Client Profile

WELBRO Building Corporation has been building continuously in the Florida commercial construction market for over 27 years and is consistently ranked among the nation’s top contractors by Engineering News Record (ENR). WELBRO is a dominant force in the hotel/hospitality and education markets. Their other major project include office buildings, retail/commercial buildings and special use facilities.

The Challenge

Tracking of subcontractor insurance certificates had become burdensome and inaccurate for WELBRO. The legislated time restrictions imposed on general contractors to request and receive insurance information from its subcontractors was the key motivator to improve their processes. Another important factor was the speed with which insurance information was shared between accounting and project field operations. Communication of insurance information is a critical factor in maintaining construction schedules as well as in managing the overall financial risk of the projects.

For these key reasons, WELBRO was looking to streamline and improve its data collection methods. In October 2005 Laura Dowling was tasked to research possible solutions to managing the subcontractor insurance certificates.

The Solutions Explored Included:

• Paper-based system
• Develop system in Site Management (internal application)
• Online ASP account
• Server-based software
• Autodesk ConstructWare Insurance tracking (existing ASP provider)

The existing method of handling the certificate management process included handwritten notes inside of paper file folders. This archaic system was problem-ridden and was not conducive to effective and consistent information sharing. Modifying a workflow around a paper-based system may have produced some improvements but was not likely to be at

WELBRO identified three Insurance Certificate Management specialty ISP’s: Certigo, IDS and Ebix (ConfirmNet). Each received a request for proposal requesting to gather information on qualifications, services provided, and pricing for processing an estimated 2,500 subcontractor agreements annually.

The Solution

After reviewing and comparing each proposal, Laura Dowling conducted phone interviews and attended demonstrations. After this process WELBRO selected Ebix based on its positioning and maturity in the insurance industry, the quality of the application used and its flexible services and pricing model.

The implementation process went well and was personally attended to by an experienced Ebix training resource. WELBRO elected to do a “Go Forward” implementation, meaning that historical records were not added to the system. The startup process is simple and direct and required little interaction by WELBRO other than providing source information on form letter wording, and initial tracking data to be added.

WELBRO elected to have the training conducted at its offices and was handled in two sessions: System Administration and End User training. The trainer assigned was an Ebix implementation specialist with significant experience in insurance and the “real life” problems associated with insurance certificate tracking.

WELBRO’s Insurance Administrator, Lakeisha Fluellyn, has nothing but high praise for the customer support she receives at Ebix. WELBRO has been able to recognize a significant improvement in completing the insurance documentation for its projects much more completely and quickly. The objectives of improving timeliness in completing the documentation and expanding visibility of the certificate information have been achieved.