Taking Business Development Efficiency to New Heights 

Nearmap improves parts of business development, like reducing the time and expense of preparing quotes and estimates for roofing installation.

Quick, accurate estimates are crucial to profitability in roofing. The conventional process, involving on-roof, physical measurement of square footage, is time-consuming, inaccurate and often dangerous. The roofer must reconcile its estimate with that of the insurance adjuster, who has an incentive to underestimate. Estimating based on aerial imagery and virtual measurement tools is faster and safer than on-site measurement, but typically the available images have been outdated, and resolution has been too low for precise estimating. Access to reports has been expensive, and turnaround time from image vendors has been slow. 

Solution Authentic Restoration turned to Nearmap to boost productivity and minimize risk with instant access to current, clear, high-resolution PhotoMaps™. Unlike other aerial imagery providers, Nearmap captures major US cities (nearly 70% of total US population) multiple times per year. So Nearmap’s solution is uniquely timely. Imagery is typically published and online within days of capture—not months or years. 

Nearmap’s high-resolution aerial photos are 2.8” GSD, which is several times sharper than satellite images. It is clearer and more up-to-date than images from Authentic’s previous imagery supplier. 

Nearmap provides access to its current and historic imagery through MapBrowser™, a cloud-based service. With this tool, workers  can monitor, inspect and compare images over time, on demand. Nearmap’s service model enabled a 10x cost reduction in this component of Authentic’s annual operating budget 

Impact

Reduce Site Visits—Instantly access current visuals of roofs to start bidding process immediately. Authentic’s representatives arrive at the Adjuster’s Meeting with a precise, verifiable estimate in hand. 

Increase Accuracy—Determine the quantity of the materials needed and adapt designs with virtual measurement tools. Resolution is critical. “If we’re off by a couple of hundred square feet, that’s real money,” Authentic’s CEO Mark Craney suggests. 

Mitigate Risk—Reduce worker risk with remote estimating. “I don’t want my inspectors out on a 45˚ pitched roof, 40 feet in the air, on a 100˚ day, trying to snake a tape measure down the shingles, if they don’t have to be,” Craney says. 

Learn more at www.nearmap.com.

Editor’s note:  This case study first appeared on the Nearmap website and can be viewed here.