Project Setup – The Hard Facts And The Reality
I recently posted an article titled ‘Driving Successful Outcomes for Construction Clients’. This looked at proper project setup and doing what is best for the client and project. This came about after speaking to industry peers and colleagues nationwide as I was hearing the same story time and time again.
We spend far too much time finalising design whilst under construction.
Delays in design programme due to late due diligence and identification of issues.
Budgets set years before the project commences and therefore out of date.
Scope gaps due to poor scoping of the design team.
Too many Design and Build elements passed on to contractors to resolve which impacts cost and programme certainty and therefore uncoordinated documentation.
Far greater time and effort required during the construction phase which has massive implications on cost and programme certainty.
Lack of forethought to buildability, sequencing and construction methodology in the design.
As project managers, this is evident in the number of Requests for Information (RFI’s) generated by contractors during the construction phase. This is not putting blame on the contractors as they are only reacting to what is on the drawings versus the reality of the build.
RFI’s on projects can be in the hundreds if not thousands. What does this tell you about the project? For me it speaks volumes and signals something has gone terribly wrong. So why do we as an industry continually think its ok to work through the construction phase of a project in such a manner? The management alone in dealing with such high volumes is time consuming and builds unnecessary stresses and pressures on any project. It creates divisions and inefficiencies. Programme delays therefore become inevitable.
Then there is the impact on cost through the variations alone and where does this money come from? It comes out of the project’s contingency. This is not what contingency sums should be set up to cover. Contingency should be for unknowns/unforeseen.
So what does this really mean? The chart below shows the figures of eight projects where the spend due to poor design documentation, is at a minimum, a third of total cost of the projects variations. This, in my opinion, is far too high and can be avoided. I would be interested in everyone else’s thoughts?
Patrick MacLeamy’s Curve of Influence, 2004
Don’t just take my word for it. I came across the following statistics which I am sure we can all relate to project delays, projects over budget and scope creep in our careers, which are sadly becoming a far too common experience.
Of the above statistics and images, the first is my own raw data and in no way linked to the second. However, I would go further to suggest that they are intrinsically linked and go hand in hand with one other.
Would you agree?
For the past decade, the industry has been sheltered by a healthy economy. Especially true of Canterbury after we have had a decade of post-earthquake rebuilding.
This has enabled construction to prosper without having to strive for innovation. The current economic crisis is a perfect opportunity for us to think again. We cannot afford to waste it.
My concern is, as humans, we are creatures of habit and nothing will change and we will fall into the same trap of repeating the same mistakes time and again. As Albert Einstein once said ‘The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.’
Wholesale change needs collective buy-in and what better time to make change than now? At the start of a new year. Lets be proud to be able to look back on 2024 in the years to come and say that 2024 was the year change happened in the NZ construction industry.
How do we go about making change?
One of those ways is Marginal Gains.
It is often a term used in the sporting world, particularly in its introduction to the British Cycling team of the early 2000’s but can be applied to any situation requiring change. It is the theory that improving and optimising your performance by a small amount across a number of different areas will lead to much more significant, noticeable improvements overall. It is otherwise known as the 1% Factor
Below you can see how a 1% improvement every day can soon lead to quick growth over the course of a year.
The above may be a simplistic approach and a construction project’s marginal gains may not be measured in 1day units, however the beauty is that marginal gains is a holistic approach, which means you can look at just about any positive change you make and, if you add enough of them together, they can make improvements in other areas too. Basically, just about everything is linked somehow when you take this approach.
In terms of construction projects we need to spend more time early in the project’s lifecycle (see Patrick MacLeamy’s Curve of Influence, previous article). The main aim of ensuring we have set up the project correctly and for success from the onset. Areas where this can be achieved include:
Develop full and correct consultant scopes.
Due diligence through on and off-site investigation.
Set adequate budgets based on adequate information.
Identify the correct procurement strategy which is best for project.
Adequate risk analysis.
Proper design management ensuring documentation between disciplines has been captured to avoid un-coordinated documentation.
Set realistic programme duration and milestones.
Beter use of BIM and other technological innovations.
What are you waiting for - let’s get started!
Stephen Threadgall is The Building Intelligence Group’s Canterbury & Upper South Island Lead and an experienced Project Director. His project and construction management experience has been gained over more than 20 years in the UK and New Zealand, including extensive involvement in the Christchurch re-build. Stephen can be reached at s.threadgall@tbig.co.nz.
