Whether you’re a municipal leader or building official, you’re probably all too familiar with the frustrations that go along with building plan review delays. Construction booms can bring an onslaught of permit applications that your staff might not be equipped to handle. Yet the thought of hiring more reviewers during these peak times, only to find your department overstaffed when construction activity wanes, is equally stressful.
But what if you could trade out building plan review backlogs, customer complaints, and vacant lots for faster plan review turnarounds, consistent service, and a thriving community?
Well, you can!
Increasingly, municipalities around the country are leveraging Electronic Plan Review (EPR). EPR can make backlogs a thing of the past and help municipalities better manage the fluctuations of building activities. Using today’s digital technology, municipalities can streamline the traditional permitting process and usher in a future of faster plan review turnarounds—streamlining operations, reducing costs for applicants while simultaneously avoiding budget deficits, and improving overall service.
Municipalities that use EPR to optimize plan review processes not only experience improved efficiency and consistent revenues, but also increased customer service that comes with the accessibility, ease, and transparency that EPR provides. Delivering constant, remote access to plans from any device, EPR promotes project accuracy and transparency throughout each stage of development. In turn, this helps foster a stronger community relationship and builds trust between everyone involved.
Plus, with digital commenting, stakeholders can coordinate and discuss detailed aspects of a project in real-time to optimize communication and avoid errors that could lead to delays or failed inspections down the road. Additionally, inspectors in the field can easily pull up plans to ensure the critical compliance components of a project are being met, minimizing inspection oversights, keeping projects moving, and ensuring top-quality development.
Is Your Municipality Part of OMNIA?
If your municipality is part of OMNIA Partners, you can bypass the formal request for quote (RFQ)/request for proposal (RFP) process that prolongs the start of so many city projects. That means you can get to work on your project right away. As a trusted and vetted OMNIA supplier, SAFEbuilt can provide you with on-call plan review services (without the delay that proposals and quotes create in your timeline).
Save Time (And Get Resources)
In the end, our services eliminate the need to print plans, mail them, and wait for review and return. EPR offers a cost-effective option that can help communities like yours boost their bottom line, improve customer service, and get caught up fast.
Learn more by speaking with a building services expert:
SAFEbuilt is a community development services company. We provide comprehensive building department, private provider, and other professional services with the goal of helping our customers build better, safer communities.