Platform Lock In
The condition where a company becomes operationally dependent on a software vendor to the point where switching to an alternative is prohibitively expensive or disruptive.
Why It Matters in Construction
Lock-in transfers operational control from the contractor to the vendor. The vendor's roadmap, pricing, and support quality determine the contractor's operational capability.
Common Examples
- Data stored in proprietary formats that cannot be fully exported.
- Integrations built on vendor-specific APIs that would require rebuilding.
- Workflows adapted to match the platform rather than the company's actual operations.