Tripling construction volume with disciplined tech adoption

The Challenge

As a growing low-voltage specialty contractor, Advanced Cable Solutions (ACS) realized its paper-heavy processes and fragmented tools would not support long-term expansion. Timekeeping was manual and labor intensive, field documentation consumed hours each day and visibility across projects was limited. To scale without adding overhead or losing control, the company needed a system it could grow with.

The Solution

ACS adopted Procore in phases, starting with Time Cards and Daily Logs before expanding into Drawings, RFIs, Submittals and custom Forms. By standardizing workflows, enforcing mandatory adoption and integrating Procore with Sage 100C, ACS created a single source of project truth that helped improve efficiency, morale and client-facing professionalism.

The Results

• Helped triple construction volume over six years
• Helped reduce daily log completion time by up to 75%
• Managed 147 active projects with 125 field users
• Helped save days of payroll processing monthly with Procore and our ERP integration

A specialty contractor builds a foundation for growth

ACS is a design-build low-voltage specialty contractor delivering structured cabling, fire alarm, integrated electronic security, public address, mass notification, distributed antenna systems and audio-visual systems from concept through commissioning, service and maintenance. By 2019, the company had grown to the point where its existing paper-heavy processes and patchwork software tools were holding them back. Field documentation was time-consuming, timekeeping was frustratingly manual and administrative workflows were increasingly difficult to scale.

Leadership recognized that if ACS wanted to grow without sacrificing control or professionalism, it needed a construction management platform built for expansion. After evaluating its options, the team landed on Procore as the foundation for that next phase.

Still, ACS wasn’t ready to jump in with both feet. Leadership knew that rolling out too much change too quickly could destabilize the organization. “We wanted to start light,” said Operations Coordinator Richard Bernot — not because the team lacked ambition, but because they were thinking about training, adoption and the impact of change across the company. 

Time Cards rose to the surface as the optimal entry point, the tool that would deliver the most immediate operational impact while being the easiest for field teams to learn. “It was very labor intensive,” Bernot said of the old process. The goal was simple: secure an early win and use that momentum to catalyze further adoption. 

The switch immediately paid off. “As soon as we got the Time Card solution going, it was a dramatic efficiency increase,” Bernot said, noting that this helped reduce the payroll processing by a couple of days each month once it was integrated via the Procore API, which enabled timecard data to flow directly into ACS’s accounting software.

 Shortly after adopting Time Cards, ACS layered in Daily Logs. Despite some hesitation among crews, the reaction from field leads during training was telling. When shown how quickly a daily log could be completed, one responded: “Wait, that’s it?”

 Reducing process friction not only improved morale but also helped accelerate efficiency gains across operations. “If the morale is high and the interface is easy, they’re going to capture all the information,” Bernot said “And they’ll capture information that you don’t even think you need, but it builds context for future decisions.”

Bernot now advises other contractors to take the same approach: start with the tool that delivers the greatest impact with the least friction, secure an early win, then expand organically. “Procore is big enough that a company can easily bite off more than it can chew,” said Bernot. “Phased adoption helps ensure the changes take root.” 

 A single source of project truth

One key to ACS’s success with Procore was that adoption wasn’t passive. “If you give people an alternative, they will choose the old way every time,” Bernot said. But simply declaring something mandatory wasn’t enough. ACS backed that mandate with written SOPs, formal training and consistent enforcement. When resistance surfaced, leadership pointed back to document processes — reinforcing that the shift was meant to be permanent. 

That standardization helped eliminate confusion about where information lived. Drawings with redline markups replaced time-consuming phone calls between field and office. Tasks and Documents became structured repositories. The “Open Items” view allowed personnel to track responsibilities across the entire portfolio.

 That level of standardization and visibility helped the company to scale faster and farther than ever. At one point, ACS was managing 147 active projects with 125 time card users. “I just don’t see how that would have been possible without a solution like Procore,” said Bernot.  

Looking better than ever

For Bernot, the true ROI of Procore goes beyond internal process improvements. While the platform helped streamline operations, no less important was the heightened level of professionalism ACS could present to its clients.

As the company pursued larger projects, the data footprint expanded. General contractors and owners expected structured documentation, formal reporting and clear visibility into progress. Excel spreadsheets and informal updates were no longer sufficient. Procore gave ACS a centralized system that could generate professional documentation directly from the project record — complete with drawings, photos and standardized reports.

The punch list report became a particularly powerful tool. Instead of mobilizing crews prematurely, ACS could send a technician to document site readiness, generate a detailed report and present it to the GC before committing labor to the task. That clarity helped avoid wasted hours and reinforced ACS’s credibility as an organized, disciplined trade partner. “It showed that we are not just a fly-by-night company, but a professional organization providing the best project installation experience possible,” Bernot said.

 Providing the best possible experience

That professionalism has helpedACS triple its construction volume. And the company expects another 10% increase this year. 

Bernot credits their success to both discipline and partnership. “Procore is constantly trying to innovate, trying to keep their solution at the forefront,” he said. 

And ACS isn’t finished. The team continues to explore new tools, refine workflows and expand usage across departments. “We’re still learning,” Bernot said. “As Procore evolves, we’re looking at how those new capabilities can make us better.”

“We want to provide our clients and the owners the best possible construction experience, period. And that’s what Procore allows us to do.”