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8 Reasons Why Construction Viz is the Ultimate Construction Management Solution for Microsoft 365

Construction Viz News |

Over on our Construction Viz blog, we had a series of posts explaining what set our project management software solution apart from the competition. We recap the eight key reasons below why Construction Viz is the perfect construction management platform for businesses like yours – especially if you are already leveraging the power of Microsoft 365.

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1. Get the Apps You Need, and Only the Apps You Need

Tired of paying for a bloated construction management system packed with features you never use? Construction Viz puts the power of choice back in your hands.

Every construction project is different, and your software should reflect that. Construction Viz offers a flexible, modular approach with over 50 apps, including 40+ industry-standard forms, allowing you to build a customized toolkit that perfectly matches your requirements.

Whether you need a single app or a comprehensive suite, Construction Viz empowers you to pay only for what you use, eliminating the frustration of a one-size-fits-all system.

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2. Securely Deploy Construction Viz Within Microsoft 365

Worried about the security of your construction project data in the cloud?

With Construction Viz, you're in control. Your data stays within your own Microsoft 365 environment, leveraging its robust security infrastructure and your existing SharePoint sites. No more relying on third-party servers or worrying about vendor dependencies – you maintain complete ownership and access to your valuable information.

Construction Viz gives you the peace of mind of knowing your data is protected by Microsoft 365's industry-leading security, all while benefiting from a streamlined construction management solution.

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3. Customize Construction Viz to Your Unique Needs

We understand that one size doesn't fit all when it comes to managing construction projects. That's why we designed Construction Viz with flexibility at its core, offering a range of customization options to ensure a perfect fit for your unique workflows.

From the Construction Viz Hub, you can easily tailor your experience by activating or deactivating apps and configuring them to your specific requirements. Leverage modular components to create custom apps, adjust settings to manage projects at the site level, and even utilize metadata files for truly bespoke solutions. This adaptability ensures that Construction Viz can grow and evolve alongside your business, meeting your needs today and well into the future.

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4. Best-in-Class Pricing

Frustrated with unpredictable licensing fees that eat into your profits? Construction Viz offers a refreshing alternative. Our transparent, user-based pricing model ensures you only pay for what you need, with no hidden costs or percentage-based fees tied to your project values.

Enjoy predictable costs, even as your company and projects grow. With Construction Viz, you have complete control over your budget. Choose the number of users and apps that align with your requirements and pay only for those selections. No more excessive fees for features you don't use or unexpected price hikes when your projects succeed.

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5. Intuitive and User-Friendly

Just like Microsoft 365, Construction Viz prioritizes ease of use. We understand that construction professionals have varying levels of technology experience, and your software shouldn't create additional hurdles. That's why Construction Viz is designed with an intuitive interface that's both user-friendly and efficient.

From the moment you log in, you'll be greeted by a clean, uncluttered design that prioritizes essential information and minimizes distractions. Navigate effortlessly through the platform with minimal clicks, finding the tools and data you need quickly and efficiently.

No need for extensive training manuals or complicated tutorials – Construction Viz empowers everyone in your organization to get up to speed quickly and maximize their productivity.

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6. Construction Viz Prioritizes Ownership and Security

Data security is non-negotiable, especially in today's environment of increasing cyber threats. With Construction Viz, you never have to worry about entrusting your sensitive project data to a third-party provider. Your data remains securely within your own Microsoft 365 environment, under your complete control, 24/7.

Construction Viz utilizes your existing SharePoint infrastructure to store project data, ensuring complete ownership and transparency. Access your data directly through SharePoint whenever you need it, with the ability to archive and back it up using Microsoft's robust security tools. Even if you decide to discontinue using Construction Viz, your data remains yours, safely stored within your Microsoft 365 tenant.

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7. Built by Construction Professionals for Construction Professionals

At Lydon Solutions, we don't just understand technology; we understand construction.  Our team comprises experienced IT professionals with real-world construction backgrounds, ensuring that Construction Viz is built with a deep understanding of the construction industry's unique challenges and workflows.

We've walked in your shoes, experiencing firsthand the frustrations of generic software solutions that fail to address the specific needs of construction projects.  That's why we've poured our collective expertise into Construction Viz, designing a platform that truly speaks the language of construction. Benefit from a solution crafted by professionals who understand your day-to-day realities, resulting in a tool that seamlessly integrates with your processes and empowers you to achieve optimal efficiency.

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8. Perfectly Integrated to Your Microsoft 365 Toolkit

You're already relying on Microsoft 365 to manage your construction projects, but are you truly maximizing its potential? Construction Viz elevates your existing tools with a suite of specialized apps tailored to the unique needs of construction professionals. Imagine a centralized platform where you can effortlessly manage documents, track progress, and collaborate with your team, all within your familiar Microsoft 365 environment.

