Why Dropbox Isn’t Enough for Construction Projects

Let’s be clear — Dropbox is excellent. We use it across our businesses every day. For sharing files with clients, for collaboration on working documents, for keeping admin tidy — it’s invaluable.

It even has a role in construction. Shared documents, reports, notes: Dropbox (or Google Drive, or OneDrive) is more than good enough. It’s quick, simple, and affordable.

But when it comes to managing live design information, the cracks show. Dropbox is a generic document management system. Construction needs something more specific.

Dropbox was built to be simple: store a file, sync it, and share it. For most industries, that’s enough. But construction projects are different.

When drawings change weekly — sometimes daily — you need more than just storage. You need to know which version is current, whether it’s been formally issued, and who has seen it. Dropbox doesn’t provide that. Not because it’s broken, but because it was never designed to.

Construction isn’t just about storing files. It’s about managing risk, cost, and accountability. And that means design information needs more than generic file storage can offer.

• A single, reliable source of truth. Not a maze of folders.
• The latest version, always visible. No second-guessing, no filename archaeology.
• Clear history. Every drawing stacked in order, so changes are easy to track.
• Proper permissions. Builders see what they need, consultants control what’s issued, clients get reassurance.
• Audit trail. A record of what was issued, when, and by whom — critical when disputes arise.

Without these basics, projects drift into confusion. Builders and consultants lose time, end up firefighting, and clients pay the price.

On smaller projects, the lack of control often flies under the radar — until something goes wrong. A wall built to the wrong dimension. A window installed in the wrong place. A contractor claiming they never saw the “right” drawing because it was buried in a folder they didn’t have access to.

In those moments, “we used Dropbox” isn’t much of a defence.

Dropbox won’t show you when a drawing was issued, whether it was under instruction, or which version the builder actually saw. And in construction, those gaps translate directly into wasted time and wasted money.

Capsa was built specifically for this problem.

• One secure place for all project documents, always showing the latest version.
• Every drawing stacked in order, so the full history is easy to follow.
• Simple sharing, without endless email threads or messy folders.
• A clear, intuitive interface that anyone can use straight away.

Capsa combines the simplicity people love about Dropbox with the discipline construction projects demand. It’s not over-engineered, it doesn’t need an administrator, and it doesn’t swamp you with features you’ll never use. It just makes sure everyone is working from the same page.

Dropbox is brilliant. We use it, we recommend it, and we wouldn’t run our businesses without it. But it wasn’t built for design document control in construction — and that distinction matters.

File storage keeps things safe. Document management keeps projects moving, costs under control, and clients reassured.

Capsa exists to do the latter — because generic tools stop short of what construction teams really need once the drawings hit the site.