In this video interview, Suffolk Superintendent Andrew Bared shares how Trunk Tools helps him cut through paperwork and stay focused on building. From RFIs and inspections to safety checks and coordination, field teams get the information they need — right when they need it.
Interview transcript
Before Trunk Tools, what parts of your day felt the most repetitive or time consuming?
Definitely going through all the documents within Procore, trying to get familiar with the job when they brought me on this jobsite. You know, I dealt with a lot of the documentation and organization, daily logs, all that kind of stuff. So I found myself spending a lot of time in my day on the computer, trying to get organized there and kind of find all the right documentation.
Can you walk us through a typical day for you on-site, and where Trunk Tools fits in?
I spend most of my day out in the field, dealing with the subs and the ongoing work out in the field, and I find having Trunk Tools on my phone readily available to answer any questions from them. It’s very helpful, especially since, you know, I’m getting asked questions from one sub, and then when I’m trying to go walk inside to get an answer, another sub pulls me aside and asks me another question. So finding out that I have this tool readily available and can get them the answer in that moment when they need it has been amazing.
What kind of daily tasks do you now use Trunk Tools for?
Definitely using it for RFIs, seeing if, you know, with the work going on outside, if we have any RFIs that have to do with said work. Basically just kind of organization of all the documentation — inspections, seeing where we were missing inspections, if I’ve documented the inspections correctly. So definitely a lot of document control, and just a lot of information — just gaining all the information I can to go back out there and help answer questions fast.
How has Trunk Tools changed the way you do field walks, inspections, or punch lists?
Instead of having to go through all the documentation beforehand and searching through all the drawings, I have Trunk Tools draft up specific items to set inspections, get the information there, walk outside, and if I even find any further discrepancies or need further clarification, I can pull up my phone with Trunk Tools right there, ask it further questions, and it gives me the answer right away.
How much time does Trunk Tools save you in a typical day or week?
Time is money, you know, and I find that schedule — especially on a jobsite like ours where we have two buildings searching for the same TCO — if we get a sub an answer quick, they’re working quick. So that definitely saves a lot of time and money.
How has Trunk Tools helped cut down rework or errors – like forgetting to log something?
This past year, I’ve actually had to deal a lot with drafting up RFIs, and the RFI tool to draft them up has been tremendously helpful. Instead of me going back and forth with my colleagues making sure the RFI is ready to go, I have Trunk Tools draft me up the RFI. I vet it myself, give it a quick pass, but I find that it streamlines the work. It’s always good to go, and I send it out.
How has Trunk Tools impacted the safety aspect of the job site?
The SOP tool has been awesome, definitely because I’ve been dealing with all the field work — making sure all the subcontractors are following all the Suffolk SOPs in terms of safety, making sure they have all their documentation, and know what documentation they need to submit daily. I find that’s very helpful, especially in the field aspect.
What was your first reaction when you started using Trunk Tools?
Why isn’t every job using this? That’s definitely my first thought, especially having a lot of younger generation guys coming into the industry. I mean, it’s been an awesome tool to help me out.
What’s a moment you realized that Trunk Tools saved you serious time or hassle?
In meetings, you know, the owners, the architects, somebody — maybe the subcontractors — may have a question. Everybody’s kind of looking through all the documentation, whereas you have it right on your laptop, put in the question real quick, and within five minutes, you have an accurate answer for us to move on to the next topic.
What kind of jobsite should absolutely be using Trunk Tools?
I find that any jobsite that wants to do the same as us should definitely be using any sort of technology, especially Trunk Tools, to save a lot of time searching up information, helping them draft RFIs, and going through submittals. I don’t see it where, in the future, every jobsite won’t have Trunk Tools on it.