The eRENT Solutions project focused on developing a service platform for equipment management that allows the digitalisation of all use of building equipment. This improves the utilisation rate of the equipment and saves both time and money.

What kind of problem was the project trying to solve?

While a lot of money is invested in building equipment, the equipment is used in an inefficient manner. Rented equipment is mostly managed in a traditional manner, i.e. using a phone. It takes a lot of time to search for the machines, which results in high losses. 

Objective: More efficient use and management of building equipment

The objective of the project was to create a brand new operating method for the construction industry to use and manage equipment. The equipment management service platform saves time and costs, reduces losses and improves the utilisation rate of the equipment. The ultimate objective was to improve the productivity in the whole construction industry.

What was done in this project?

In the beginning, the site managers of pilot partners were interviewed to gain an insight into the challenges involved in using the equipment. A prototype of the service platform was created based on this information, and it was given to the pilot partners to be used on construction sites and rental agencies.

The service integrated the monitoring of a company’s own equipment with the management of rental equipment, offering the site manager an overview of all available equipment. For the company’s own equipment, NFC tags that allow locating machines using a smartphone were developed. The development of an interface with the possibility of tracking machines on a map view according to categories and objects was started. The equipment inventory was opened for all users to promote shared use.

The service was further modified to meet the needs of companies based on the feedback that the users provided. Benefits were estimated by measuring time and cost savings, losses and changes in utilisation rates.

Who benefits?

Construction companies and machine rental agencies.

What kind of results were obtained?

Contrary to what had been planned, not all pilot partners implemented the pilot service, but nevertheless, the desired target groups, i.e. building sites and machine rental agencies, were covered in the experiment. The experiment painted a clear picture of the needs of the customers and confirmed the market demand for the service.

The development of the service was continued in a user-oriented manner after the project was finalised, and we are planning to release a commercial version of the service in 2018. The solution has also attracted international interest.