With 60 members of staff on the books (not including contractors) means that Lee Goodwin of Oakleafe Property Service Ltd has to make the most of his time.

Having been in operation for over 100 years, Lee is the 8^th generation of his family to work for what has now become a hugely successful business.

The company’s HQ is in Dagenham, Essex, where Lee and his team provide an extensive range of build services including insurance-based repairs, work for local authorities, maintenance and some new build projects.

Conscious that working smart is very much a part of his business success and staying true to the company’s motto that ‘quality and Integrity still counts’, Lee is keen to maintain his company’s reputation.

As a result he is adamant he will never over stretch the business which might compromise on quality however with work in the ascendancy he has needed to adapt his work practices to cope with demand.

Lee said: “It’s the little things that make all the difference. For us impressions count so we ensure for example that during a project the site remains immaculate. That way we know we’re working in a safe environment which enables us to produce high quality work. The customer is left happy in the knowledge that a thorough job has been done.

“My dad always said that money in the building industry is made not with your hands but with your brains. You have to be able to converse with the likes of loss assessors, architects and clients to procure the work in the first place. It is as paramount as maintaining our reputation.

“It’s integral we make the correct impression right from the beginning to the very end. You are only as good as your weakest link. I am extremely proud to say we have acquired a team that are not only experienced but extremely professional.”

Part of Oakelafe’s success is, according to Lee, due to the fact that he and his team makes the most of a suite of software by HBXL Building Software which since he started using has meant he’s never come unstuck on prices.

Helping Oakleafe look more professional, the software he uses now allows Lee to for example estimate a £150,000 extension project in about three hours – something that in the past would have taken him about a week.

£20,000 to £30,000 extensions takes him just six minutes and clients love the level of detail as it gives the impression of a business that is ultra-professional.

Lee said: “Before HBXL I had a system that was quite frankly archaic. I knew I needed to do something that not only meant I wasn’t working late into the nights and on weekends.

“When I was first shown a demonstration of the EstimatorXpress software I couldn’t believe it was that simple.

“Since then we’ve never looked back and it has become an integral part of how the business is now run. It saves huge amounts of time, factors in all the things I didn’t consider before into the estimate such as trips to merchant,

“Estimating is now so simple I just click, print and it’s out the door. Oakleafe isn’t the cheapest but because our estimates are so accurate we win more work. I know for a fact that the estimates we produce using EstimatorXpress have won us jobs. That’s why we’ve expanded so much.

“Looking back it seems ludicrous the way we used to do our estimating. Using this software has not only made us work smart but has made our life a lot easier and I’d advise others to do the same.”

If you want to find out more about EstimatorXpress or any other HBXL Building Software product please don’t hesitate to contact one our team on 0117 916 7898 or via sales@hbxl.co.uk. We have lots of opportunities for you to get a chance to see the software in action including personal online demonstrations, webinars, events and much more…