On construction projects days are often rushed and many construction project managers, supervisors and foremen barely have time to think, being pulled in different directions and facing demands from their managers, their crew and the client. Yet, it’s vital to find some quiet time to think through and plan the day’s activities – what must be done today, what must happen tomorrow and what must happen today so that tomorrow’s tasks can be accomplished. What must happen next week and what must be done today so that next week’s tasks can happen.

This day to day planning includes ensuring that materials are ordered, that there are sufficient workers with the right skills, and that construction equipment will be available. It comprises looking at the construction schedule (programme) so that you understand what must be done and in what sequence. It covers studying the drawings to check that all the information is complete and clear so the structure can be built. It means checking that there’ll be access to the work areas and ensuring that preceding tasks are completed. Of course, it also means communicating with your crew so that everyone knows what has to be done and how it will be accomplished.

Regrettably many in construction neglect to plan projects properly, leading to emergencies and problems when things haven’t been ordered, when items aren’t available, or access isn’t ready. It’s far easier and takes less time to plan things properly, than to resolve problems created by inadequate planning. I always say, “it’s much easier to be a fire prevention officer than a firefighter”. Project managers and supervisors often spend an inordinate amount of time ordering items which have been forgotten – this often takes several phone calls, begging and cajoling suppliers for a favour to get the item immediately, additional calls to arrange special transport, then more time following up why the item hasn’t arrived yet. Often crews have to be switched around to work elsewhere when materials, equipment, information or access isn’t available. Not only does the project manager or supervisor waste time making the changes, but invariably the crew is disrupted and everyone has wasted a couple of hours and got frustrated in the process.

Learn to plan projects properly. Time spent planning your construction project is time that you will more than make up by avoiding project delays and dealing with issues resulting from poor or inadequate planning.

​Do you want to learn how to manage construction projects successfully? I've 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.
The books are available in paper and ebook from most online stores including Amazon.
Need help with your construction project or construction company? Contact me for help and advice.
To read more about the author’s books and find out where you can purchase them visit the pages on this website by clicking the links below:

• '​Successful Construction Project Management: The Practical Guide'
• 'Building a Successful Construction Company: The Practical Guide'
• 'Construction Claims: A Short Guide for Contractors'
• 'Construction Project Management: Tips and Insights'
• ​'Construction Management: From Project Concept to Completion'
• 'The Successful Construction Supervisor and Foreman'
• and 'An Introduction to Building and Renovating Houses - Volumes 1 and 2'

'Construction Book reviews'
To read more about the author visit the page 'Paul Netscher'
Want to contact Paul Netscher please enter your details on 'Contacts'
Find out how Paul Netscher can help you

Many construction projects get in trouble and project managers are good at finding someone, or something to blame. It’s usually the poor estimator who cops the brunt of the blame. Listening to many construction project managers you would think that all estimators make mistakes and every construction project is only completed successfully because of the project manager’s heroic efforts. Of course, the next best thing is to blame the weather – well there’s always rain, wind, cold and heat. Poor weather is a reliable excuse. Then we have others to blame, poor subcontractors, unreliable suppliers, unskilled workers, difficult clients, and weak designers. But wait a minute, isn’t that the experience on most construction projects? What’s different?

There will be problems and disruptions on construction projects. There will be mistakes with the estimate – both mistakes that cost money as well as mistakes that add to the profits. There will be bad weather, difficult clients and poor workers. But that’s why we employ project managers to solve these difficulties and deal with problems! I can’t think of one of my construction projects that went perfectly and according to plan. But we finished them all, and in almost every case made money and had a happy client.

It’s easy to blame the estimator for under-pricing material or underestimating the amount of work. But, there are also often estimating mistakes on the positive side, where the project wasn’t as difficult as the estimator envisaged and the materials cost less than the estimator allowed.  In fact, often an estimating mistake costing project money is cancelled out by an error which is beneficial to the project – it’s a shame that you only hear about the first mistake and not the second!

