Have you had to go back to a project long after completion to fix something? Was it easy? Did it cost money? Did you enjoy it? Covering up defective constructionOften Contractors turn a blind eye to potential quality problems. Mistakes get covered up by dirt, concrete, sheeting and paving. Hopefully never to be found by the Client, or anyone else in the future. Some Construction Project Managers are adept at walking Architects, the Client and Quality Inspectors past poor quality. It’s sometimes easy to distract the person and get them to look elsewhere, or temporarily block the offending work from view. Some Contractors even carry out clandestine operations after hours to quickly ‘patch’, or hide, defective construction work. Unfortunately often these defects manifest themselves later – sometimes with devastating consequences with loss of life such as collapsed buildings. The cost of ignoring building defectsContractors are usually responsible for repairing visible construction defects for a period of 3 to 12 months after the construction project has been completed. But defects that have been hidden, will have to be repaired by the Contractor when these problems eventually become visible. Usually Contractors are liable for these defects up to 5 to 10 years after the construction project is completed, and in some jurisdictions they’re even liable for ever. Would you like to be called back to repair a defect 5 years after the construction project has been completed? Of course not! But Contractors regularly hide defective construction work. Damaged pipes are covered over with ground. When the leak is eventually noticed the area could be covered by paving, or if it’s under the house then by concrete floor slabs, carpets and more. Repairing a simple cracked pipe could cost thousands when finished floors have to be ripped up inside someone’s house – compared to a few dollars if it’s fixed during construction. But sometimes the problem causes even more damage, think of a roof leak. Water from the roof could enter the house and damage ceilings, cupboards and even furniture. A simple construction defect can cost thousands to fix later. It also reflects poorly on the Contractor’s reputation. It’s therefore imperative that construction defects are repaired properly when they are first noticed so that they don’t cause a bigger problem later. Don't wait for the Architect or Engineer to notice the problem. Defects should be repaired as soon as possible while they’re still easily accessible. Waiting until the end of the project may result in other completed work being damaged when the defect is repaired, and access may be more difficult. In addition, the skills and the materials required to fix the problem may no longer be available on the construction project and they’ll have to be brought back to the project at additional cost. Quality problems must be fixed properlyIt’s sometimes tempting just to patch over poor quality construction work and quickly cover it up. But will the problem actually be fixed, or will it manifest itself later, maybe even after the project is completed. Next time you try and cover-up, patch, or hide poor-quality construction work and defects, consider the consequences of your action. The problem may very well come to bite you later, costing your company additional money and impacting your reputation. Rather take the time to do the task properly. Be proud of your completed work. Mistakes will happen, but make sure they are fixed properly so there aren’t problems in the future Other Useful articles: Does anyone give a …. anymore? The true costs of poor quality construction How we can improve quality in construction ![]() This article is an extract from the book 'The Successful Construction Supervisor and Foreman'. © 2021 This article is not to be reproduced for commercial purposes without written permission from the author. Do you want to learn how to manage construction projects successfullyPaul Netscher has written several easy to read books for owners, contractors, construction managers, construction supervisors and foremen. They cover all aspects of construction management and are filled with tips and insights.
Visit to read more. The books are available in paper and ebook from most online stores including Amazon.
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Would you like your hard work damaged by others? Would you like to redo your work because someone was careless and messed it up? Of course not! Yet, frequently completed work is damaged on construction projects. This results in additional work to repair the damage, which causes added costs, resources being diverted from other tasks, delays, and sometimes, even the client getting a product that’s flawed or has an imperfection, which results in problems later. Protecting completed work starts by instilling in your construction team, subcontractors and others working on the construction project, that it’s essential to take care of completed work. This can be discussed in inductions, team talks and briefings. It’s essential to speak out when careless workers are noticed. Everyone must respect the work of others. Of course it’s impossible to protect everything, but where possible surfaces that can easily be scratched or damaged should be covered by timber, cardboard and other materials. Some products arrive in plastic wrappings or are already taped, and these wrappings can be left in place where possible until the section is ready for handover. Fresh work that can easily be damaged, like newly painted surfaced, recently laid tiles and products that haven’t gained full strength, should be cordoned off. Set the standards from the start of the construction project. If people take care from the beginning, not just dropping stuff on the ground, bashing items, etc, then it’s instilled in their behaviour so they’re less likely to damage sensitive finishes later in the project. Other Useful articles: How important is quality on your project Repairing defective work on your construction project How we can improve quality in construction ![]() This article is an extract from the book 'The Successful Construction Supervisor and Foreman'. © 2021 This article is not to be reproduced for commercial purposes without written permission from the author. Do you want to learn how to manage construction projects successfullyPaul Netscher has written several easy to read books for owners, contractors, construction managers, construction supervisors and foremen. They cover all aspects of construction management and are filled with tips and insights.