Construction Viz offers a complete yet flexible solution that seamlessly integrates with SharePoint, Power BI, and Teams to create a truly unified and efficient workspace. Say goodbye to the complexities of building custom solutions from scratch and embrace the streamlined workflows that Construction Viz provides. With Construction Viz, you can optimize your Microsoft 365 experience and unlock new levels of productivity in your construction project management.

Learn More About Construction Viz

We've explored some of the key reasons why Construction Viz stands out as a powerful construction management solution for businesses utilizing Microsoft 365. But this is only scratching the surface. To truly understand the depth and breadth of Construction Viz's capabilities, we invite you to request a free demo using the form below.

And if you're new to Microsoft 365 or need assistance with implementation, our experts are here to help.  Schedule a free one-hour consultation below to discuss your specific needs and explore how we can optimize your Microsoft 365 environment for construction success.

Request a Free Demo

Is Your PC Acting up? Check Out PC Manager

Reviews |

So, you are out on a job site trying to get work done, but your PC is really slow. You check the internet connection, and it seems fine. What next?

Good news! Microsoft launched a new app called PC Manager. You might be wondering if there are already Windows settings for managing your PC. Yes, but this is better. How so? Read on to find out more.

Microsoft PC Manager App Features

I recently stumbled on a new PC Manager app on the Microsoft app store. I did a little research, found some videos, and thought I would try it.

Here are some highlights of the Microsoft PC Manager app:

  • An intuitive set of PC administration features organized in one modern application.
  • The health check option scans your PC to find areas to clean up temp files.
  • View a dashboard on your PC health.
  • Find large files that might be taking up too much storage.
  • Manage your Startup options and apps.
  • Uninstall apps.
  • Run a virus scan.
  • Check for Windows updates.
  • Manage browser settings.

So, is this new Microsoft PC Manager app a must-have? Not necessarily, but it will save a few clicks trying to find these settings on your PC. It is focused on administration tasks and is structured to navigate across protection, storage, and apps easily. I recommend trying it. If you do, let me know your thoughts.

Lydon Solutions is a full-service IT solutions provider focused specifically on Microsoft products for the construction industry. We specialize in delivering solutions using Microsoft 365 to save companies time and money. Fill out the form below to schedule a free one-hour demo.

Schedule a Free Demo

Is Microsoft Teams Premium worth it?

Reviews |

Most organizations that use Microsoft 365 are familiar with Microsoft Teams. It’s Microsoft’s communication and collaboration program released in 2017 to compete with products like Slack, WebEx, Zoom, and Goto Meeting, but with the added benefit of integration across the Microsoft 365 suite of applications. Microsoft Teams is essentially a one-stop shop where you can communicate with a project team and can access your project data.

What Does Microsoft Teams Premium Include?

In 2023, Microsoft released Teams Premium as an add-on subscription service to Teams. You might be wondering what could warrant an additional cost for Teams. This new add-on service provides the following benefits:

Additional Meeting Types

  • Webinars – Webinars are different from a standard team meeting. Webinars allow the organizer to designate presenters and roles for participants. You can also create questionnaires for attendees, themed landing pages for registration, and view engagement reports. Lydon Solutions frequently uses Teams webinars for Microsoft 365 training and demonstrations of Construction Viz.
  • Town Hall – Town halls include all of the same features as webinars but provide the ability to deliver presentations for large-scale events with up to 20,000 attendees.
  • Virtual Appointment – Virtual appointments provide an all-in-one way to book and conduct virtual appointments. You can add a virtual appointment app to Teams to schedule and manage appointments using Microsoft Bookings. Teams Premium provides the additional benefit of SMS text reminders, waiting room branding, and analytics.
  • Controlled Content Meeting – CCM provides an additional layer of security for your meetings where you can add watermarks to audio, video, and shared content. You can also control who can record the meeting, utilize sensitivity labels, and prevent copying and pasting data from chats.
  • Live Event – Microsoft recommends upgrading to town hall events.

Other Premium Features

Immersive space (3D). While in a meeting, you can change the view to Immersive space (3D), which will render a Microsoft Mesh environment to interact with meeting attendees. You will need to have an avatar configured to make the most of this feature.

Branded meetings. You can create branded Teams meetings and backgrounds.

AI Meeting recap. AI-powered meetings and intelligent meeting recaps that automatically generates meeting notes, recommended tasks, and personalized highlights to help you get the information most important to you, even if you miss the meeting.

