How to Cut Down Hairy Schedules

By Leonard Toenjes

Q: It seems owners want projects done faster than they did in the past. We try to accommodate their schedule as much as possible because we want the work, but I have seen some hairy schedules that keep me up at night even though I have confidence in our team. We want to increasingly focus on improving this element of our operation. Do you see this trend as increasing? What tips can you provide? Where can we turn to improve our performance in this area?

A: As financial pressures increase and the needs to see more immediate returns on investment impact owners and the entire construction team, scheduling and production are certainly being pushed to the limit.

The trend towards compressing the time between initial contract award and project completion is certainly increasing. This can also become a benefit for contractors, subcontractors and suppliers who can manage the schedule effectively, turn a project around quickly and not have costly capital tie-ups due to retainage and open project claims.

A fast schedule is critically dependent on timely and complete communication. Prior to beginning construction, everyone in the team must clearly understand his or her role on the project and the delivery system. The owner must understand the essential importance of timely decision making on their part.

As questions come up during the project, nothing will slow down a project faster than stopping work and waiting for the owner to make a decision that then has a domino effect on the remainder of the project.

Use Technological Tools

A number of scheduling software programs is available. Proper internal systems must be put in place along with software installation to ensure that these are implemented company-wide and have the intended results for the management team and project managers.

There are vendors who will be happy to show you the advantages of their individual packages, but prior to making a final decision, be sure to include your management team in the review and ensure adequate training is provided to provide a return on your IT investment.

Use of building information modeling is another powerful tool to keep project schedules moving along. Integrating design at every level from the architectural, engineering, construction, shop and field drawings into the scheduling system can quickly identify roadblocks and potential clashes during construction.

The entire team can work together in this virtual design and construction world to more clearly envision the schedule and seek solutions to schedule delays prior to their occurrences. Again, communication is the key to effective implementation of BIM.

Finally, peer-review services can be extremely helpful in taking an objective look at your scheduling system. With peer reviews, small groups of similar yet non-competing contractors from various regions of the country are assembled by a third party consultant. In meetings of this type, contractors can learn from other contractors about both successes and failures in various portions of their business, including scheduling.

As the saying goes about staying up at night worrying about your hairy schedules, you can sleep like a baby (wake up crying every two hours) or you can take some positive actions.

Do you have questions on construction human resources, safety or management? E-mail them to Leonard Toenjes at ltoenjes@agcstl.org or craig_barner@mcgraw-hill.com. If Len picks your question, he will answer it in a future issue of Midwest Construction.)