Our Clients: Westrail Construction Ltd.
Any relationship that lasts for over 20 years must be a good one. Westrail Construction and Oak Bay Softrends began their partnership in 1999 and it continues today.
“I started with them and I’ve never gone anywhere else,” said Brad Railton, owner and assistant manager of Westrail Construction, a company that was launched in 1974 by his parents doing railroad blasts. When the company moved into drilling and blasting for mines, the business really took off and they needed a way to manage a large volume of data to track their work.
The company ran two drills around the clock and needed to record precise data on a daily basis. They had been doing it all by hand and giving it to a secretary to input into a computer. “We would have copy paper to make four copies that needed to go to different people, one of which was the secretary who would sometimes have a hard time reading the handwriting,” said Railton.
The process was cumbersome and time-consuming, and Railton knew something needed to change. Always being somewhat of a computer guy, he bought a FileMaker Pro program in 1997 and started programming it as a flat database. “It was all one sheet and it got pretty busy pretty quick.” He decided to reach out for help and found Oak Bay Softrends listed on the FileMaker website.
Steven Barer came in and created a relational database that could handle the volume of information that needed to be tracked and run reports. Railton says Steven was even kind in his assessment of the makeshift database.
The use of a relational database transformed Westrail’s ability to manage all the information that needed tracking. To give an idea of exactly how much that is, Railton explained that on a daily basis they’re running two drills 24/7 with four guys on each drill. Each driller has a 12-hour shift and can have up to 40 holes with daily reporting required for each hole.
They have to note the start and end time for each hole, record the depth, whether it was hard or soft and the banding, as well as break times and the walking time to drill and pit to pit. So, on an average day on shift, one driller could have 40–50 line items.
“Oak Bay Softrends gave us exactly what we needed to track all the information,” said Railton. “A lot of companies use spreadsheets, but with a relational database, you can change the forms, the layouts and you can get different reports. It used to take two weeks to record all the information. Now we get it done in minutes. It’s a breeze.”
As for using FileMaker Pro, Railton says he can’t see any other way to go. “It saves on multiple levels: time, money. You’d be silly not to use a database for recordkeeping.”
When Steven Barer passed the development role on to Steve Cooper about a decade ago, Railton says the service always remained top-notch. “Everyone is excellent, friendly, knowledgeable and patient. They come right to my house. Where else can you get people to do that?”
Railton said working with Oak Bay Softrends for the past 20 + years has been an exceptional experience. “Every time I call, Steve is there. We’ve met at his house or they’ve come to my house and they make changes and improvements,” Railton said.
Oak Bay Softrends helps to keep Westrail Construction running smoothly, confirms Railton. “I’ve worked in this business for a long time and have gotten to know other people’s companies. Oak Bay Softrends and Steve are probably the best company I’ve worked with. Without their help it would have been a disaster.”
