This is how you implement digital quality controls

This article is written about Snagstream, the solid foundation on which Prostream continues to build. The components of the products will be the same, but will be supplemented in Prostream with the modern functions of today. The article below gives a good picture of both the essence of Snagstream and the future functions of Prostream.

You see less and less notepads on the construction site. Not surprising, because construction workers need insight and overview. Quality assurance tools help to comply with the Quality Assurance Act, make processes transparent and save on the administrative burden. Polybouw Aluminum B.V., specialist in aluminum facade technology, was also looking for more overview and efficiency. In February 2022, Lotte Schulenburg started the project here to implement Snagstream. Now, about a year later, the first good results are a fact.

Lotte explains how the choice for Snagstream was made. “We wanted to create an overview. For example, if people are ill, we want others to be able to take over the project and know what is going on. What are the agreements that have been made, what is the history of the project? This used to be very difficult to find, because information was stored or written down everywhere and nowhere. We then started looking for a system and ended up with Snagstream. Other programs were quite cluttered and very standard. In Snagstream you can adjust and change quite a lot yourself, that was important to us.”

Previously, people worked with stacks of paper. All that information is now in the system.

Step-by-step implementation

The implementation happened step by step. Lotte: “We started with a few projects and with people who wanted to try out the new system. Some people have more affinity with digital resources than others, and it’s easier to start with people who also find it interesting. That immediately went very well, so after that we started working to get the rest on board as well. We scheduled a meeting and started with the assembly leaders. In the second meeting we included the mechanics and production and finally we added the work preparation. For example, we tried to keep the lines of communication short and each group of colleagues could easily provide feedback.

Get rid of the books

The positive results are already clearly visible. “I think we have already achieved a lot. Previously, people worked with stacks of paper. They kept everything in an assembly booklet: from order lists and orders that have been made to drawings, and so on. All that information is now in the system. So they no longer carry the booklet with them, which is nice. All information is stored in one place and accessible to everyone. If someone is not there and someone else has a question, they can simply look it up in the system. We are making maximum use of all the possibilities in Snagstream.”

Purchasing insight

Snagstream is also very useful for purchasing, says Lotte. “We work a lot with facade elements such as windows, and those break regularly. If a window is broken, people on the construction site can now very easily take a photo of it and forward it to purchasing through the system, so that they can order a new one right away. Previously, all this had to be done by e-mail and was kept up to date on lists. Now you can immediately see the delivery date and there is no need to send messages back and forth about the status. This saves us a lot of time. You can also easily see the overview: all information is in the computer instead of on separate sheets. You can easily filter and see exactly which windows are on order, with which order form number and which delivery date.”

People who come in new and are explained the system, pick it up very easily. People who have been there for years sometimes still have a bit of trouble and are still likely to grab a pen and paper. It’s really about behavioral change, so that always takes time.

Behavioral change

The new working method was quite a switch, says Lotte. “People who come in new and are explained the system, pick it up very easily. People who have been there for years sometimes still have a bit of trouble and are still likely to grab a pen and paper. It’s really about behavioral change, so that always takes time. Some people want to, but don’t quite get it yet. Others have a little trouble with the change itself. We are increasingly focusing on processes, so that people can no longer avoid it. The more people use the system, the more they realize that it is really useful.” Lotte has regular contact with Pro4all about issues she encounters and how she can solve them. “That is very nice. We always get a very quick response, if necessary even with videos of how it works. That helps us a lot to get everyone on the same path.”

Make sure someone is really dedicated to it, or work with a work group. Keep people involved, make sure you make it clear why you are doing it and what the benefit is.

Keep alive

Lotte also has a tip for other companies that want to work with Snagstream. “Make sure someone is really dedicated to it, or work with a working group. Keep people involved, make sure you make it clear why you are doing it and what the benefit is. By hooking people up, they will see the benefits more quickly and you will make implementation easier. We are not there yet either. We still have regular meetings. I have a working group with people from every department. In this working group we regularly look at where we are now, what we are still missing, what we are encountering and what is already going very well. That’s how we keep it alive.”