way to remove paperwork has since expanded across the business, with teams using the platform across site and office for tasks, forms, issue tracking and reporting.
The challenge: too much time spent managing paperwork
When FH Dale first began looking for a site-based platform, its health and safety processes were still largely paper-based. Documents were printed, issued to site, returned to the office and scanned back in.
That process made it difficult for the contracts team to see what was happening on site or whether paperwork had been completed. It also kept supervisors in the office when they could have been on the footprint monitoring progress.
The same problem affected communication between site and office. If a supervisor identified an issue, they would need to return to the office, collect the relevant drawings, review the problem and then communicate it back to the office. Email, phone calls and, increasingly, WhatsApp were used to share information and photographs.
The problem was not simply the number of tools involved, but also the lack of traceability. An issue sent by email could be lost in an inbox, while photographs shared separately did not necessarily have clear ownership or a direct connection to the relevant location on a drawing.
Justin describes the old process as “clunky” and time-consuming, with information sometimes ending up minimal or incomplete.
The solution: a platform built around the way a subcontractor works
FH Dale got access to a Fieldwire trial for a couple of weeks. That trial was important because the company wanted to test the system against its own processes before making a wider change.
SHEQ Manager Justin Price says some alternative platforms were designed more around the Principal Contractors requirements for managing multiple subcontractors and offered functionality FH Dale did not need. Fieldwire's flexibility and its ability to create forms around the company's own processes were a better fit for the business.
Once FH Dale decided to proceed, the company was able to roll Fieldwire out across the business within days. Some site supervisors were initially expected to take longer to adopt the software, but they quickly became comfortable using it. Justin attributes this to the straightforward interface and the lack of unnecessary layers between users and the information they need.
How FH Dale uses Fieldwire
Tasks connect site issues to the right people
Tasks have become one of the central parts of FH Dale's day-to-day use of Fieldwire.
When a supervisor identifies an issue on site, they can create a task, take a photograph, pin the issue to the relevant drawing and tag the people who need to act on it. The office can then see both the location and the photograph, before passing the issue to the design or drawing office for resolution.
For Justin, the value of tasks comes from being able to track both large and small elements of a project without adding complexity.
Forms bring health and safety processes into one system
Health and safety was the original reason FH Dale adopted Fieldwire. Over time, the company has built additional processes into the platform.
Its NCR and CVR processes are now being managed through Fieldwire, bringing people from production, sales, quantity surveying, project engineering, design and drafting into the same workflow. The platform has also been used on projects where enhanced data logging was required, reducing the need to rely on paper processes for large volumes of information.
The processes have taken some time to develop, but the majority of users now see the value in having the information available in one place.
Real-time information gives the office a view of the site
Fieldwire has also changed how Justin monitors projects. Rather than needing to be physically present on every site, he can use the information in the platform to maintain a higher-level view of health and safety and quality processes.
He can check whether daily checks and briefings have been completed and monitor whether quality checks and balances are being carried out. Site visits remain important, but Fieldwire gives him information to review before and between those visits.
Reports support weekly production meetings
FH Dale uses reporting as part of its weekly production meetings. The team reviews what is moving through the factory alongside NCRs and CVRs.
Justin says the reporting functionality provides useful information, although the company is still developing how it uses the system for its higher-level view of tasks and processes. A more tailored dashboard is one area the team would like to develop further.
The results: less paperwork, faster issue reporting and wider adoption
What began as a health and safety tool has expanded into other parts of the business, including its NCR and CVR processes. With the adoption of Fieldwire, Justin Price estimates that the overall saving amounts to hours a day, although he notes that FH Dale has not formally measured the figure.
The most significant time saving comes from the way site issues are now reported. Previously, a supervisor might need to find drawings, examine an issue, take a photograph, contact the office and explain where the problem was. Fieldwire brings those steps into a single task.
The company has also moved away from sending information between site and office through separate channels. Issues are now raised, located, photographed and assigned within the same system, giving the office a clearer view of what needs to happen and who is responsible for it.
For FH Dale, the benefit extends beyond replacing paper. Having information immediately available means the business can get more information from its processes and use it to monitor productivity, efficiency, health and safety and quality.
The support from Fieldwire has also been important as FH Dale has expanded its use of the platform. Justin says the company has received assistance during onboarding, through the sales process and after implementation, including help with developing new ways to use the system.
The bottom line: site management streamlined
For FH Dale, Fieldwire's value has come from fitting into the company's existing way of working rather than forcing the team into a more complex system. The platform started with one specific need — removing paper-based health and safety processes — and has since been adapted to support wider business processes.
Justin sums up the experience in one word: “streamlined.”
What Fieldwire did for FH Dale, it can do for your teams. See it for yourself.
