Requirements checklist
What to ask for when choosing software for deck contractors.
A checklist built from how deck contractors work, to print or save as a PDF and bring to any supplier meeting.
What the software should cover
Tick each one that matters to your business.
- Site visits and measured layouts
- Quotations with material selections
- Supplier orders and delivery checks
- Permits and inspections
- Extra work and stage payments
- Maintenance visits and workmanship warranty
Roles that need their own access
Who logs in, and what each person may see or change.
- For owners
- For estimators and sales
- For the office
- For site leads and crews
Reports to ask for
Ask to see each one with your own sample data.
- Quotations still open, accepted and declined, by estimator
- Deck jobs by stage, from footings to railings, and site lead
- Lumber, composite boards and hangers ordered, delivered and used by job
- Footing and framing inspections due this week
- Stage invoices raised and amounts received
- Balances owed by client, longest overdue first
- Crew days and labour cost by deck
Systems it may need to connect to
Note which ones you already run.
- SMS
- WhatsApp or other messaging
- Online payment gateway
- Accounting software export
Questions for any vendor
Put these to every supplier you are comparing.
- Is it for new decks, rebuilds or both?
- Can quotations carry the client’s material choices?
- Does it handle permits and inspections?
- How are change orders handled?
- Does a crew lead on a half-built deck get by with a handset, and what if the yard has no signal?
- Can it export invoices to our accounting software?
- Can open jobs and unpaid invoices be moved?
- Who owns the data?
- What does it cost?
Where the work usually breaks today
Circle the ones you recognise. They set the order of the project.
- Site measures are copied by hand
- Material choices are lost between quote and order
- Inspection and permit dates are kept in a notebook
- Extras are agreed by word of mouth
- Labour cost of a deck is unknown
Prefer to talk it through? See the deck contractors page.