Shelby Erectors Builds Their Business on Decades of Industry Experience

Pushing The Boundaries of Bridge Construction

Building bridges is tough, backbreaking and sometimes dangerous work. It’s one reason why the construction industry is suffering a labor shortage. But one company is tackling this problem head-on by constantly evolving how it manages people, projects and finances through modern software.

Shelby Erectors is a family-owned contractor established in 1997 with a commitment to hiring, growing and retaining employees. As a Florida labor subcontractor that specializes in bridge construction—specifically, the installation of ‘rebar’ (the reinforcing steel used as rods in concrete) and stay-in-place metal decking—Shelby Erectors is literally building the infrastructure connecting communities throughout the state.

Their hard work has received plenty of recognition, too. In 2022, Shelby Erectors received the Project of the Year for Miscellaneous Metals, Class II, Craft Training Excellence and the Safety Excellence Award from the Steel Erectors Association of America.

Shelby Erectors is always looking for new ways to push the boundaries of bridge construction, and a big part of that is adopting new technologies and innovative methods of operation. “We're heavily involved right now with robotics,” explains Chief Operations Officer, Jack Nix. “We're introducing robotics into rebar tying, which is something I don't think I ever thought I would say.”

These investments not only contribute to making work more efficient but also make life easier for Shelby Erector’s workers. Jack is currently excited about rolling out another piece of robotics technology called IronBot, which will enable field teams to place steel three to five times faster than they currently can by hand.

Getting Technology to Do The Heavy Lifting

By implementing innovative robotic technology, Shelby Erectors hopes to reduce some of the hard manual labor of bridge construction while improving worker safety for their 100 employees. At the same time—alongside their hiring and retention strategies—these technologies are helping to ease the industry’s labor shortage by encouraging more new workers to the sector.

But it’s not only in field work that advanced technology is supporting the evolution of construction contractors. Due to the complex nature of job costing, back-office admin can be excessively manual, time-consuming and costly.

To overcome this challenge, Shelby Erectors has been using industry-specific accounting software, Deltek ComputerEase, to simplify and streamline processes—from the field to the back office.

Streamlining Payroll and Project Management

Jack has been working with Deltek ComputerEase for 20 years, so he has seen first-hand how the solution has evolved to meet the needs of construction firms. The cloud-based accounting software is specifically designed for the functions of construction firms including accounting, job costing, project management and payroll services.

ComputerEase is an easy-to-use solution that helps contractors manage costs and cash flow, stay financially compliant, maximize productivity and predict profits. It also helps firms like Shelby Erectors stay in control from any location, with mobile field services tools for proactively managing jobs, inventory, finances and people.

“I like the vision, the mobile apps and where Deltek is headed,” says Jack. “They are looking at what the industry needs; and more importantly, lately, what the industry wants.”

For Jack, the ComputerEase mobile field services tools play a major part in helping Shelby Erector’s teams improve productivity: “Those things have been very special to us. They allow us to run payroll efficiently and effectively and collect data.”

Shelby Erector’s use of Deltek ComputerEase for over two decades has enabled them to successfully centralize their time entry, streamline field payroll and project management and reduce the use of standalone spreadsheet reports—making the company a 2022 Deltek MVP Award winner in the Construction category.

Ahead of Its Time on a Paperless Journey

The functionality within Deltek ComputerEase has helped the Florida contractor achieve one specific goal the company has had in their sights for a while, as Jack explains: “About five years ago we decided to go paperless, and if it weren't for ComputerEase and the type of technology it offers to us—the field management tools, the ability to collect payroll from the field through the different apps and FieldEase, expenses—we wouldn't have been able to accomplish that goal. And I'd say, in our industry, we're certainly ahead of our time on being a paperless company.”

Jack adds that the visibility afforded by the software has also helped the company to seamlessly manage their projects. The different modules within ComputerEase mean Shelby Erectors can pick and choose the functionality they want to support the software’s accounting capabilities. And because these modules integrate seamlessly, all the company's data is in one place—eliminating the effort and cost of having to unify that data manually.

“ComputerEase helps us stay in tune with where the jobs are and really helps us manage our business—it gives us a full view of everything. It just makes things just a lot more efficient,” Jack says. “You can do more with less people, because Deltek has created a platform that really works well within itself. And it has a lot of different solutions. There's just so much besides the basic accounting needs that are in there that it's invaluable.”

How Shelby Erectors is Combating the Construction Labor Shortage Through Technology

Shelby Erectors Wins Multiple Awards at the 2023 Steel Erectors Association of America