CONTRACTOR CASE STUDY

How Insight Development Group Built an Audit-Ready Compliance Trail in Under a Month with Simpel

Wonder Apartments, Wollongong

HIGHLIGHTS
  • Real-time visibility over compliance on a closely monitored project
  • Instant, verifiable records for permits, inductions and tasks
  • Onboarded and live in less than four weeks
  • Responsive, local support kept the system aligned to site needs
MODULES
Insight Development Group's Simpel Module's and Site Access usage

About the Project | Wonder Apartments

Now overseen by Insight Development Group, the Wonder Apartments redevelopment began long before they took the project on. The 17-storey residential and hotel tower in Wollongong’s CBD was partially built when work was ordered to stop in 2022 following serious safety and compliance concerns raised by the NSW Building Commissioner. An extensive remediation program followed before Insight came on board to complete the build.

This was a building that got to level 7 out of 17, then work was ordered to be stopped. Another company came in to do the rectification works, which took about 18 months. We took on the completion at that stage.
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John Chichkan
Operations Manager

Managing Compliance Under a Spotlight: How a Turnstile Led to Safety Upgrades

When Insight took over Wonder Apartments, site access was one of the first operational priorities. A branded turnstile was already in place, so the team contacted Simpel to bring it online. That decision quickly expanded into a broader conversation about compliance: Simpel could centralise inductions, SWMS, permits, plant, and daily declarations in one place.

With heightened public and regulatory attention, the completion phase has been under a microscope. Every process must be executed correctly and backed by accessible, verifiable records.

We have been very insistent that everything is done exactly by the book, because this building has been under the Building Commissioner and we still get almost weekly visits. Thankfully, we haven’t had any serious incidents or injuries to date, but if an event did occur, we know we have a system in place that’s been used, and we can substantiate and document exactly what’s been done in terms of compliance.
John Chichkan
Operations Manager

Onboarding: From First Login to Full Speed in a Month

Switching to Simpel for site access and core safety workflows meant introducing consistent, digital processes for everyone on site. From day one, the focus was on making sure site teams and subcontractors understood exactly how to use the system. For some contractors, there was a learning curve in becoming comfortable with a digital platform. Those cases were the exception rather than the rule. Once the tools were in place and people saw how easy it was to complete tasks, adoption across the team was quick.

I think the hardest thing was everybody getting everyone used to the system. So, you're educating the site team, and then you need to make sure that all the subbies are going to sign up. When you send out the startup emails, they all get that information and can see what’s required of them.
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Olivia Lavalle
Safety Manager

Why Degnan Chose Simpel as their Software Technology Partner

Simpel provided a comprehensive construction management solution that addressed Degnan’s unique needs:

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End-to-End Functionality

A unified platform for project documentation, communications, safety, quality and reporting.

Streamlined Workforce Admin

Simplified onboarding and induction, and workflows for teams and subcontractors.
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Construction Safety Capabilities

Tailored tools, e.g., daily declarations, for government contracts with stringent safety requirements.
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Incident Management & Trend Analysis

Integrated reporting to seamlessly track, analyse, and respond to incidents quickly and forecast accurately.
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Social Procurement Data Collection

Automated tracking of workforce diversity and inclusivity metrics to help meet and report on government-mandated targets.
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Real-time Project & Organisation Tracking

Leveraging real-time, actionable insights to provide a clearer operational picture and elevate outcomes.

Partnership Evolution: From Pilot to Enterprise Agreement

What began as a pilot project quickly evolved into an enterprise-wide partnership, allowing the team to realise organisation-wide benefits in:

Proactive Site Management

Daily declarations streamlined site operations and compliance.

Incident Trend Analysis

By leveraging cross-module data they improved incident management and gained valuable insights into trends, helping to drive organisational improvements.

Improved Collaboration

Teams shifted focus from navigating software limitations to achieving project success.

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The incident module uniquely amalgamates data from other modules, giving us organisation-wide insights to identify trends across projects.

Responsive, Local, Hands-on Support

Simpel’s support doesn’t stop after go-live. Throughout the project, the team has continued to lean on their Client Success Manager for quick answers, early-morning troubleshooting, and small tweaks that keep the system aligned to site needs. Those day-to-day check-ins have helped cement the platform as part of the routine.

The biggest thing is probably learning how to troubleshoot the various problems as they arise… and for some reason, they always seemed to happen at about 7:10 in the morning.
John Chichkan
Operations Manager

Olivia said the difference was having someone they could reach straight away. Instead of logging a ticket or waiting for an overseas call-back, they had a local contact who understood both the platform and the way the site operated.

Every time I've called our success manager, if he doesn’t answer straight away, he’ll call me back the same day. He was patient with us at the start while we learned the system, walking us through things whenever we needed help. It’s great having someone local; if we need him on site, he’s only an hour away, and he knows the system inside out. With Procore, you’re talking to someone in America and it’s hard to get real support.
Olivia Lavalle
Safety Manager

Today, the team still picks up the phone for quick checks or to bounce configuration ideas, and the ongoing, local support keeps everything running smoothly on site.

Simpel Passport: One Profile Across Every Project

With Simpel Passport, every worker creates a single profile that follows them from site to site. Once their documents are uploaded, they can be used on any project without starting from scratch. This not only speeds up onboarding but also ensures that licences, cards, and qualifications are always up to date and ready to verify. For site teams, it means less time chasing paperwork and more time focusing on the work at hand.

The best thing is you can just change the company. Someone came from the site of another Simpel contractor and their whole profile was already there, white card, updated licence, everything. It cuts that admin time down a lot. They can go from job site to job site. If you’ve got four work sites in the area or in Sydney and here, you just use the same app. You don’t have five different key cards on your phone or different induction systems. It’s all pretty much the same. I think that’s really good.
Olivia Lavalle
Safety Manager

Ready for the Commissioner, Any Day of the Week

What began with getting a turnstile running has evolved into a compliance process the team can navigate with ease, supported by local expertise whenever needed. Every step is logged, time-stamped, and stored, giving them a ready-made audit trail for any inspection. With site access, safety checks, and records managed in one place, compliance has become a seamless part of daily operations.

About Insight Development Group

Insight Development Group is an Illawarra-based construction company employing professionals across estimating, project management, and construction management. Committed to challenging the industry and building in innovative ways, the company aims to create structures that stand the test of time for a more sustainable future.

 

Thanks to John Chichkan, Olivia Lavalle, and the team at Insight Development Group for their ongoing support and contribution to this case study. 

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