We save a lot of time with magicplan
Renovation Planning
5 min read
About the Company
Company
Seland’s Abbey Flooring Center
Location
Fergus Falls, MN, USA
Website
Challenge
Different measuring methods and slow drawing workflows
Rich explains that after years of building the business, the team needed the latest technology to support measurements and drawings.
A key issue was inconsistency: “each person here was doing measuring and drawing differently.” Rich wanted “something that was more uniform and accurate.”
Before magicplan, the team would go to a job site with a tape measure, measure, and scribble notes on a notepad. After returning to the office, they would transfer that information into the computer. Rich notes that drawing up a detailed schematic with all details and photocopying everything took much longer than measuring, “probably four to five times longer.”
Solution
Standardizing measurements and drawings with magicplan
Rich evaluated industry-specific software apps, but found that “none of it looked up to date” and “all of it looked like old technology.” After downloading magicplan and doing some scanning, Rich describes the reaction as “wow,” and the team began using it.
Rich explains that learning the app did not take long. He watched videos, asked questions, and got comfortable within “about a two-week time period.”
Today, Seland’s Abbey Flooring Center attaches magicplan drawings to detailed work orders “to show the rooms, the layouts, and how the customer agreed to have flooring installed or fitted.” They also attach photos, and Rich notes that “installers really like it.”
The team uses a Bluetooth laser with magicplan. Rich explains that while the camera can be accurate for some projects, when doing roll goods they need to be “exact, extremely precise,” and he “would not ever quote a job without using a laser to get the exact measurements.”
Results
Faster preparation and more professional documentation
Rich says, “we save a lot of time with magicplan,” though he notes it is hard to quantify exactly. He explains that it is not uncommon for him to “measure four to five jobs per day” and have “all of those jobs ready to go the next day with magicplan documents.”
Rich also describes how magicplan helps when competing in the local market. In some situations, the company shares magicplan drawings with customers, and customers are “very impressed.” Rich explains that when a competitor is still using a tape measure, the team tries to “promote and feature our technology” and show that they are “more on the cutting edge of things in our market.”
Outlook
A busy team using technology to support daily field work
Rich describes the company as a single store location and part of the Abbey Carpet and Floor Group, which includes “about 600 Abbey Carpet and Floor stores across the U.S. and Canada,” each independently owned and operated.
Rich also describes the facility and day-to-day operations:
“Yes, we have an 8,000-square-foot building. About 4,000 square feet of that is dedicated to our showroom, which has merchandise and displays showing our products. And then we have a warehouse where we receive and ship everything, and our installers work out of there. We have eight installation crews that work on a regular basis with our company. So, we’re busy from morning until evening getting jobs going and working in the field. It’s a team effort.”
When asked to describe magicplan in one word, Rich’s answer connects to the company’s use of the technology. “I think your title is the word: ‘magic.’ It’s like magic.”
