Tharco Inc.
Project Manager at Tharco finds Kojo to digitize processes, leading to reduced risk and more strategic decisions
The Story
At Tharco, Alex Eldridge wears a lot of hats, including project manager, purchasing manager, and estimator. He has a million things on his plate. But as a company MVP, Alex needs to be efficient and focused.
One of Alex’s responsibilities is making sure the right materials get to the site on time, and at a great price. This is critical to a project’s success. But at Tharco, just like at other trade contractors across the country, the purchasing process had been left behind even as the company grew and scaled. Everything was done on paper, PDFs, emails, and phone calls.
For Alex, the manual purchasing process meant lots of data entry and chasing down information. Too much of his valuable time was being spent on inefficient, tedious work. And without a great way to track information, Alex had to keep a lot of the purchasing details in his memory. This made it difficult to check on current order status or look back at what had happened historically. It also made the risk of mistakes too high.
Another problem with the paper-based process was that documents sometimes went missing entirely. Missing documents made it hard for Alex to do key steps, like verifying that materials were delivered before paying invoices.
Alex knew there had to be a better way. A world in which he could manage procurement efficiently, without sacrificing the quality of his process.
The Solution
Alex found an all-in-one solution with Kojo. By tracking all of the purchasing information seamlessly in one system, it’s easier for Alex to find the answers he needs and he can free up his focus. “I used to have to do everything from memory. Now, with Kojo, I can see everything from the time we ordered through receiving, invoicing, and payment, all in one system. Kojo makes it easier for me to back up our data and catch mistakes before we pay for them.”
Improved tracking through Kojo also helps Alex manage inventory more effectively. “Kojo’s inventory tracking allows us to focus on buying more of the items that move the fastest, so we are using our valuable space effectively and we aren’t sitting on inventory that isn’t getting used.”
With Kojo, Alex has all the documents he needs at his fingertips, including the ever-valuable delivery receipts. “Before Kojo, half of the delivery tickets never made it back to the office. We had no idea whether we were being billed for something that was missing or damaged. Now, with Kojo, we have proof of delivery every time.”
Not only is Alex getting better day-to-day efficiency with Kojo, but he also has better information to help him plan for the next job. “Kojo helps me track what happened throughout the year and project future costs.”
There have also been some unexpected benefits that came along with improved visibility. “Right when we brought on Kojo, we were suddenly able to see that an employee was buying copper on jobs that did not require copper pipe. Better tracking with Kojo helps us to avoid the unfortunate circumstance of leaks or theft.”
For Alex, the benefits of Kojo go beyond the technology itself. “I like working with the Kojo team because they are building solutions for the ground level of construction. Kojo’s solution started out meeting the construction industry’s need for better material management, and they continue to grow based on direct user feedback - they really care about making this a well-rounded system. Kojo also offers excellent customer service.”
Their Favorite Features
- Request for Quotes
- Inventory Management
- Delivery tracking
- Automated Invoice Matching
- Analytics