Why can’t project managers accept responsibility for problems on their project? Why can’t they admit when they’ve made the wrong decisions? Why can’t they just get on and solve the problem, instead of wasting time and effort looking for excuses and scapegoats?

It seems that the easy response these days is to blame others – our politicians set good examples of this. Let’s find a scapegoat, in fact, maybe we can even turn it into a political slogan. Finding the real cause of the problem and fixing it is hard work. In doing this we might not like the real reason for the problem – like we slipped-up. We might upset or offend somebody we don’t want to offend, somebody that’s the real problem. We might not like the solution to fix it – because it could result in more work, or require some sacrifices. Company bosses and politicians are good at cutting employees and freezing wages to lower costs, but very few will take a salary cut themselves. Not sure what happened to lead by example!
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Blaming others takes time and energy and doesn’t solve anything. A construction project that’s in trouble, one that’s losing money or behind schedule, isn’t miraculously going to come right. Because a culprit, a scapegoat, has been found doesn’t solve anything. Making noise and jumping up and down doesn’t solve problems. Over dramatising the problem also doesn’t solve the problem – it could result in panicked quick fixes that don’t work or over extravagant solutions which aren’t necessary. Throwing up your arms or having a temper tantrum solves nothing – the project that’s in trouble will remain in trouble.

​There’s a problem. What are the causes? Indeed, there is almost always more than one cause. Don’t just look at the symptoms and treat these. Sure, it rained and the construction works were flooded. What steps can we take to prevent more damage? How can we salvage the project? Solve the immediate problems and get the project back on track. Then look at preventing the problem from recurring. Why was the work flooded? Could we have kept most of the storm-water out? What should we do to prevent a similar problem occurring? You can’t stop the rain – but maybe you can implement preventative measures to limit the damage.

Let’s look at the problem logically. Find the real cause. Take action to fix the symptoms and implement steps so the problem is fixed and doesn’t reoccur. Ask for help if necessary.

Don’t try and hide the problem, because inevitably the problem doesn’t fix itself. So, the project is losing money. Why? Maybe the estimator did make a mistake, but usually, there are other reasons. What can we do to prevent further losses? What can we do to recover money already lost? If we’ve done everything possible, ensured that we have uncovered the true causes for the losses and stopped them where possible, and the project will still end in a loss, then it’s important management is informed of the losses so they aren’t caught unawares at the project finish when the project makes a loss.
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Fixing a problem requires a motivated team. Shouting and blaming demotivates people. The team needs to pull together, in the same direction, in a coordinated effort to rectify the problem and its cause. Threats don’t help. Good communication is vital. Maintaining morale is essential. People hate working for a project or company that’s in trouble.

​Project managers need to be proactive. They should plan for poor weather – okay sure you can’t allow for a hurricane or abnormally heavy snow or rain, but you should at least have anticipated and allowed for the normal expected weather conditions. Projects should allow for the time disruptions of normal weather, but more importantly, take active steps to minimise the disruption, like planning work around the normal seasonal rain and cold, and protecting partly completed work from the worst of the weather. When bad conditions are on the way take steps to limit the damage. When there’s good weather make the most of it.
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Anticipate problems and take steps to prevent them from arising, or at least implement measures to limit the impact of the problem.

Your project will not be the first project to have problems and nor will it be a last. Construction project managers are expected to be proactive and prevent problems from occurring. They are expected to solve problems when they do occur. They may have to ask for help sometimes.

Don’t be quick to find an easy excuse, or pounce on an issue that’s not the real cause of the problem. Don’t be too quick to apportion blame. Make sure you uncover the true underlying causes then fix them.

Project managers will make mistakes. Their team will make mistakes. Admit when a mistake is made and take responsibility, instead of blaming others.
Use your time and energy effectively to solve problems and prevent them recurring, instead of blaming others. Provide constructive criticisms and feedback. 

