10 Questions to ask that will make you a better Contractor
Take a little extra time to ask these questions and your projects will be completed safely, with good quality, more productively and quicker. Other Useful Construction ArticlesHow to improve cash flow on your construction projects - Part 1 Who is responsible for safety on your construction project? Who is responsible for quality on your construction project? The 10 P’s of successful construction project management Are you working for free on your construction project? 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. © 2020 This article is not to be reproduced for commercial purposes without written permission from the author.
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Productivity on construction projects is often low. We frequently see people and equipment standing idle on construction projects. There is also often rework on projects, with tasks having to be redone because of poor quality, or even because tasks were done out of sequence before previous tasks had been completed. We discussed productivity in our previous articles Construction productivity and How to improve construction productivity Even small productivity improvements, better use and utilisation of resources, can dramatically add to an increase in profits on your construction project. In this article we look at how you can improve productivity of your construction equipment. Improving productivity of construction equipmentEquipment is often hired or rented. Even equipment owned by the company is usually hired or rented by the project. The rental is per hour or day. But even equipment that’s rented per hour has to be paid a minimum number of hours per day – usually 8 to 9 hours. Equipment is never more productive than the operators. So, as discussed previously, many projects only get 7 hours production from their workers in a 10 hour day. Therefore the equipment will also only work 7 hours. But, even then there are things that reduce equipment productivity even further. Construction equipment teamsOften equipment works in a team. So with earthmoving equipment, there’s an excavator that loads trucks. If there aren’t sufficient trucks for the excavator then the excavator will stand waiting for the next truck. Obviously, if there are too many trucks then the trucks won’t be totally productive. The number of trucks required for an excavator to load depends on many factors. This includes, the size of the excavator and the size of the trucks. A bigger excavator will load trucks quicker, while large trucks will each take a bigger load. The time taken for the truck to travel from where it’s loaded to where it tips the load, plus the time taken to return, dictates the number of trucks required. This depends on the distance. So the shorter the distance the quicker the truck returns. It’s also dependant on the speed of the truck, which depends on the power of the truck – underpowered trucks could struggle to get going and battle up inclines. The speed is also affected by the quality of the road, so trucks travelling on roads which have lots of bumps and potholes will go slower. Obstructions in the road, other traffic (slow or stopped vehicles), congestion and other construction work will slow the trucks. Of course trucks usually must maintain a safe speed and keep within the project speed restrictions. It pays to maintain the haul roads (the roads trucks travel from loading to tipping) in good condition. Spending money to make good roads at the start of the project is often money well spent. Where possible, ensure the roads follow the shortest possible route and that loaded trucks are kept away from work areas and other vehicles. The efficiency of the operation is also impacted by how quickly the truck can get into the load position and how quickly it can move off. If the truck has to make numerous turns, backing in and out, it could waste several minutes while the excavator waits for the truck to get into position to be loaded. Loading should be planned so that the truck can easily drive in and out. Of course often the ground is being taken to a place where it must be levelled and compacted. This operation is part of the chain. If the grader, compactors and water trucks can process the ground quicker than the excavator and trucks can supply the ground, then the grader and compactor won’t be 100% productive because they’ll be waiting for more ground. But, if the grader and compactor can’t compact the ground quickly enough, then the excavator and trucks may be standing while they’re waiting for the compacting operation to catch up. If the excavator breaks down, then the whole operation stands. The same happens if the grader breaks down. The Alarming Truth about Using Old Construction Equipment The right size construction machineBut, it’s also about getting the size of equipment right. Small excavators take longer to load trucks. Small trucks are loaded quicker, so more trucks are required, and there’s more time wasted manoeuvring trucks into the loading position. But trucks which are too large might not be able to be loaded by excavators and loaders which are too small, or the excavator may only reach part of the truck, causing an uneven distribution of soil on the truck resulting in unused space on the truck, and the uneven distribution of the load could damage the truck suspension and the truck could even over topple. Equipment and trucks that are too big might be less manoeuvrable and unsuitable for congested work areas. Read What Size Equipment Is Right for Your Construction Project? Skilled operatorsExcavators can operate more efficiently with a skilled operator than one less skilled. An operator that can load a truck in say 4 minutes compared to one that loads the truck in 5 minutes is 20% more efficient. In an hour they could load 15 trucks versus 12 trucks