Masonry Magazine June 1999 Page. 11
breeding ground for on-site losses and waste. The trick, of course, is to know what to look for. So now, let's take a look at a sampling of jobsite profit pitfalls and some remedies you can apply to cushion the fall:
Communication
I know this term is overworked-but there's good reason. Poor (or sometimes a total lack of) communication is still the single biggest profit-stealer in our and any business. As humanly fundamental as it may sound, the fact remains that most mistakes in construction are more often than not the result of one person simply not understanding another person's directions or instructions. The frustrating part about poor communication, of course, is that it's easily remedied through simple human interaction and expression.
When applied to the job site, communication means that you the builder need to clearly, explicitly, and (yes) even repeatedly convey your needs, wants, and desires to all of the people on the site. This can really only be accomplished through some type of mandatory and regular forum of interaction between workers, owners, and designers, such as on-site job progress meetings. For an average-size commercial construction job ($500m to $3mm), you need to schedule construction progress meetings at definite, fixed intervals such as every 2 weeks and demand that all trades (at the very least all trades currently on site) be represented at the meetings. The architect, engineer (if applicable), and an owner's representative should also be present.
Once in the meetings, create clear hierarchies of information flow. Are change requests initiated only by the architect? How are plan and specification clarifications addressed? This is important, otherwise changes can spring up during the course of construction that may later be disputed in the name of "unauthorized" direction.
Go over and update progress schedules at every meeting and address any problems and concerns completely. If a remedy isn't possible right then and there, establish a firm next step before adjourning. Never accept that a problem will simply work itself out - it never does. Also, speak in concise, definitive terms. Don't use or accept responses such as the "middle of next week". This is too intangible. Use "Wednesday at 8 am" instead.
Planning & Scheduling
Planning can mean a number of things. First, there's the plan represented by the (long-term) construction schedule itself. This is the schedule that you were no doubt asked to submit at the beginning of the job. It's a part of your contract and you're no-doubt bound to the completion date on that schedule. Though excellent for representational (owner) purposes, these long-term schedules are of little use regarding day-to-day scheduling and planning of materials, equipment, and men.
For actual operations, another planning technique - known as short-term or short-interval scheduling - should be employed. Short-term scheduling is simply the act of taking a small, fixed period of time (the upcoming 2 weeks for example) and create a micro-schedule with far more detail and control for that period. This short-term schedule would include more definitive items such as labor requirements, material deliveries, and critical equipment needs for that period.