Visit to read more. The books are available in paper and ebook from most online stores including Amazon. In our previous article Construction Equipment Productivity we discussed how we can improve the productivity of construction equipment on our construction projects. We talked about selecting the right size machines, the importance of using skilled operators, balancing equipment that is working in teams and how one item can drag down the productivity of the other equipment working in the team, and then we discussed how faulty and old equipment can disrupt the project and impact productivity. In this article we discuss other ways to improve construction equipment productivity. Positioning Construction EquipmentThe loading times of the excavator is also impacted by the hardness of the ground. Soft ground is easily scooped up, while hard ground takes additional effort. A more powerful excavator will dig harder ground quicker. The position of the excavator relative to where it scoops the ground and to where it dumps it on the truck will impact the loading time. Every time the excavator must rotate from the scoop location to the load location involves time. The most efficient loading position is where the excavator can scoop ground and tip it straight into the truck. When the truck is parked behind the excavator then the excavator must continuously rotate through 180 degrees from the scoop to load position. Carefully consider where trucks will stand when they’re loaded, and how easily they can move in and out of that position. Correctly positioning the truck and planning the excavation operation could easily cut one or two minutes off every loading cycle, which could increase efficiencies by 20%, possibly even meaning the operation can be done with one less truck. Just think how much money can be saved in a day with one less truck. Servicing and Refuelling EquipmentAnother problem occurs when equipment has to be refuelled or serviced. Refuelling or servicing an excavator in the middle of a shift means that the machine must be stopped. Again this means that all the equipment working with the excavator stops. So 15 minutes stopping the excavator is usually 15 minutes when the other equipment doesn’t work. Servicing and refuelling key equipment, like excavators, after hours may result in additional cost for the service team, but it could result in better productivity. Just consider, I said in the previous article Construction Equipment Productivity that equipment might only work 7 hours in a day. So losing 15 minutes reduces productivity by another 4%. Other FactorsCompacting ground/soil requires water. If there’s insufficient water then the compaction will happen slower and all the equipment will operate less efficiently. We had a project where the client had to supply the water, but they couldn’t supply the required quantities and nor was the water available at the location specified in the contract. This not only reduced the productivity of our equipment, but it also delayed the project resulting in us lodging a claim for millions of dollars against our client. CranesBut, it’s not just about the productivity of earthmoving equipment. It includes planning the size of cranes, deciding the best position for the crane, carefully thinking how the crane will pick up materials and where they’ll be placed in position. Again using skilled operators will make the operations safer and faster. Cranes have their lifting cables running through reeve blocks. This allows the crane to lift a heavier load. If the lifting cable passes twice through the lifting block the crane cable is in effect doubled and can lift double the load of a single cable. The problem is that the crane cable must travel double the distance when lifting the load than if it was a single cable, so it slows the lifting operation, which is not normally a problem when lifting a heavy load. Sometimes the crane lifting cable passes through the lifting reeve blocks several times and there’s 4 or 6 lifting lines connecting the crane hook to the crane. This is required when lifting heavy loads and it’s essential when loads must be precisely fitted into position and slow manoeuvring is required. But, it slows the lifting of repetitive and light items. Changing the number of reeves or lifting loops connecting the crane to the lifting hook can dramatically increase the speed the crane lifts objects – of course this should be done with the permission of the crane operator or an expert that understands the lifting capacity of the crane’s lifting cable and it will have to be changed back for heavy loads. Good Planning and InstructionsOften moving equipment from one location and setting it up in another location is time consuming and results in zero production in that time. Planning these moves so that they happen quickly will improve productivity. So always ensure that the work areas are ready and clear of obstructions ahead of the time. Give operators clear instructions as to what must be done and the best position for the equipment to maximise productivity. Improving Productivity of Construction EquipmentEquipment used badly can be dangerous and expensive, but the right item used by a good operator makes construction easy and efficient. Often construction equipment on projects is unproductive, machines stand idle and equipment is not used efficiently. Equipment costs can make up a large portion of the costs on a construction project - particularly earthmoving and road projects where equipment costs could account for 30 to 50% of the costs. So even improving productivity by 5% could add an extra 2.5% of profits. But improved equipment productivity brings other benefits, such as operators are more productive, less fuel is consumed by the machines, the project can be completed sooner, and other operations become more efficient and productive. It is worth spending the time to analyse how the construction equipment is being used on your construction equipment. See how productivity can be improved. Often it takes only a few small adjustments to make significant improvements. Other Useful articles: Construction productivity How to improve construction productivity Is your construction project losing money? Do you want to find out why? ![]() This article is an extract from the book 'The Successful Construction Supervisor and Foreman'. Do you want to learn how to manage construction projects successfullyPaul Netscher has written several easy to read books for owners, contractors, construction managers, construction supervisors and foremen. They cover all aspects of construction management and are filled with tips and insights.
Visit to read more. The books are available in paper and ebook from most online stores including Amazon. © 2021 This article is not to be reproduced for commercial purposes without written permission from the author. |
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The opinions expressed in the attached articles are those of the writer. It should be noted that projects are varied and different laws and restrictions apply which depend on the location of the contractor and the project. It's important that the reader uses the supplied information taking cognisance of their particular circumstances. The writer assumes no responsibility or liability for any loss of any kind arising from the reader using the information or advice contained herein. "I have what I consider some of the best books on construction management."
Books are available from: Amazon.com Amazon.co.uk takealot.com kalahari.com Amazon.in Amazon.de Amazon.fr Amazon.it Amazon.com.au Powell's Fishpond uread bokus Amazon.ca Amazon.es Other retail stores Available in paperback or on Kindle "28 YEARS OF CONSTRUCTION PROJECT MANAGEMENT EXPERIENCE, DEVELOPING SUCCESSFUL CONSTRUCTION PROJECT MANAGERS AND BUILDING SUCCESSFUL CONSTRUCTION COMPANIES"
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