the slower operator loads. Read Are you employing the right people on your construction project? In our next article we discuss construction equipment productivity further. ![]() 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. Choosing equipment for your construction project isn’t as easy as walking into your local equipment dealership and pointing at the one that looks the coolest. A lot of factors go into choosing the perfect machine for the job, such as cost, efficiency, fuel type and operating requirements. One of the most important things to consider when choosing a new piece of machinery is the size. Which size equipment is right for your job? Understand Your Construction ProjectThe first detail to look at is the size and scope of your job. This will vary from project to project — the equipment you need to build a single-family home won’t be the same as the fleet you’ll need to construct a skyscraper or office building. This is one case where size matters, and bigger isn’t always better. If your equipment is too large, you won’t be able to complete the necessary task, or if you can, it will be with some degree of difficulty. It doesn’t take much, especially in the early stages of a project, to swing an oversized excavator bucket right through a wall. If you’re lucky, all you’ll damage is the wall. If you’re not, you could bring the whole roof down on your head. Either way, you’re stuck with costly repairs and looming deadlines because you just had to have the biggest piece of equipment on the lot. It’s like trying to paint a detailed portrait with the largest brush at the store. You might end up with something resembling your project at the end, but it won’t be perfect. You might even end up inadvertently doing more damage with large equipment than you would with properly sized machines. On the other side of the coin, you don’t want to choose something that’s too small for the job. You wouldn’t try to dig a ditch with a spoon, and you shouldn’t try to finish a project with a tool that’s too small. Things to Consider When Choosing Construction EquipmentSize isn’t the only thing you need to consider when choosing construction equipment for your next project. Each type of machinery will have its own factors you’ll need to explore to determine if it’s the best option for a particular project. If you need an excavator to dig a hole or trench, you should assess everything from dig depth and reach length to bucket size and lifting capacity. Sticking with the excavator example, you need to look at size and application. Mini excavators are ideal for crowded worksites, small projects or cases when you’ll need to move your equipment between multiple job sites. Larger excavators become useful for massive projects or cases where a mini version just won’t be enough to do the job. Digging extensive trench work for new utility lines would be a job for a larger excavator. Moving earth to flatten a backyard before installing a deck is a job better suited for smaller equipment. Ask yourself these questions when choosing a new piece of construction equipment:
What Size Equipment Is Right for Your Project?We can offer you all the advice in the world, but when it comes down to it, deciding your equipment size is a very personal decision. What works for one project might not work for someone else on a similar one. Take the time to do your research and figure out which equipment size will work best for you and your goals. Remember that bigger isn’t always better, and sometimes you’ll want to downsize to get the job done. If you keep that in mind, you’ll be fine. Author Bio: Rose Morrison is a freelance writer who covers construction and building design topics. She is also the managing editor for Renovated. Do you want to learn how to manage construction projects successfully?Paul 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. As we saw in our previous article Construction productivity, time is lost at every rest break and at the start and end of the shift. Project managers, foremen and supervisors must ensure that workers get to their work areas as quickly as possible and don’t start drifting off the job site before the start of the rest breaks and before the end of the shift. Construction workers will always take a chance unless working hours are enforced. The 5 minutes will become 10 minutes if nothing is said, and eventually 10 minutes becomes 15. Locating stores, offices and toilets close to the work areas helps minimise the lost time. Construction skillsA skilled construction worker is often more productive than a less skilled worker. How can you improve the skills of your crews? Well obviously employing a skilled person in the first place is a good start. It’s also important to train your team. This training can be in the form of on the job training and mentoring as well as more formal off-site training. I know we hate losing people for a few weeks while they’re at a training course, but almost always you will be rewarded with a more skilled and productive worker when they return. Motivating people is important. A demotivated crew could be 50% less productive than a motivated crew. Use the right toolsUsing the wrong construction tools, or construction equipment that is underpowered or too small for the job, means the task will take longer and the operator will be less productive. Using blades and drills which are blunt will be slower and risk damaging the equipment. Obviously construction equipment that frequently breaks down destroys productivity. Having insufficient tools or equipment may result in someone waiting for an item because someone else is using it. Of course, it may also be impractical for everyone to have their own machine. This would mean that there’re increased costs to purchase or hire the item, which will eventually be more than the potential savings which resulted