This article was first published on the ClockShark website. 
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 I've 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.
The books are available in paper and ebook from most online stores including Amazon.
Need help with your construction project or construction company? Contact me for help and advice.
To read more about the author’s books and find out where you can purchase them visit the pages on this website by clicking the links below:

• '​Successful Construction Project Management: The Practical Guide'
• 'Building a Successful Construction Company: The Practical Guide'
• 'Construction Claims: A Short Guide for Contractors'
• 'Construction Project Management: Tips and Insights'
• ​'Construction Management: From Project Concept to Completion'
• 'The Successful Construction Supervisor and Foreman'
• and 'An Introduction to Building and Renovating Houses - Volumes 1 and 2'

'Construction Book reviews'
To read more about the author visit the page 'Paul Netscher'
Want to contact Paul Netscher please enter your details on 'Contacts'
Find out how Paul Netscher can help you

Most construction projects will have changes, additional work and experience delays. Where the change or delay couldn’t be anticipated, or allowed by the contractor, they can usually claim a variation and request additional time and money from the client to recompense them for the event.

But, the success of a variation claim isn’t guaranteed, and it’s up to the contractor to explain the cause of the variation, why they couldn’t have expected the event, and then quantify the impacts of the event.

Now, this might seem simple and straightforward, but, regrettably, construction variation claims which are legitimate are frequently rejected by the client, or the contractor only receives part of what they are entitled to get.
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So where does it go wrong for contractors? Is it just because the client is being difficult or unfair? Occasionally, yes the client is being unfair and then there are usually legal steps that contractors can take when a legitimate and well thought through and presented variation claim is rejected. But, unfortunately, many construction variation claims lack substance and supporting documentation to justify the claim and the client has every right to reject the variation claim.

Most contractors only think about supporting documentation when there’s a variation claim. By then, often the construction project has been going for several months. Much of the supporting documentation must come from events and days past, in fact some even from before the start of the construction project. Missing documents, or documents that are incorrect or faulty, will be of no use to support the variation claim.
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There are a number of supporting documents:

The construction contract document forms the basis of the variation claim. It sets out the rights and obligations of the contracting parties and it informs the contractor of the steps to be taken when a variation claim arises. Unfortunately, some contractors only read their contract document when there’s a problem. Usually, by then it’s too late. Some construction contract documents are poorly written with conflicting and ambiguous clauses, while some documents unfairly put undue risks on the contractor and remove the contractor’s rights. Contractors must remember that the contract document outlines the project rules. These must be checked to ensure that they are fair before the contract document is accepted and signed – it’s too late to find part way through construction that the rules are unworkable, or unfair, or weren’t what the contractor thought they should be. Contractors must understand what their rights and obligations are, as well as the client’s rights and obligations. The contractor must make sure that everyone plays by the rules.

The construction schedule is the yardstick against which any delay will be measured. The construction schedule should be a reasonable and logical assessment of how the project will be constructed and it should be in sufficient detail so that construction progress can be monitored and the impact of delays assessed. It should clearly indicate when the client must supply access, information, and materials. The contractor must follow the construction schedule. A poor construction schedule will make it difficult for the contractor to quantify the delay, while the contractor not following the schedule and using other construction methods could invalidate the variation claim.

Weather records are essential when the contractor claims for delays to construction caused by adverse weather. Generally, normal weather events are a risk which the contractor must accept and they can’t claim for weather events which are the norm, or the average for the project location. So, how much rain did the construction project receive and was this more than average? If the contractor hasn’t maintained accurate weather records from the start of the project they might not be able to prove the exact amount of rain that fell on the project site unless there’s a weather station near the project.

Daily logs or diaries. Often clients request the contractor maintains a daily log. But, even if they don’t, it’s good practice to maintain the diary. This log must be accurate and include the weather records, the resources on the project, construction delays and major events. Regrettably, many of these logs are not accurate and may not support the contractor’s variation claim. When did the delay start, when did it end, what did it impact?

