What is the biggest difficulty you face as a project manager?
If you answered stick to the schedule, you're not alone. Less than a third of contractors complete their tasks on time and on budget.
So, if you don't want your next project to end up as another statistic of missed deadlines, you need to improve your construction schedule.
We'll discuss five techniques you can use to create a construction schedule that keeps your project on track.
1. Review all details that affect your construction schedule
If you want to ensure your project stays on schedule, you need to review and document every detail of the scope of work. This includes reviewing your spec book, construction drawings, etc.
Understanding each project document allows you to create a more efficient construction schedule:
- Analyze historical data from similar projects to get a better idea of how to allocate resources and time to different activities.
- Collaborate with material manufacturers and suppliers to ensure the right materials arrive at your facility, in the right quantities, at the right time.
- Determine the ideal placement of equipment and material storage areas, access points, etc. using site drawings.
And don't forget your substitutes: ask them to review project documents that affect your work, get feedback, and work with them to create a construction schedule that works for everyone.
2. Create and implement contingency plans
Every problem on and off site can throw off your construction schedule. While it's impossible to guarantee that nothing will go wrong, you can identify potential risks and create contingency plans to mitigate them before they get out of control.
Meet with other project stakeholders and come up with contingency plans for different situations – you probably won't need them all, but you'll have a plan in place for each potential problem ready to be resolved.
When your project goes off schedule, it's usually due to several smaller issues rather than a single huge problem. Carefully monitor project progress reports to detect issues as they occur and implement your contingency plans immediately to mitigate the impact on your schedule.
3. Evaluate project performance at each stage
Keep an eye on daily reports and how your project progress compares to the construction schedule. Are the on-site activities in line with your schedule? Which tasks are ahead of schedule and which are late?
Determining why there are discrepancies between the construction schedule and project progress helps you improve your planning and scheduling in the future and create a benchmark for measuring performance.
Your schedule likely won't remain static throughout the project – keep your substitutes informed, adjust their tasks, and make any necessary changes to your schedule to ensure you meet each deadline.
4. Coordinate tasks with a master construction schedule
Your master schedule is the key to guiding your project on the right path. By breaking your project down into steps and breaking them down into individual tasks and activities, you gain much more control over the process.
- Determine the estimated time each activity will require.
- Assign start and finish dates to substitutes for their tasks.
- Classify tasks into those that must happen sequentially and those that can happen simultaneously with other activities.
Encourage your substitutes to incorporate their schedules into the main schedule to ensure everyone remains productive and keeps the project on track to be completed on time.
5. Establish communication and collaboration best practices
The way everyone communicates during the project is a significant factor in determining whether or not everything goes on schedule. Early communication is crucial – establish a process that allows subscribers to notify you immediately of delays or restrictions. The sooner you come up with your contingency plans and adjust your schedule, the less damage will be done.
Collaboration means more than everyone doing their part and completing their tasks according to the master schedule. It means forming relationships and working together to make every aspect of the project a success.
Encourage all stakeholders to share their knowledge and ideas to solve problems and make decisions quickly. When everyone is on the same page, maintaining the construction schedule is a much easier task.
Related content: Bridging the Gap: 3 Steps to Improve Communication in Construction
6. Hold regular meetings with your team
Regular meetings with your team can help you stay on top of any issues that may arise and provide the opportunity to make any necessary adjustments to your construction schedule. These meetings can also help you identify potential delays before they become bigger problems.
During these meetings, you can discuss any issues or challenges that arise and work together to find solutions. By doing this, you can identify potential delays before they become bigger problems and take corrective action to keep your project on track.
Regular meetings also provide an opportunity to review your progress and make any necessary adjustments to your schedule. By monitoring your progress and identifying potential delays early, you can adjust your schedule to ensure you meet deadlines.
7. Improve construction planning and scheduling with construction management software
Construction management software can help you stay organized, communicate effectively with your team, and track progress. These tools can help you identify potential delays, track costs, and manage your resources more efficiently.
Remember when we mentioned that most contractors don't finish their projects on time? What do you think is the biggest reason they miss deadlines? Nearly three-quarters of construction professionals blame poor coordination on the job site.
So how can you improve job site coordination to make construction planning and scheduling more efficient?
- Ensure everyone is on the same page with 24/7 access to real-time progress.
- Keep contractors and underwriters updated online and offline with a single app.
- Get real-time snapshots of your project with automated weekly reports.
- Track and make changes to your master schedule from anywhere.
- Reduce administrative time and eliminate inefficiencies without time-consuming meetings.
