Success Story : West Construction Services

A West Construction Services Home

Fast forward to 2005 and you will find that he is one of the driving forces behind the advancement of West Construction Services, a company he co-founded with his brother, Kyle Westberg and a third, but silent, business partner in 1995. Today, West Construction Services has become one of the fastest growing companies in the Detroit area, specializing in home building projects such as new home construction, additions, renovations and basement finishing.

Brent Westberg

“Sage Master Builder has proven to be one of the better investments we’ve made,” said Brent Westberg. “It lets us track project costs and customer change orders more closely, which helps us to better control project data for purchasing materials and labor.”

“Additionally, it has helped us to implement very important scheduling benchmarks and in effect manage projects and clients more efficiently than we did before.”

Sound Business Decisions
With a disciplined, process driven engineering background, Brent is able to complement his brother Kyle’s educational background in Architecture, as well as his work in the trenches of the construction industry. Together they are able to make sound business decisions that will push West Construction Services to a higher-level of service that few builders are able to attain.

“We are a cutting edge company and each day we strive to make ourselves better. That not only helps us, but helps our clients receive the best possible service,” says Brent.

“We really see the influence of having so many automotive industry types here in the Detroit area,” Brent says. “As a general rule, these customers are very technically savvy and are used to dealing with meticulous figures and stats in their own daily jobs. They expect the same level of detail in other areas, so presenting them with a free-form estimate for a construction project just doesn’t cut it.”

The Westberg Brothers Brent & Kyle

Since starting to use Sage Master Builder from Construction Business Solutions in 2002, West Construction has been able to provide its tech savvy customers with detailed and accurate estimates, thorough and professional-looking proposals and vastly improved communication via speedy and accurate change orders. The company has also been able to win an increasing number of new business contracts since they began employing Sage Master Builder and in fact, plan to more than double their current contracts next year.

“Many of my team members, including estimators, construction managers and controllers, need access to Sage Master Builder but not always at the same time. The new flexible licensing model will save us money, and will make sure that I have all the resources I need to manage and operate my company effectively,” Brent says.

Almost Auto-Pilot
More new jobs is not the only benefit West Construction Services has experienced by using Sage Master Builder. The software has enabled the company to decrease the amount of time spent on producing takeoffs, contracts with clients, and subcontracts with trade workers. Brent estimates that by using Sage Master Builder the company saves 5 to 10 hours a week.

 Also, managing purchase orders and tracking down accounts payable responsibilities is easier then the company thought possible. The result; more efficient communication with their clients and their staff.

Brent, who serves as the both the Production Manager and CFO has precious few hours to devote to his C-level title. By using Sage Master Builder to run the business, when he puts on his CFO hat, he is able to make decisions quickly and with the necessary and critical insight required. Also, since there are less data entry points, Brent can rest assured that there is much less room for errors.

“I went into the construction business because I love construction, not because I love accounting. Luckily, Sage Master Builder has allowed me to enjoy more on the construction side while still expertly running the financials of our company… even without an accounting degree,” Brent says.

West Construction Services

West Construction Services is a residential contractor which focuses on a wide variety of construction products including custom and production homes, remodeling, additions and basement finishing to name a few. West Construction celebrated its 10th anniversary this year. By successfully producing more than 30 homes and with plans to increase production by 100 percent to finish more than 60 units next year, West Construction continues to lead the way as one of the premier builders in Southeast Michigan. The company offers its customers exceptionally detailed estimates and a higher degree of technology then even an automotive engineer would expect. West Construction knows what its customers need and delivers it – that’s a formula for success

Company name: West Construction Services Type of Construction: Residential specializing in new custom homes, additions and remodeling, production homes and condos Employees: 13 Annual Sales: $3.2 Million Annual Units: 30 in 2005 60 expected in 2006 Main Challenge: Produce detailed/technical estimates for engineering minded clients their current contracts next year.

Note: This customer spotlight reflects the individual experience of this customer and his business. Sage Master Builder does not guarantee that these same results will apply to all customers or businesses.