from workers not waiting for the item. It’s a balance to maximise the productivity of both people and equipment. Planning and organising your construction siteOf course construction crews need to be balanced. So for instance, if there’re insufficient workers to fix the steel reinforcing in place, then this operation could go slower than other operations, which could then delay the following carpenters and concreters – making them less productive. If the access scaffolding isn’t in place in time, then the carpenters and the steel reinforcing fixers may be delayed. Work crews often wait for construction materials and equipment. Frequently materials have to be lifted in place with a crane. But cranes regularly have to be shared with other workers and other construction crews, even subcontractors sometimes. If one crew uses the crane longer than necessary because they weren’t prepared for the crane when it was their turn to use it, then it will impact others who are waiting to use the crane. It’s important to understand that if your crew uses the crane longer than they should, that this could impact another crew who is waiting to use the crane. Skilled workers are paid more than unskilled workers. Often unskilled workers can be used to undertake regulation tasks and help the skilled workers. This will result in the skilled workers achieving more production. Improving productivity on construction projectsProductivity on most construction projects is poor. It should be easy to improve productivity by 5 to 10%. Wages and salaries on most projects account for about 30% of the costs. If everyone is 10% more productive this could mean that the wages and salaries on the project are reduced by 10%, which overall is a saving of 3% for the project. A 3% saving might not sound much, but effectively this results in 3% more profit, which means if the project was priced to make 10% profit then the project potentially could make 13% profit. In effect the profit has increased by 30%. Now every manager would be very pleased to increase profits by 30%. But it’s often even possible to improve labour productivity by much more than 10%. Of course improving the productivity of construction workers has other benefits, which include that productivity of construction equipment increases, the project may be completed in a shorter duration, fewer workers may be required which will result in savings when the project is providing transport and accommodation for the workers, and fewer workers requires less personal protective equipment and company uniforms. Planning the construction project properly will improve productivity. This means ensuring that you have sufficient workers with the right skills. It includes seeing that your construction crews have the right equipment. That there is proper access to the work areas. That preceding work is completed so that the next tasks can be done. That all the required construction materials are available, including all the fixings to fit the items. Selecting the right construction methods can improve production. Good communication is essential to productivity. Workers that don’t know, or understand, what they should be doing may make mistakes, or they could waste time waiting for instructions or clarification of what to do. Sometimes it’s worth paying more for special equipment (such as specialist formwork) which will simplify tasks, speeding them up or reducing the number of people required. Where possible, don’t frequently move people from one task to another, since there’s lost time while they readjust to the new task. In our next articles we look at construction equipment productivity 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. This article is an extract from the book 'The Successful Construction Supervisor and Foreman'. The books are available in paper and ebook from most online stores including Amazon. © 2020 This article is not to be reproduced for commercial purposes without written permission from the author. It was 1989. Bob Berkebile, a creative thinker with a passion for the environment, wondered how he and his fellow architects could design environmentally responsible buildings. Berkebile formed a small committee, and his idea gained traction. The U.S. Green Building Council, a leading agency in sustainable design and construction, was eventually born. The USGBC’s green rating system is called Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED and it is used around the globe today. Projects that promote health, energy efficiency and cost savings are awarded LEED certification in various categories. The movement that Berkebile started has forever changed the way structures are designed and built. It has even changed traditional approaches to disposing of waste. Construction waste a huge problemIn 2018, the U.S. generated around 600 million tons of construction and demolition, or C&D, materials. That was dramatically up from the estimated 136 million tons generated in 1996. Anything that is being built, renovated or torn apart — such as buildings, production plants, highways and bridges — creates debris. Demolitions account for about 90 percent of the waste. The Environmental Protection Agency urges contractors to stop thinking of C&D materials as waste and start thinking of them as commodities. The discussion is not just limited to doors, hardware, plumbing fixtures, and other intact building components. Scrap metals, plastics, wood, glass, bricks, concrete, and asphalt also have value, yet they are sent to landfills every day. The construction industry can join efforts with the EPA in several ways: reducing waste at the source, reusing salvageable materials, recycling or donating materials, and purchasing C&D materials for use on new projects. These are also good pathways to earning LEED certification. Reducing construction wasteOne of the best ways to