Final Thoughts on Microsoft Teams Premium

So, after reading about all of the Teams Premium features, you are thinking, “Get to the point—is it worth the additional cost?” As with my usual product reviews, the answer depends on the following:

  1. Do you want more robust meeting options such as webinars where attendees can register or present to large groups of people?
  2. Do you want to add another layer of security or custom branding to your meetings?
  3. Do you want AI to capture a summary of minutes and action items? It’s a neat feature that might save you time and frustration taking notes.

In Summary, Microsoft Teams Premium could be worth it to you and your organization if you would take advantage of its advanced features and extended meeting options.

Microsoft 365 is a powerful platform for managing all aspects of your business and operations. Due to its scale and breadth, it can be a little intimidating. You can reach out to Lydon Solutions for a free one-hour consultation where we can help you get on the right path for your organization.

If you want to learn more about using Microsoft Teams for construction project management, check out these Teams how-to articles:

Lydon Solutions is Keeping You in the “Loop” for Construction: Microsoft Loop Part II

Reviews |

I've been trying out the latest updates to Microsoft Loop, and I thought it might be a good time to update the post I provided last year.

Microsoft Loop is a very interesting app that has a bit of an identity problem.

So, what is Microsoft Loop?

For those who are not familiar with Microsoft Loop, "it is a collaborative app that enables teams to think, plan, and create together across various apps and devices." Translated: Loop is If OneNote and Planner had a baby, but it gained mutant powers that allow it to work across Microsoft 365 apps.

Microsoft made Loop generally available in November of 2023. The word on the street is that Microsoft created Loop to compete with Notion, which is a productivity and note-taking application that has over 20 million users and is worth over $10B.

There are three main elements of Loop:

Loop workspaces

Workspaces "are shared spaces that allow you and your team to see and group everything important to your project, making it easy for you to catch up on what everyone is working on and track progress toward shared goals."

Workspaces are like OneNote sections where you can organize your work by project or client. Within workspaces, you create pages for each day or possibly a meeting minute.

Loop pages

Pages "are flexible canvases in the Loop app where you can bring together people and all your components, links, tasks, and data. Loop pages can start small and continue to grow to match the size of your ideas. Loop pages can be shared across M365 apps as a link or as an embedded Loop component."

Think of Loop pages like OneNote pages where you add notes, create meeting information, and so on.

Loop Components

Components are "portable pieces of content that stay in sync across all the places they are shared. Components allow you to collaborate in the flow of work — on a Loop page or in a chat, email, meeting, or document. They can be lists, tables, notes, and more — you're always working with the latest information in your preferred app, like Microsoft Teams, Outlook, Word, Whiteboard, and the Loop app."

Think of components as stand-alone widgets that perform one or more functions like capturing notes, status tasks, creating a checklist, or all the above. If a component is created in Loop on a page, it can be shared with other apps to collect data from users and/or report progress. If you create a component outside of Loop in another application, it can still be shared and embedded into other apps, but it does not reside in the Loop application.

Takeaway. If you want to manage all your Loop components from one location, create them in Loop and then share them with users or other applications. Further, if you need specific functions (checklist, table, etc.) to be able to be updated across multiple applications, create them as components within a Loop page instead of just inserting them in a Loop page.

New Microsoft Loop Features

Microsoft has added a host of new features to Loop since 2023. Those include:

  • Create Loop page templates so you can reuse them in workspaces.
  • Create rules on tables to send workflows to Teams and Outlook.
  • Page inserts new features:
    • Now, you can insert dates, callouts, code, table of contents, and a divider.
    • New headers, including collapsible headers.
    • New templates, including a voting table, progress tracker, Kanban board, and Teams retrospective.
    • New Media: Add images and record a video. Even draw and add text to your media.
    • New app intergrations: GitHub, Microsoft Planner, Jira, and Trello.
  • New locations to embed components: Add components to Outlook desktop, Word, and Whiteboard.
  • Print pages: Although it seems to be hit or miss when this menu item appears.
  • Copilot for Microsoft 365 in Loop can help you get started with brainstorming, content drafting, and more.
  • The Loop app is available for Android and IOS. It's a very clean and intuitive modern app.

Advantages of Microsoft Loop

So why use Microsoft Loop over something like OneNote?

Extensibility and sharing

Loop workspaces and pages can be shared and updated in real-time by multiple users. If you create Loop components, you can add them to applications such as Teams chat, email (even Outlook desktop), or a document to collect or report data.

Create page templates

You can create page templates that can be reused in your workspaces.

