When South Florida construction company Grycon was keen to improve material ordering and procurement, SubBase was just what they were looking for to simplify processes and improve visibility across the supply chain.
Founded over 50 years ago, Grycon is one of Miami’s most recognized names in construction. The company was instrumental in building some of the first high-rise buildings in the area and is at the forefront of Miami’s growth.
Patrick Kibler currently serves as the CEO and has a strong family connection to the company. His father previously held the position of CEO, making Patrick a second-generation leader within the organization.
He focuses on the overall operations and planning for the company. He says Grycon has always been at the forefront of utilizing cloud technology and believes companies in the industry shouldn’t be afraid to adopt new technologies.
Using SubBase as its purchasing platform, Grycon has streamlined its purchasing and accounting processes and continues to create long-term, ongoing relationships and deliver superior products to clients.
Grycon harnessed the power of cloud-based accounting systems and iPads for automation, yet they were still looking for a better way to automate purchasing and improve tracking.
Initially, they were using PROCORE as their Construction Management software, but it failed to provide the desired solution they were seeking.
The company was still using handwritten notes, making phone calls and last-minute emails. There was no ability to track orders, check pricing, and confirm delivery locations.
“Purchasing was painful,” says Patrick Kibler. “So much time was lost manually tracking materials and repeating orders without visibility and cost checking.”
They needed a solution to improve ordering and tracking, automate purchasing, and improve visibility throughout the supply chain.
“There is so much time wasted trying to figure out which materials go with which job because it all has to be coded and then charged to a job,” says Kibler. “SubBase allows anyone to look at a job and determine whether materials have been ordered, and if they haven’t, they can order it there and then.”
With SubBase, project managers know right from day one that an order has been cataloged and encoded. They know exactly which job it is going to and where it’s being delivered. It’s easy to follow the supply chain and track exactly when and where materials are delivered.
“SubBase takes all this hassle away. It just fixes it,” says Kibler. “It removes overwhelm and frustration from the process and simplifies ordering and tracking.”
“The main thing which sets them apart from everyone is their AI and automatic matching of the invoices with the purchase orders.”
For Patrick Kibler, the biggest win from SubBase is that it saves so much time. Before SubBase, Grycon had a labor-intensive, manual purchasing process.
“With SubBase, you don’t have to keep the material log separate from the PO (purchase order) section,” says Kibler. “It populates everything automatically.”
SubBase can store a company’s entire catalog and integrates easily with other construction and cloud accounting platforms such as PROCORE and QuickBooks.
“When the invoice comes in, it matches automatically,” says Kibler. “I can only imagine what a difference SubBase would make to companies making huge daily orders,” says Kibler. “If there is just one purchasing manager in an organization, that’s an incredible volume of work.”
Patrick Kibler explains that construction companies are under enormous pressure to do more for less, and purchasing can be tedious, frustrating, and overwhelming.
“With SubBase, purchasing is quick and simple. It’s not just project managers who love it – my CFO was blown away. Now she can focus on forecasting, budgeting, compliance, and improving profitability for our shareholders.”
Patrick Kibler has found implementing SubBase easy.
“SubBase has a big catalog of universal materials with different manufacturers, which are all coded." “If you don’t have something in the catalog, they’ll help you upload and order supplies and help you create new cost codes.”
“As a general contractor, we’ve always had cost codes, so data wasn’t a big deal. It was more about importing the data from our existing systems and SubBase, supporting us with the change.”
Kibler says that customer support from SubBase is very hands-on and proactive.
“There is always someone there to help at the end of the phone, and they are open to advice and suggestions on improving the platform for users,” Kibler says. “If you have a problem, they know how to fix it.”
“I don’t think it matters if you’re making purchases daily or on an ad-hoc basis. SubBase is simple to use, makes purchasing easy and gives you transparency from day one.”
