Nick Yadron understands the importance of integrating the latest technologies into his nearly 40-year old, family-owned company, M&M Home Remodeling Services. Based in Crete, Ill., the company serves the greater Chicagoland area and in addition to retail work, sees its fair share of roofing restoration work.
One technology that Yadron, president of M&M Home Remodeling Services, insists on having on every job is an EagleView roof measurement report.
“We first learned about EagleView’s roof measurement reports about five years ago through our affiliation with Owens Corning as a platinum contractor,” explained Yadron. “On the restoration side of the business, we have found that it virtually eliminates the back and forth that we used to experience in working with insurance adjusters. It helps get us to the end game a lot faster.”
Roof measurement technology
EagleView Technologies, a Seattle-area based company, developed and patented the technology behind extracting measurement information from high-resolution aerial Pictometry imagery and brought it to market in 2008. Contractors in the restoration industry were early adopters of the technology as they realized the efficiencies it offered for reducing conflicts with insurance adjusters.
Insurance companies took notice as well. However, being a more conservative industry, the carriers were much more hesitant to incorporate the technology. After testing thousands and thousands of addresses, currently 24 of the top 25 carriers have implemented the measurement reports into their roof claims process. The roof measurement reports provide high-resolution aerial images of the property, a 3D diagram of the roof, including length, area, pitch and notes diagrams, as well as a summary page with waste table calculations. The included length diagram shows color-coded details and total line lengths for ridges, hips, valleys, rakes, eaves, flashing and step flashing.
Improving presentations and communications
Most homeowners, whether in a claim situation or not, are going to call multiple contractors for estimates. Yadron has found using an EagleView report during the sales call makes a powerful impression on the homeowner.
“Just showing them the report in our presentation establishes immediate credibility that we are professional and using the newest and latest technologies that the industry has to offer,” said Yadron. “The homeowner understands that we go to great lengths for accuracy and that reassures them that our pricing will be accurate and the job streamlined.”
In addition to the accurate measurements, Yadron sees a huge benefit in the communications between his sales team and his production team. “We take the report and transition it right to the installation crew. It benefits them to have a detailed drawing of the roof with images of the property. They know what to expect before they even get to the job,” stated Yadron. Material orders are more accurate according to Yadron and he says he has noticed a reduction in the number of reorders needed due to being short a few bundles of shingles.
Business processes improvements
M&M Home Remodeling Services has changed their business process to include ordering a report on every property as soon as the appointment is set, whether a retail or a restoration job. This process has really made a big impact on the sales team, reducing the amount of time it takes for a new sales hire to get up to speed.
Yadron says it has broadened the pool of who the company hires. “Previously we would have to find someone who was skilled with people and knew how to sell, but who could also climb a roof,” explained Yadron. “By incorporating EagleView into our process it has really broadened the pool of who we can hire. We can hire people who understand how to sell and we don’t have to teach our sales people geometry anymore.”
According to Yadron, using these measurements has helped his new sales team hires to have more confidence about doing their job well and gets them going faster. He says in the past, while a new hire might have been closing sales, they might also have been making mistakes that would result in disagreements, discrepancies or other issues for the installers. “We really see fewer disagreements between the sales side and the installation as to what the roof size actually is and what all the parts and pieces of the job entail,” he said.
“Whether you are a small contractor and you are the sales person, or you have 15 sales reps, it’s going to save you time and time equates to money,” stated Yadron. “At the end of the day, the insurance company doesn’t care how long it takes us to measure and we don’t get paid to measure so if I can make 15 people more productive and accurate by using technology that’s where the bigger value can be found.”