Rules

You can easily add rules on pages or component tables to send off emails or Team chats. Users can then provide updates from those applications in real-time. For construction folks who might not be tech-savvy and do not want to go into a system, bringing Loop to them in their day-to-day applications is a huge plus for adoption.

Embed other applications

Applications can be inserted into Loop. For example, you don't have to go to Planner to create tasks; you can insert Planner into a Loop page or component.

Other factors to consider

Price

  • Loop is included in Microsoft 365 Business Standard, Premium, E3, E5, A3, and A5.
  • Loop workspaces and pages take up storage. Check with Microsoft for the latest pricing on additional storage if needed.

Storage

  • As of 25 June 2024, Loop workspaces and pages will now count towards an individual's Microsoft storage quota. Loop workspaces no longer have a 5GB maximum size.
  • Loop components created in Teams and Outlook are just .loop files (earlier versions of Loop-created .fluid files) stored in the creator's OneDrive. A file being in OneDrive means that users can create, discover, and manage Loop components (.loop files) as easily as any Office document.

Availability

  • To create Loop components, chat or email creators must have a OneDrive account.
  • Integration of Loop into other Microsoft 365 apps only includes Teams, Word, Outlook, OneNote, and Whiteboard at the moment.

Access

  • Microsoft 365 Guests can't view or collaborate on a Loop component.
  • External recipients of emails can't view or collaborate on a Loop component.
  • Workspaces can be shared with Guest Users.

In Summary, Microsoft Loop is a unique application. It's a little of this and a little of that. It shines with Loop components that can be created in Loop and then added to chats, documents, and emails to collect feedback.

While Loop doesn't seem to have received the reception Microsoft has probably expected, I have seen it used to collect meeting minutes on some projects. Time will tell regarding the future of Loop. I can see a day when OneNote absorbs the features of Loop or the other way around, and I think that will jumpstart adoption.

If you are looking to implement a Microsoft 365 application such as Loop to supplement your construction projects and need some help, you can request a free one-hour consultation with Lydon Solutions below. If you need a turnkey construction management solution for Microsoft 365, check out Construction Viz and click to request a demo.

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How to Create Forms in Microsoft 365 with Microsoft Lists

Microsoft Tips |

Not too complicated or not too simple, Microsoft Lists might be the right fit for easy form creation in Microsoft 365.

Microsoft 365 is a cloud platform that is customizable to the needs of your construction organization. Everything from storing documents to creating forms, such as RFIs and Daily Reports, can be accommodated using a variety of Microsoft 365 technologies included in your subscription. Microsoft Lists offers a simple and effective form creator that might be the best solution for your projects. Check out this article to find out more.

Like Goldilocks and The Three Bears, Microsoft 365 can provide multiple options for creating your construction forms, but Microsoft Lists might best fit your unique needs. Microsoft Lists was released in July 2020 as a new and modern way to create and view SharePoint lists.

Creating a Form in Microsoft Lists Step-by-Step

You start by creating a list. In most cases, you make a blank list. You can then add columns for each field in your form. There are multiple data types to choose from, including:

  • Text
  • Choice
  • Date and time
  • Multiple lines of text
  • Person
  • Number
  • Yes/no
  • Hyperlink
  • Currency,
  • Location
  • Image
  • Lookup
  • Average rating

If you scroll to the bottom of the menu, there are even more options under “see all content types.”

When you select “see all content types,” you will be redirected to the standard SharePoint list menu. From there, you can add settings such as default values, unique values, and validation.

Once you select the columns to use in your form, you can configure the form layout by clicking the Forms button from the Lists menu.

In the Forms configuration menu, you can:

  • Show or hide fields
  • Rearrange field order
  • Change the color theme
  • Add a response
  • Send form – Copy Link

Also, you can extend the functionality by adding Power BI reports, Power Automate workflows, and rules and approvals. Check out this article to see more features of Microsoft Lists.

Is Microsoft Lists the Right Choice for Your Forms?

So, Microsoft Lists is a pretty straightforward tool for creating forms, but there are several areas to consider if you want to use Lists for your project forms:

  • Printing. Reporting is done in Power BI. So, if you want to create a formatted print of a form, you will need to get familiar with Power BI.
  • Form configuration. While you can add fields and themes to a form, you are pretty limited as to how much customization you can do unless you incorporate custom code.

Powerful Mobile-Responsive Construction Project Forms

Construction Viz utilizes SharePoint lists to store data. Our custom form technology leverages the best of SharePoint lists and document libraries. Learn More >

  • Data location. Lists are saved to SharePoint sites, so be aware of the permissions and other SharePoint features you inherit when creating a list.
  • Document management. You can attach files to a list form, but you will be out of luck if you want to extract those files into a view to incorporate more document management controls unless you know Power Automate.
  • Lookups. If you have columns that you want to reuse across multiple lists, such as project name or location. You will need to plan where that list will reside in SharePoint so that all your list lookups can reference the same standard data source. A better option is to use Site Columns and Content Types to ensure consistency across lists, but again, this requires planning and more knowledge of SharePoint.

