Why Construction’s Specialist vs. SAP Cloud Platform Dilemma Demands a New Answer

Project profitability is directly related to data speed in the modern construction landscape. A construction company’s success hinges on efficient project management, but even more so on an agile, integrated, and forward-looking Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system.

However, many organizations find their decision-making compromised by data latency. By the time project managers consolidate data from disparate systems and spreadsheets, the information is often weeks old. This data lag creates significant, unmitigated risk for the company in an industry defined by tight margins.

This challenge highlights the core specialist-versus-platform dilemma for construction leaders. To stay competitive, construction organizations must decide whether to continue relying on a familiar, industry-specific system that may be falling behind or migrate to a modern platform that seems ready for the future but is often perceived as too complex or generic.

The Limitations of Legacy Specialist Tools

Historically, industry-specific solutions like Construction Industry Solutions (COINS) have been the default choice for many organizations in this sector. They serve as a reliable backbone, integrating project delivery, finance, and operations with terminology and workflows explicitly built for the construction industry.

However, as digital transformation accelerates, these legacy architectures are revealing their limitations. Many construction leaders are hitting a data ceiling, where their core systems struggle to keep pace with scalability requirements and advanced analytical demands.

This ceiling manifests in several critical business challenges. They include:

• Insufficient analytics: Core reporting provides basic historical data but lacks predictive modeling capabilities for modern cash flow analysis or risk forecasting.
• Brittle integration: Connections to other critical platforms such as Building Information Modeling (BIM), procurement, HR, or financial systems are often limited, manual, or require costly, custom-patched solutions.
• Blocked innovation: A closed architecture makes it difficult or impossible to integrate emerging technologies such as AI, machine learning, and advanced digital twin data feeds.

Staying with a familiar specialist tool may seem prudent, but it introduces significant operational risk. It can create data silos, inefficiencies, and the proliferation of auxiliary spreadsheets deep within core processes, masking the actual state of project health.

The Verticalized Cloud Platform

A strategic solution to this issue is not a binary choice between a niche tool and a generic platform, but the adoption of a verticalized cloud ERP. This model leverages the power, scalability, and embedded AI of a major enterprise platform like SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud while delivering it in a pre-configured, pre-packaged industry-tailored solution.

This approach fundamentally changes the implementation paradigm. Instead of a protracted, 18-month customization project, the solution is designed to understand construction business processes from day one. Solutions like InetumS4 Construction, a certified package built on SAP S/4HANA Public Cloud from INETUM, use this approach and can deliver full transformation in just 16 weeks—ensuring significant cost savings and 100% on-time delivery. This dramatically accelerates deployment, reduces complexity, and maximizes value for construction businesses.

Inetum brings 28 years of experience as a Gold SAP Partner and has successfully implemented more than 100 SAP S/4HANA projects across diverse industries, supported by 2,700 SAP consultants in 19 countries. “At Inetum, we empower transformation—not just through technology, but through insight. Our deep vertical expertise and SAP platform mastery mean we understand the complexities of your industry and the priorities driving your business,” says Kathy Quashie, EVP and CEO, Inetum Growing Market.

InetumS4 Construction is designed specifically for growing organizations with 50+ employees and €30M+ in revenue that have outgrown their legacy systems but do not require a full-scale, bespoke enterprise implementation.

This model provides key strategic benefits to the firm, such as:

• Real-time visibility: Enterprise-grade ERP offering immediate insight into profitability, cash flow, and project costs.
• Seamless integration: Built on the SAP Business Technology Platform (BTP) for extensions and integration with industry-specific software.
• Accelerated time-to-value: Pre-configured templates and accelerators like Inetum’s Adopt2Win mitigate risk and target a go-live in as few as 16 weeks.

From Spreadsheets to a Unified Core

The transition from data fragmentation to data control is significant for a Spanish construction and demolition organization. With over 100+ employees and more than €35M in revenue, its entire operation was managed via Excel spreadsheets—a high-risk model that created inefficiencies and eliminated real-time visibility.

CFO at the organization, identified this as a critical inhibitor to growth. He noted that the organization’s objective in moving to an SAP S/4HANA solution via InetumS4 Construction was to achieve “full control over our projects.”

By partnering with Inetum and leveraging its Adopt2Win accelerator, the organization accomplished this complex digital transformation 100% on time within 16 weeks and on budget. This case demonstrates the tangible outcome of the verticalized model, exemplifying a strategic move from high-risk, fragmented management to a unified, scalable system that delivers end-to-end traceability.

Their success story also highlights that the partner and methodology are as crucial as the technology. This is because a partner with deep vertical experience and a proven accelerator package is essential to de-risk migration from a legacy system.

As Quashie concludes, “We deliver real digital impact, accelerating growth and agility while embedding AI and advanced analytics to ensure every transformation is intelligent, adaptive, and future-ready.”

What This Means for SAPinsiders

For construction leaders evaluating their technology stack, dependence on legacy systems is no longer a sustainable strategy. The transition to a verticalized cloud platform is becoming a strategic necessity. As you consider this move, focus on three pillars:

1. Achieve real-time financial control. The primary driver for an upgrade must be real-time visibility into profitability and cash flow. A modern platform provides ready-to-use dashboards and full project traceability, enabling faster, more informed decision-making than the basic analytics available in legacy tools.
2. Accelerate time-to-value with rapid deployment. The risk of long, complex ERP implementations can be mitigated. Look for certified SAP accelerator packages, such as Inetum’s Adopt2Win and InetumS4 Construction, that offer a rapid, cost-effective, and scalable pathway for growing firms seeking faster return on investment.
3. Ensure future-proofing and integration. The evaluation must extend beyond current features. A platform-centric architecture, such as SAP S/4HANA with BTP, ensures seamless integration with BIM, procurement, and financial systems. This cloud-native model incorporates advanced technologies such as AI and ML, ensuring continuous innovation and compliance with complex standards like ASC 606.