“On some of the sites the box isn’t a bridge at all,” says Willis. “It fully satisfies our needs. For others, it’s a bridge so we can get running from day one.”
Brasfield & Gorrie's solution was developed by Feeney Wireless and is called the Mobile Ready Office that can be found at feeneywireless.com and starts at around $2,000 a pop.
Fully Outfitted
If a job site requires more technology and electronics out of the gate than mere connectivity, there’s another option: Techsuite. It’s a work trailer that comes delivered on-site with up-to-date, fully operational, technological guts.
National Reprographics inc., New York, outfits work trailers from partner Williams Scotsman with equipment from iPads to wide-format scanners/printers, smart boards and software. NRI also outfits existing trailers of any sort, or office space.
NRI and Williams Scotsman partner with Autodesk, EarthCam, Oracle, Hewlett Packard and many other companies, to “minimize the technology vendors involved by coordinating all on-site technology needs,” says Perkins “We’re saving clients thousands of dollars a month, literally.” The company began shifting focus to become a technology aggregator over the past few years.
“We’re one of the oldest, biggest blueprint printing shops, and as business slowed, we asked, what if we found out more about what’s happening inside the job trailer?” says Ron Perkins, director of business development at NRI.
Companies have to rent or buy a plotter, copier, smart board and server and they need a contractor to produce their network and wire up their Category 6 cable, says Perkins. “If they lose six weeks getting it wired up and ready, they’re losing valuable time.”
Shawn Pressley, CIO of Hill International, New York, says he’s working with NRI to help them spec out what is most needed. “The service is just like Home Depot. You can get wire, nuts, bolts, it’s a one stop shop,” says Pressley. “They drop it off and you're all done.”