Many different applications in Microsoft 365 allow the creation of forms. Microsoft Lists might be the right fit, but before jumping into any new technology, we recommend conducting formal software requirements gathering.

Use the form below to request a free one-hour consultation if you need help collecting requirements. Lydon Solutions has been delivering custom Microsoft-based construction solutions for over 15 years and has helped many construction organizations deliver their projects on time and within budget.

Get a Free Consultation

The New Microsoft Planner: One Plan to Rule All Your Construction Projects!

Microsoft News |

The latest Microsoft Planner now includes Planner, To Do, and Project. The new version does not just bring these apps together into one task management solution. It allows you to see all of your tasks across every Team, which I think has been long overdue. Check out this post to find out more.

Microsoft Planner is the app that most people use, but oftentimes, they don’t know its name. Outside of Teams, rarely does anyone actually use the stand-alone Planner app. Most likely, the reason for that is that tasks can be created in many different applications, so which one do you go to in order to see all of your tasks?

Task Management in Microsoft 365

Tasks in Microsoft 365 is a pretty broad term and touches many different applications. If you think about all of the locations where tasks can get created in Microsoft 365, it’s a spaghetti network of related but independent applications.

For example, before this update, you could choose to create tasks in any of the following applications:

  • Excel – ☑Pro: Ultimate flexibility. ☒Con: Source/version management of tasks.
  • Planner – ☑Pro: Easy to use, assign, and schedule tasks. ☒Con: Planner specific. No tracking by project or ability to add custom fields.
  • To Do – ☑Pro: Easy to use. ☒Con: Person specific. No tracking by project and no ability to add custom fields.
  • Outlook Tasks – ☑Pro: Create tasks right inside Outlook. ☒Con: Tasks are localized to Outlook. No tracking by project or adding custom fields.
  • Lists – ☑Pro: Flexibility to create custom columns. ☒Con: Resides in a single SharePoint site (although you can also access with the Lists app).
  • MS Project – ☑Pro: Project-specific tracking and scheduling. ☒Con: Additional licensing and increased complexity.

The good news is that Microsoft has been hard at work trying to integrate these applications together and even changing the new Planner logo. They recently replaced Outlook tasks with To Do, and now they have consolidated Planner, To-do, and Project into one solution.

New Microsoft Planner Plans

New Microsoft Planner Features

The new Microsoft Planner comes in two flavors:

  • Planner Basic for Microsoft 365 is included in most Microsoft 365 subscriptions at no additional cost.
  • Premium Planner is a different license, which is essentially a Project Plan 1 or 3 license with Plan 3 including a future Copilot feature.
Microsoft Planner Features by License

So, what else can this new Planner do?

New Planner templates – Microsoft is providing new templates to help you create the perfect plan. The plans indicate Basic vs. Premium, so you know which ones will require additional licensing. I tried the new Premium Commercial Construction template, and it automatically built out a Plan and a schedule with durations and logic in MS Project as well.

Planner Commercial Construction Project
Microsoft Project Commercial Construction Project

Pin a plan – You can pin a plan, so you don’t have to hunt and peck to try and find amongst all of your other plans.

Source of task – You can see where the task was created (e.g., To Do). Also, if a high-priority task is assigned to an Outlook email, a task will automatically be created and will be filtered in the Flagged Emails view.

My Day – Displays all of the tasks that are assigned to you and due today across all plans. Also includes new filters for finding tasks by keyword, due date, and priority.

Manage Your Project Tasks Your Way

Construction Viz Task Managers lets you manage your project tasks the way you want with scheduling, labor tracking, links to other construction applications, and more. Learn More >

My Tasks – Displays all of the tasks that are assigned to you across all plans. You can also filter by Private Tasks that you created, Assigned to Me tasks, and Flagged Emails. Also included are new filters for finding tasks by keyword, due dates, and priority.

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The new Planner app brings together several task management applications in a single location and offers many new features. Microsoft is rolling out the updated Planner in early 2024. What are your thoughts on the new Planner app? What features are you looking for?

If you are looking for help implementing Planner, Microsoft Project, or any Microsoft 365 features, you can request a free one-hour consultation using the contact form below.

If you need a turnkey construction management solution for your Microsoft 365 that is customizable to your unique needs, you can request a demo of Construction Viz.

Get a Free Consultation