An app that frees inspectors from the pain of site inspection reports

Inspectors need to anticipate problems, accurately interpret and record them, and then report to their clients. One app can make all these inspections simpler and faster.

As an inspector, you’re held to a high standard. You’re an independent assessor of building and material quality for your clients, and can make the difference between a successful, high-value build, and a costly, high-risk project.

In your efforts to accurately locate, assess, and report on risks and issues, you have a long list of checks to run through during site inspections. Done manually, these checks can lead to a vast number of photos, annotations, and hand-written notes – all of which need to be transferred to a computer and filed once you get back to your office.

This, of course, takes time. But it could also lead to you mislabelling or losing important notes or photos in the process or not being able to file the resulting inspection reports in time.

The faster, more reliable way to conduct site inspections

In 2012, Belgian software developers Peter Eerlings and Jerry De Paepe noticed lots of construction professionals were struggling with these challenges during site visits. At the same time, Apple released the first iPad with a camera.

The timing was right to develop a mobile solution that could bring all elements of site reporting together. The two developers gathered a group of construction professionals to offer guidance on key features, such as item numbering, starting from a previous report, and annotating photos and plans.

The first version of ArchiSnapper was released on April 1, 2013. Since then, the app has helped architects, building consultants, contractors and other construction professionals easily document data – including text, photos, floor plan annotations and more – immediately while on-site with a smartphone or tablet.

For inspectors, ArchiSnapper offers similar benefits, and much more. Here are the three main ways ArchiSnapper can simplify on-site inspections and help inspectors better support their clients.

1. Save time and money for clients

As trusted independent advisors, inspectors must always have open, honest, and strong communication with their clients. ArchiSnapper lets inspectors share all information about site inspections in a clear and organised way, helping save clients time and money by avoiding costly misunderstandings or mistakes.

With ArchiSnapper, inspectors can save time, and reduce risk with:

• Simple annotations and pointers on photos and plans to communicate issues clearly
• Advanced labelling so you can track assignees, due dates, location pointers, and observation status
• Speech to text features that make it easy to document observations

2. Reduce risk with standardised digital checklists

Inspectors operate to the highest standards, ensuring worksites comply with safety regulations and quality standards for work and materials. Assessing all these characteristics demands an exhaustive list of construction-specific checks, so generic checklist solutions aren’t appropriate.

ArchiSnapper is explicitly designed for assessing compliance, workmanship, and material quality on-site, and can help inspectors assess conditions quickly and accurately.

With ArchiSnapper, inspectors can:

• Convert paper checklists or spreadsheets into smart, standardised inspection forms in a matter of minutes
• Complete inspections anywhere, with a mobile application that works with or without internet access
• Have a site inspections report generated automatically after every site inspection.

3. Communicate clearly with pre-structured, pre-branded reports

One of the most crucial elements of a inspector’s role is reporting findings and potential risks to clients clearly and concisely. ArchiSnapper can also help here, with templates that make it easier to populate clear, readable, and professional reports.

Using ArchiSnapper, it’s easy for inspectors to:

• Build reusable report templates and instantly populate fields with the results of site inspections
• Customise pre-made templates to build personalised, professional PDFs quickly
• Pull all inspection information into reports automatically, from planning information to deficiencies with pictures, text, location pointers on floor plans, and more

Simple, easy-to-use, and transformative for inspectors

By focusing on simplicity and ease of use, the ArchiSnapper team has helped over 10,000 construction professionals eliminate site management busywork while improving the consistency of site inspections. To learn more about ArchiSnapper and what it can do for inspectors, start a free trial on archisnapper.com or get in touch at support@archisnapper.com – we’re here to help you.