The Problem: Why Traditional Construction Meetings Fail
In traditional construction meetings, up to 50% of discussed points are often lost in the documentation. This leads to an information deficit that provokes inquiries and duplicate work.
The manual follow-up of a single meeting can easily take a project manager 2-3 hours per week. This time is missing for actual management on the construction site.
Lack of commitment is a core problem. Oral agreements without proper documentation have little standing in court, which can lead to costly disputes, especially with VOB contracts. A digital protocol software provides a solution here.
These inefficient processes lead to project delays that, according to studies, can average 47 days for tasks. Clear, digital communication is the first step to improving these figures.
The Transition: What Truly Defines a Digital Construction Meeting
A digital construction meeting is more than a video call; it is a structured process. At its core is a central, continuous protocol that all participants can access at any time.
By using digital tools, administrative effort is demonstrably reduced. Tasks, photos, and decisions are captured in real time and directly assigned to the responsible individuals.
The benefits of a digital approach are clearly measurable:
- Time saving: The automatic protocol creation saves several hours of follow-up time per meeting.
- Transparency: All 500 average processes of a digitally managed project are clearly documented and traceable.
- Error reduction: Misunderstandings from oral communication are eliminated, which can reduce the error rate by up to 30%.
- Legal certainty: A seamless, unchangeable protocol serves as evidence in case of discrepancies.
The right construction meeting app is crucial for success. It must be simple and usable for the entire team without training, from project management to site workers.
Legal Certainty According to VOB: How to Make Your Protocol an Evidence
The Procurement and Contract Regulations for Construction Services (VOB) form the legal basis for countless construction projects in Germany. Proper documentation is not an option here, but a contractual obligation.
A digital construction meeting protocol must meet certain criteria to be considered legally secure. These primarily include immutability and seamless traceability in accordance with GoBD requirements.
Every decision and instruction must be clearly documented. In case of dispute, the quality of documentation often determines the outcome of a proceeding and can save costs of several thousand euros.
Valoon ensures that all entries – from photo documentation to defect reports – are automatically timestamped and securely stored. This way, you meet the requirements of the VOB almost effortlessly.
This structured capture not only protects the contractor but also creates transparency and trust in the project process for the client.
Valoon: The Digital Construction Meeting via WhatsApp
Conventional construction software often fails due to employee acceptance on the construction site. A study by Fraunhofer IESE shows that complicated software and lack of digital skills are the biggest hurdles.
Valoon solves this problem by using a tool that everyone is already using: WhatsApp. No new app, no training, and no onboarding for teams on site are necessary.
This is how the digital construction meeting with Valoon works in practice:
- The site manager starts a WhatsApp group for the project.
- All relevant information, photos of defects, or construction progress are simply sent to the group.
- Valoon automatically structures all data in the background and creates a legally secure construction diary and protocol.
- Tasks can be assigned directly via voice message or text and tracked.
The decisive advantage is simplicity. This real-time communication closes the gap between the construction site and the office without media breaks and ensures that information arrives immediately where it is needed.
Checklist for the Perfect Digital Construction Meeting
Good preparation is key to an efficient digital construction meeting. With a clear agenda, you ensure that all relevant points can be discussed in just 30 minutes.
The following points should be on every agenda:
- TOP 1: Minutes of the Last Meeting: Approval and clarification of open points.
- TOP 2: Status Comparison: Brief overview of the construction progress based on the construction schedule.
- TOP 3: Current Tasks and Issues: Discussion and assignment of new tasks directly in the system.
- TOP 4: Next Steps: Definition of goals for the coming week.
- TOP 5: Miscellaneous: Room for unforeseen topics.
The follow-up is almost completely eliminated. As the protocol runs live during the meeting, it is already 90% complete by the end of the appointment and can be sent to all participants. A good checklist for the construction meeting helps standardize this process.
This structured approach not only increases productivity but also boosts the motivation of the entire team, as meetings are perceived as purpose-driven and valuable.
Conclusion: Your Advantage with Valoon
The digital construction meeting is not a trend but a necessity for every future-oriented construction company. It transforms often unproductive mandatory meetings into a powerful tool for project management.
With Valoon, this transition happens without hurdles. You benefit from maximum simplicity through the use of WhatsApp, enormous time savings through automated protocols and seamless legal certainty for all your projects.
Stop wasting valuable time in unstructured meetings and with cumbersome typing. Manage your projects efficiently and safely.
Book your free demo now and experience how simple digital construction meetings with Valoon can be.
More Links
Fraunhofer Society provides information about research projects and initiatives for digitization in construction.
Haufe provides an article on the legally secure design of digital construction documentation.
FAQ
How exactly does the digital construction meeting with Valoon work?
You simply use a WhatsApp group. All messages, images, videos, and voice messages are automatically captured, structured, and transformed into a legally secure digital protocol by Valoon. Tasks can be assigned directly and their completion documented without anyone needing to leave the construction site or learn a new app.
Is documentation via WhatsApp legally secure and compliant with VOB?
Yes. Valoon ensures that all data sent via WhatsApp is immutable and timestamped in the web application. This meets the requirements for legally secure documentation, which can serve as evidence in disputes or during VOB inspections.
What does Valoon cost for employees on the construction site?
For employees on the construction site, using Valoon is completely free. They only need WhatsApp on their smartphones. Costs only apply to users in the office who use the processed data in the web application for management, documentation, and billing.
Can external partners such as subcontractors or specialists be involved?
Yes, that is one of the major advantages. You can add as many external partners to the respective project groups on WhatsApp as needed. This consolidates all communication in one place, ensuring that all parties are always on the same page, significantly simplifying collaboration.
What advantage does Valoon offer compared to a normal construction software app?
The decisive advantage is acceptance. Since no new software needs to be installed or learned, Valoon is utilized by the entire team from day one. This overcomes the biggest hurdle of digitization on the construction site and ensures seamless data capture from the beginning.
How quickly can I get started with Valoon?
The start is possible within minutes. After a short setup in the web portal, you can create your first project group in WhatsApp and begin digital documentation immediately. Book a short demo and we will show you how uncomplicated it is.
