By David Keane, Sales Director, Trimble Operations and Workflow Solutions
Open a gang box on an F+F Mechanical job site and you’ll find something other than drills, pipefitting gear, paper plans and saws.
Tools of the trade for this HVAC and plumbing contractor include cutting-edge technology and connectivity. And the Connecticut company has turned some gang boxes into what it calls “data vaults”. Inside, a computer, router and 50-inch monitor create a shared hub for project information. This is where crews go to get real-time access to drawings, models, fabrication status and other vital data.
Instead of chasing updates across texts, phone calls or paper forms—or squinting at a small tablet or phone screen—F+F teams collaborate around a single source of truth, with big-screen clarity and big-time benefits. Instant access to accurate updates and tighter coordination between the office, fabrication shop and field drive improved decision making.
Live data across integrated solutions
Data vaults are a tangible example of a deep commitment to innovation at F+F and, specifically, to technology that connects people, removes friction and keeps information moving.
“We have always adopted a technology-first mindset,” explains F+F applications manager Alyssa D’Amico. “We want to be innovative in the industry, and we would like to push our people to innovate and collaborate as much as possible.”
Joe Ferrucci, whose father founded the company, now forms the executive team with his brothers, Frank and John. He says a cohesive technology ecosystem is a critical competitive differentiator, especially with mechanical systems and projects becoming increasingly complex.
“I talk to peer companies around the country, and I hear them say, ‘My ERP doesn't talk to my project management software. My estimating software doesn't quite integrate with this. I have to export it from here, and we hired someone to create a solution that I can tie it from this to this,’. Trimble is all integrated. The beauty of that is that we have all live data across multiple platforms, across multiple solutions.”
A collaborative common data environment
Among those solutions, assistant project manager Christian Morales most commonly turns to Trimble ProjectSight and Trimble Connect. “It allows us to be on the same page and have everything in one spot and be able to go back and forth,” he explains. “We could be in the trailer going through the model, or we could be on site at the data vault and seeing the projected outline of the project and seeing the project put in place before it's being built.”
That access to 3D models on screen in the field saves time in the three F+F Mechanical fabrication shops too. VDC manager Steve Lotto says teams there used to have to do a lot more detailing on paper elevation drawings and still it could be hard to interpret things correctly in the field. Now, 3D models at the data vaults provide clearer information while minimizing the need for the detailed drawings.
“I love going out in the field and seeing how the job comes together, especially with the technology as a tool,” concludes D’Amico. “Whenever a data vault goes out to a project, and if it's a field person who hasn't had one out there, I love taking the time to walk them through it. It's obviously not the most important thing that they do, but it is something that helps them in their process, so they are comfortable with what their project managers are asking them to do.”
