Bahar Ferguson
“Saving files to the cloud” has become a common practice and most people understand that phrase, but many are still new to this technology and what it can offer. Beyond being a great backup for your smartphone, there are many advantages to using it for your construction business.
What is Cloud Computing?
Traditional computing has generally relied on local hardware, (i.e., your laptop hard drive or a company server), to store file and software backups. The problem with this is that it prevents people from performing backups until they’re at the office or ready with an external drive. Cloud storage, on the other hand, offers total flexibility.
Saving a file to the “cloud” means using the Internet to save it to a remote server which you can then access from any device, anywhere in the world, as long as you have Internet. Instead of needing to have physical access to a server or your laptop, you can back up and access your data from anywhere.
When cloud technology first came into use, it was predominantly marketed as a safe way to back up your laptop or phone. However, its use has extended far beyond that. Having all your apps, software and files saved to the cloud means that you’re no longer tied to a single device, thus making it far more convenient for anyone trying to conduct business in and out of the office.
What are The Benefits?
The key innovation of cloud technology is how convenient it makes accessing your data. It’s far more efficient to have all your work files available from one place, rather than scattered across devices.
It’s for people on the move.
Anyone who, for example, works in an industry such as construction knows how frustrating it is trying to manage important files and the like when you’re rarely at a desk. If you are on-site and need to look back at a lighting layout to guide the electrician who has arrived a day earlier than expected, you can’t run back to the office for it. It’s also not practical to have everything printed out and with you at all times.
That’s where cloud computing offers an effective solution. With cloud storage, all your work files could be accessed from a single online account so that if you need to, you can open something you created on your laptop from your phone or tablet. It also then allows people to alter documents from the field. If a contractor notices a problem while checking a new building project, he or she can add that to the existing document without having to wait until they’re in the office to do it.
Backing up your data is also far easier when all you need is an Internet connection to do it. Team members no longer have an excuse to “lose” work when they’re able to back it up to the cloud from anywhere. There’s nothing more frustrating than a project timeline being stalled because of technical difficulties. Cloud computing helps to make sure that even if you’re running from one thing to another, you’re still able to back up your files and protect them in case something goes wrong.
Cultivate Collaboration
With your data centralized on the cloud, it also makes it far easier to collaborate with other people on shared files. Most cloud platforms allow you to invite other users to view your documents, which means that a contractor, architect and client can all have access to the same file and be seeing updates as things happen. It tends to work best for people using the same platform as one another, as is the case in many businesses. If you’re all on the same platform, you can share editing access as well as viewing. Most of us aren’t working in isolation, so any technology that makes collaboration simpler is a major advantage.
Boost Your Security
Anything can happen to your laptop. You could drop it, spill a cup of coffee on it or it could be stolen. Cloud storage boosts the security of your data by ensuring that everything is backed up to a remote server so that no matter what happens to your device, your files stay safe.
Cloud storage then allows you to recover everything and sync it to a new device, making the shift to new hardware much more streamlined. It’s also significantly more reliable than using local servers or an external hard drive for your backups as cloud storage saves your data across multiple servers so that if one collapses or is corrupted, your data is still protected.
Save Money
Not only is cloud storage more secure than other digital storage solutions, it also tends to be cheaper. You don’t need to buy or maintain servers. Instead, you just pay a monthly or annual subscription fee for a cloud service. It cuts the need for costly hardware and the data management that this requires long-term.
A Scalable Solution
As a business grows, so, too can the size of your cloud storage. If your clients and projects expand and you need more storage, you won’t need to move data from one server to another. You can simply upgrade your package with the cloud service and be done. The scalability of cloud storage makes it a practical and sustainable option for businesses of any size and ensures that regular backups need not be abandoned because of a lack of space or infrastructure.
Things to Look Out For
As you start to look at different cloud computing options, there are a few things we’d recommend keeping in mind:
The cloud provider’s data and file management approach. Different cloud computing services offer different ways to manage your files. Some will replicate how things are organized on your main device while others require a bit more tweaking. It’s important to look at how customizable the platform allows you to be in order to decide if it will suit you and the way you work.
Privacy and security from all angles. If you’re looking to integrate cloud computing into your work for security reasons, it’s important then to make sure that you find a cloud service that uses multi-factor authentication. Using a platform that may be syncing all your devices and data into one place makes it that much more important that it has a robust approach to login security.
Another aspect to keep in mind is making sure that the network you’re using to upload files to the cloud is secure. Passwords and encryption on the network will ensure that it is closed to access from unauthorized individuals. A similar issue applies to the devices you’re using. Many people aren’t even aware of how important it is to make sure that things like your laptop are encrypted. Encryption technology, be it File Vault on a MacBook or the standard Windows offering that PCs get, essentially converts the contents of your device into unreadable code to better protect your data from unauthorized access.
It’s a common misconception that only people in IT or security need to worry about encryption and data security, but we are all vulnerable, especially if you’re someone who takes your laptop with you everywhere you go. The last thing anyone needs is to forget a device somewhere outside the office, only to put client information at risk in the process, too.
The benefit of a device being encrypted PLUS a cloud backup means that even if it’s stolen, your work information and files can’t be accessed, but you will be able to access them from the cloud.
Most of us are leading non-traditional work lives that aren’t limited to the space of an office anymore. The technology we use should suit that flexibility, not hinder it.
Bahar Ferguson is the president of Wasatch I.T., a Utah IT provider for small and medium-size businesses.