It’s exciting to hear about new technology that is being developed to streamline the work we do in the water damage restoration business. In a world where automation has become commonplace, however, we’ve seen new technology quickly become an opportunity to replace qualified employees.
At More Floods, we fully support any tools that can help us do our job better. However, we want to warn against relying on technology too heavily or using it to cut back on skilled employees because you want to reduce labor costs. In our experience, technology is excellent for simplifying or automating certain tasks so the employees you have can better complete their jobs, but it isn’t an appropriate tool for cutting down on the size of your team.
About Remote Monitoring in Water Damage Restoration
One piece of technology in our industry is the use of remote monitoring devices. This technology uses on-site sensors to collect relevant data concerning the job site, without the aid of a technician. The specific information collected by these sensors varies, but typically includes humidity, temperature, dew point, and more.
It really is an amazing technology, but it has its limitations. Setting up and using the technology can be complicated and it can’t always collect all the information needed to move forward with and complete a restoration job. The biggest problem we are seeing, perhaps, is that this technology is being sold as a means of cutting back on labor expenses.
The Danger of Replacing People with Technology
We’re not anti-tech at More Floods. We love the tools that help us to become better entrepreneurs and better restoration technicians. We are skeptical of products that are sold as a replacement for human labor and for good reason.
More specifically, remote monitoring is a good way collect measurements that give us a big picture look at the job site. However, they’re not always accurately measuring differences within the site, especially not as well as a trained technician would. A technician could easily spot and make adjustments to drying procedures to accommodate for areas that need more attention and more drying time than others. Our concern is that some owners may place to save money on labor only to learn that relying so heavily on remote monitoring is slowing down the completion of jobs and jeopardizing customer satisfaction.
Using Remote Monitoring to Support Your Team
Remote monitoring has a lot of potential as a helpful tool for highly trained restoration professionals.
Data collection can be a time consuming and sometime tedious process. Even so, having data that covers the scope of a job gives you the opportunity to analyze your drying procedures after a job is done. Remote monitoring is a great way to collect this data and mine it so that is available as a learning tool.
Additionally, remote monitoring technology is impartial. In some cases, you may find yourself required to backup the work you have done on a space. Perhaps the insurance company is questioning the time spent or a homeowner needs more information to convince them of a plan for drying and restoring their home. Remote mining collects information without the risk of human error and this can been really convincing to skeptical third parties with concerns about the cost or scope of a job.
Lastly, remote monitoring is incredibly helpful for monitoring an in process job. As technicians become more comfortable using the technology in real time, they can turn to it to confirm progress on the job and to clarify the drying needs of that specific site. Remote monitoring can be left on site to monitor moisture levels, to ensure that there is no rebound moisture and to keep tabs on the air quality after a job is complete.
Using Technology for Improvement and Growth
Our hope for our friends and clients working in water damage restoration is that technology will be seen not as a means of cutting corners but as an opportunity for improvement and growth. Imagine the potential for more efficient drying and more accurate measurements and what they could mean for you as you scale your business. Instead of seeing it as a way to cut back on labor, it could be an opportunity to free up your most trained technicians to focus their skills on working smarter or taking on more work.
At More Floods, we help small business owners in water damage restoration improve and streamline their businesses through systems and training. To learn more about the resources available to our network members, click here or call 1-866-667-3356.