manage C&D waste is to not generate it in the first place. For example, architects and designers are making buildings more adaptable for a variety of potential uses in the future. For contractors, source reduction is a matter of keeping waste prevention on the front burner throughout the planning process: • Deliberately choose products that are reusable, recyclable, or easy to disassemble. • Choose vendors that promote waste prevention. • Choose products with minimal packaging. • Take inventory of supplies more often. • Verify that measurements are precise. • Teach subcontractors to identify and sort reusable or recyclable materials on the job site. Reusing construction and demolition materialsThe savings associated with salvaging and reusing materials make this a popular way to do one’s part. In some areas of the country, it is significantly less expensive to recover valuable products than it is to dispose of them in landfills. What can and cannot be reused varies depending on location, but these are some commonly repurposed items: • Appliances • Fixtures • Doors • Hardware • Marble • Sinks, bathtubs, and toilets • Mirrors • Multipaned windows • Wood flooring, cabinetry, scrap wood, and wood cutoffs • Bricks, concrete, and stonework • Ironwork • Leftover paint • Excess insulation • Gypsum removed from drywall • Packing materials Leveraging DeconstructionThere is a growing trend toward dismantling structures rather than destroying them altogether. Deconstruction has several benefits: • Usable materials are easier to locate and recover. • The country requires fewer landfills. • Greenhouse gas emissions from incinerators and landfills are reduced. • More trees are conserved. • Materials remain local to eliminate the harmful effects of extracting resources and shipping new products. • Unwanted materials can be donated to individuals or groups that post a wish list. These include vocational training centers, local business owners, schools, artists, woodworkers, and community theater groups. • Deconstruction provides jobs and creates business opportunities. The best structures for deconstruction include wood-framed buildings, buildings that contain valuable materials or products, and buildings that are structurally sound. If a structure has begun to decay but still retains valuable elements, it can be partially deconstructed before demolition. Recycling construction and demolition materialsThere is no denying that the U.S. recycling system could use some work. Well-intentioned contractors are often unsure about which materials can be recycled and where to drop them off. The EPA is working to clear up the confusion. In October of 2020, the agency released its National Recycling Strategy and invited public feedback. The main objectives are to reduce contamination, make processing more efficient and expand markets for recyclable products. In the meantime, in areas where markets exist, wood can be repurposed for compost, mulch or even furniture. Most metals used in construction are recyclable. Concrete, gravel and asphalt are used to make new products or aggregate. Cardboard is not technically a C&D material, but packaging from job sites need not go to waste. It is worth noting that some supposed recycling centers take shortcuts or otherwise mismanage materials. Useful products end up in landfills right along with useless ones. Contractors should verify that the processing center is licensed or has third-party certification and complies with regulations. The website of the Construction & Demolition Recycling Association has a tool for searching recycling centers by location and material type. Purchasing recycled construction materialsReuse centers or retail businesses carry everything from millwork to fencing to architectural molding. The retail stores typically have a smaller selection, but their materials and products are of greater value. Many products have been cleaned up or otherwise prepared for sale. Waste and material exchanges are also good options. Waste exchanges usually handle hazardous substances while material exchanges do not. Some exchanges are brick-and-mortar warehouses with a catalog of goods. Others connect buyers and sellers through a website. Buying used C&D materials not only promotes sustainability, but it makes good business sense. Construction and renovation costs are reduced. Since used products are almost always sourced locally, communities get an economic boost. The EPA’s Comprehensive Procurement Guideline Program is a great resource for buying used C&D products. Keeping C&D materials out of landfills is a gift that will keep on giving for generations to come. LEED certification is an additional perk for contractors. A LEED-certified home or business is a testament to innovation and sustainability. There are many benefits to reducing waste from construction and demolitionDisposing of construction materials is expensive. There's the cost to load it, transport it, then the dump fees. There's also the cost to the environment. The environmental cost to get rid of the material, the environmental cost to create new materials, and the environmental impacts of the dump. Recycling and reusing materials is often cheaper. Upcycling old buildings could be cheaper, and certainly less harmful to the environment. It may even help protect heritage buildings and heritage features. Buildings with good LEED certification can command higher prices from buyers. More people are environmentally conscious these days. Anyway shouldn't we be protecting the future that our children will inherit? This is a guest post. Do you want to learn how to manage construction projects successfully?Paul 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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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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