When it comes to quality, technology is quickly becoming a difference maker. The STO Building Group family of builders is leveraging several innovative tools to achieve the highest in quality, timely delivery, and exceptional coordination.
More and more, clients look for partners who take the lead on construction technology. Today’s builders are setting themselves apart by leveraging a combination of innovative technologies, tailored to the project requirements and industry best practices.
The goal isn’t technology for technology’s sake. It’s about matching the best tool to a known problem, identifying and solving for complexity faster and better than ever before. This intentional, careful definition of a project’s tech stack is a key success factor.
From preconstruction to closeout, STO Building Group prioritizes understanding the details of a project and how technology can strengthen collaboration. Our teams are piloting new applications, partnering with innovators to advance projects, and ensuring our people are equipped with the best tools for the job.
Scheduling is a key example of how quality can run into challenges before building even starts. When schedules run into trouble, quality and safety drop. Poor scheduling can lead to labor and equipment downtime, only to later find trades stacked in the same space as they race to meet the due date.
Quality doesn’t start when you’re walking a finished project,” EXPLAINS LISA DUNMEYER, TECH OPS PROJECT MANAGER FOR STOBG. “Quality starts at the time of building the schedule. How do you know your schedule is meeting the highest standards? And how do you optimize your schedule to deliver the best results?”
Enter ALICE Technologies. Their construction optimization software validates that schedules meet the highest standards while also leveraging AI to analyze construction sequencing and scenario planning. ALICE allows teams to run scenarios without having to rebuild the schedule, leaving more time to discuss strategies, optimize construction sequence and crew size, and avoid costly down time. These steps uncover insights, allowing complex projects to save up to 10% in construction time.
Once the project begins, quality becomes a key part of daily operations. Historically, quality control has been manual: walk the site, make sure the work meets specifications, and issue notes in a report. Information from the field can lag, taking as much as 24-48 hours to reach the necessary people, meaning teams reference late or out of date information.
During the project, navigating complex processes like mechanical, electrical, and plumbing (MEP) work or concrete pours present specific challenges.
Siteaware, an AI-powered quality management system, leverages drones to flag real-time deviations, avoiding delays or expensive rework. Siteaware supports both the verification and communication process, alerting teams to deviations in construction that need immediate attention. Information is received by teams within hours of the scans, not days.
Keeping clear and consistent documentation has always been a challenge. As work gets into crunch time—particularly when closing out punch items—speed has come at the price of documentation. With Siteaware, the AI is able to identify when a deviation has been corrected per spec, automating both the documentation and the close out of the item.
OpenSpace is a Visual Intelligence Platform that delivers a complete, searchable jobsite record—from preconstruction through closeout. Every image is mapped in space and time, so teams can walk the site virtually, compare conditions across any date, and find what they need fast.
Field Notes brings that intelligence into daily workflows. AI Autolocation pins observations to the right spot on plans. With AI Voice Notes, teams can dictate what they see—no stopping to remove gloves to type—strengthening documentation and safety.
BIM Compare overlays model elements onto jobsite imagery to spot gaps between design intent and work-in-place. With OpenSpace Track, teams can verify percent complete by trade and floor, keeping schedule conversations grounded in what’s actually built.
“New technology is saving people time while also increasing the quality of our documentation and communication, which in turn promotes collaboration,” says Dunmeyer. “You can see in some of our tools the sheer number of items that are not only getting identified and corrected, but also how many people engage in this process.”
Over 60 construction technology tools are currently deployed across STOBG, strengthening team buy-in and the start-to-finish quality process. That gives our people time to focus on getting the job right—meaning clients see fewer surprises, stronger communication, and greater confidence in the quality of our work.