Project meeting minutes (records) often provide a record of progress and problems on the construction project. These minutes are often written by the client or their representative, and they frequently leave out information which is detrimental to them. It’s important to check that the meeting minutes are an accurate representation of what was discussed at the meeting and reflect the actual status of the project. If there’s an error or omission in the meeting minutes then the minutes should be rectified at the time, or the issue should be addressed in writing to the client. Contractors can’t wait until they are preparing their variation claim to find that the meeting records don’t support the facts in their claim.

Personal diaries. Construction project staff often keep personal diaries recording the events on the project. These diaries can be subpoenaed by either party should a dispute arise. They may provide valuable information to support or refute a variation claim. These diaries should be an accurate reflection of events on the construction project.

Request for information or engineering queries. From time to time the contractor will have questions for the client’s team. This could include missing, conflicting, unclear, or inaccurate information on construction drawings. All questions should be in writing so that there’s a record of the issue and when the matter was raised. The answer should be in writing with a date when it was received. Missing information and errors on construction drawings are a leading cause of delays on construction projects.

Photographs provide a valuable record of the status of the project. They can be used to record construction equipment used for a particular task and also lack of access and problems on the construction project. It’s very difficult to refute a photograph with a date. Of course, the client can also use photographs to record the contractor’s errors, bad quality and poor production, which could be used to refute claims.

Drawings and documents provided when the construction project was priced. All information provided to the contractor when they priced the construction project forms the basis for the contractor’s price. If the actual construction conditions and construction drawings are different, there may be the reason for a variation claim. It’s essential the contractor safely keeps all correspondence and documentation received when the project was priced and refers back to these documents in the course of construction to ensure that they claim for any changes which add time or costs to the project.

Drawing registers. Construction drawing registers should record when drawings were received by the contractor. Regrettably, some registers record when the drawing left the client’s office, which could be a day or two before the contractor received the drawing. Drawing registers are essential to prove the quantum of a delay caused by late information from the client’s team.

Drawing revisions. Clients and designers frequently revise drawings. This could even entail the contractor having to redo completed work or order additional or changed materials. It’s essential that revised drawings are kept (clearly marked as revised so they aren’t accidentally used for construction) so they can be referred to if the new drawing has resulted in a delay or additional work.

Correspondence, which includes emails, instructions, memos, and letters. All instructions of a contractual nature (which ask for additional work, changes, or impact progress) must be in writing. Unfortunately, clients often have poor memories when it comes to money and additional time. These instructions and letters must have a date when they were received. The correspondence must be clear and unambiguous. Where necessary it may be necessary to, in writing, ask for clarity.
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Other documents could include, test results, handover and acceptance documentation, project reports, etc. All documents must be an accurate representation of the facts and the status of the project and have a date.

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​This article was first published on the ClockShark website. To visit this website and continue reading the article click on the link above.
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For more valuable information on construction claims get your copy of the author's book 'Construction Claims: A Short Guide for Contractors' which is an easy to read concise guide to helping you win your variation claims ensuring that you are paid for all your extra work and compensated for delays beyond your control

​To read more about the author’s books and find out where you can purchase them visit the pages on this website by clicking the links below:

• '​Successful Construction Project Management: The Practical Guide'
• 'Building a Successful Construction Company: The Practical Guide'
• 'Construction Claims: A Short Guide for Contractors'
• 'Construction Project Management: Tips and Insights'
• ​'Construction Management: From Project Concept to Completion'
• 'The Successful Construction Supervisor and Foreman'
• and 'An Introduction to Building and Renovating Houses - Volumes 1 and 2'

'Construction Book reviews'
To read more about the author visit the page 'Paul Netscher'
Want to contact Paul Netscher please enter your details on 'Contacts'
Find out how Paul Netscher can help you

To help you navigate the construction process and avoid the traps and pitfalls when building or renovating your home read 'An Introduction to Building and Renovating Houses - Volume 1 Hiring Contractors, Managing Construction and Finishing Your Home' ​