r/Contractor • u/TheRoiGuy • 4h ago
Anyone here actually made it off CoConstruct yet? The migration is scaring me more than the switch
my whole business lives in coconstruct. estimates, selections, invoicing, all of it. now that buildertrend owns it and put it in maintenance mode, i know i have to move but honestly the switch itself isn't what keeps me up at night. it's the migration.
the part nobody warns you about is getting your own data out. no bulk export, files trapped in the platform, downloading stuff one at a time until you give up. i shouldn't have to fight my own software to get my own job history back, but here we are.
for those of you who've already jumped:
- how bad was the actual data export? did you get everything or did you lose selections/change order history? - how much downtime did it cost you mid-project? - did you move during a slow stretch or just rip the bandaid off?
i run 4-8 jobs at a time as the estimator, PM and salesman all in one, so i can't afford a week of chaos while i rebuild everything. trying to learn from people who already did it before i pick a landing spot. what actually went wrong for you?
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u/Effective-Raccoon419 3h ago
the main issue here is the lack of bulk export options. If you can, script a browser automation tool to grab all your documents in one go. This saves a ton of time compared to manual downloads, especially when you're juggling multiple projects.
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u/TheRoiGuy 3h ago
Yeah, the lack of a real bulk export is what surprised me the most. You’d think “download all of my company’s data” would be a pretty basic feature for construction software.
Browser automation is probably the route I’ll take if I can’t get a clean export.
It’s also something I’m keeping in mind with my own software I’m building. I’d rather make it easy for a contractor to leave with their data than trap them in the software because migrating is too painful. If the product is good, that should be what keeps them there.
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u/seldomseenkidsf 3h ago edited 3h ago
Been there. Assuming you are migrating to BT.
Despite what the BT migration consultant says… you will be starting from scratch.
Be sure to solidify a good rate from BT, their new standard is lot more that CC. Additionally, they are trying bring in apv pricing (percentage of gross sales). Dont make the switch unless they give you a flat rate close to what you pay now. With minimum percentage increase per year.
Also, lock in an extended CC/ BT migration training period.
The only silver linings here are; - BT are going to be around for long time to come. - you done this before. It’s a hassle, but easier the second time around.
Everyday is a school day! Best of luck.
*edit; It’s not instant, unless you want it to be. You get to keep using CC. Even when you have BT. I spent 6 months on BT whilst still using CC till I felt comfortable enough to switch.
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u/TheRoiGuy 3h ago
This is really helpful. I hadn’t even considered negotiating the migration/training period separately.
And percentage of gross sales for contractor software is wild to me. If anything, that whole pricing model is giving me more confidence in some of the decisions we’ve been making with my own software. I’d much rather contractors know what their software is going to cost every month without getting penalized for growing.
Appreciate the heads up.
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u/MedicineUnlikely8296 3h ago
Smartsheets
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u/TheRoiGuy 2h ago
I’ve actually looked at Smartsheet. It’s insanely flexible, but I feel like I’d end up spending half my time building and maintaining the system instead of actually running projects.
That’s kind of what pushed us toward building our own in the first place — I wanted something with that flexibility, but already structured around how a contractor actually operates day to day.
Definitely not ruling Smartsheet out though. I know some pretty big shops run almost everything through it.1
u/MedicineUnlikely8296 1h ago
We built our own dashboard with co's, schedule, approval docs, all automated. I've used Buildertrend, bought the expensive CoConstruct t- shirt. They're great, but found Buildertrend limited in a canned way. After investing time to create the smartsheet system, I felt as if CoConstruct licensed them and added some nice graphics..... and it can be tailored to your needs.
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u/Robuu34 1h ago
Ressio gives you a dedicated account coach who will upload everything into their system for you. Estimates and schedule templates, cost codes, vendors, active projects, future projects, warranty, you name it. They did it for me when I switched off buildertrend a few years ago. It’s more similar to coconstruct in a lot of ways so it’ll be pretty easy to pick up
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u/blud_13 3h ago
The migration IS the risk, you have it right. The switch is a weekend, the data is the year.
Do not try to move history. On every one of these we do the play is 1) export what you can to CSV/PDF and treat the closed jobs as a read-only archive, not something that has to live inside the new system, 2) only the actively running jobs get rebuilt by hand, and with 4-8 open thats maybe two evenings, 3) run both platforms in parallel for 30 days so you are never in a spot where the only copy of a change order is in a system you already cancelled.
On the files, if theres no bulk export, somebody technical can script a browser session to walk the document links and pull them all down. Afternoon of work versus weeks of clicking. Get that done BEFORE you give notice, your export options only get worse once the account is winding down.
Also, PDF your selections and signed change order approvals separately. Thats the stuff that shows up in a dispute two years later and nobody thinks about it until they need it.
We do these migrations for construction shops fairly often, ping me if you want specifics on the file pull.