Many of a tradespersons’ tools can be traced back centuries, but now reports suggest many contractors are tooling-up for the future.

Uptake of cloud-based mobile computing across many industries has created big productivity gains. A survey of 540 tradespeople commissioned by retailer Totally Workwear this year showed that 50 per cent had a laptop on-site and more than 40 per cent used smartphones or tablets for work. Niche vendors have now popped up in response, such as TradiePad and Tradie Revolution offering apps, hardware and training packages.

One electrical and plumbing company says they use technology to streamline jobs on multiple worksites; staff can map their day’s route, order parts online, invoice customers and keep their offices informed on progress and location. They have reportedly managed to squeeze three extra plumbing jobs in per day, adding to billable hours and cutting down time wasted on paperwork.

The biggest hurdle is workers' reticence to change their ways, but one boss can see the benefits of a decentralised and partly-automated system, director of a Perth plumbing company Sean Richardson said, “I could run it from Bali if I wanted to.”