Streamlining PM for Construction

Image credit: Fleur from Unsplash

Construction projects are some of the largest and most collaborative projects around, and to that end, they can be the most complicated to manage well. When teams are based across the globe, and there are hundreds of stakeholders, it ups the ante on good management. 

Streamlining project management in the construction industry with the help of platforms like PlanMan can increase the rate of communication and reduce the spend. 

But what else can be done to make sure that your next construction project doesn’t get bogged down and slowed?

Modular construction 
Having been around for a long time now, modular construction is better than it has ever been. Specifically talking about use for project management, modular building is a smart and efficient way to skip the time spent on site. Rather than build from the group up, the parts are constructed off-site and only transported when it is time for assembly. 

This is one of the biggest ways to reduce the cost of materials, reduce waste and reduce time too. 

Supply chain
No matter how big or small the construction project is, the supply chain has been an issue. Anything that happens within the supply chain will directly impact the rest of the project. 

It can be difficult to preempt any supply chain issues; however, extensive monitoring of the supply chain can make a lot of difference. To monitor the supply chain effectively, you need to: 

• Look further up the chain - are there any issues? 
• Is there any maintenance that is required in the coming period? 
• Are there rising costs in storage or raw materials? 

When you monitor the supply chain correctly, you can anticipate and account for delays and, in some cases, avoid them completely. 

Technology 
It might seem like the construction industry hasn’t been quick to uptake new technology, but actually, it’s not because they have been slow. 

It is because the construction industry has more requirements for software and devices - and only now is a technology offering what the construction industry really needs, from Virtual reality tours of the building site and ‘finished’ buildings to instant communication. 

Robots and other automatic machinery are being implemented more often, which has sped up the speed of many builds considerably. 

Sustainability 
For a while, sustainability was a good label to sell properties, but now it is something that no construction plan should be without. There is an increased demand for housing as the population keeps expanding, and something that was an increasing issue was the amount of waste that each building site was producing. 

When you look at a project through a sustainable lens, the amount of waste is dramatically reduced and reused somewhere else in the project. True sustainability in the construction industry means that all of the materials are used and used more efficiently. 

This step means that you are more likely to have a streamlined construction project. 

The goal here is to reduce waste, which may be accomplished in a variety of ways, including moving to modular construction, working with reused materials, and decreasing idle time or waiting for other projects to complete. Consider investigating lean building principles for further waste reduction tools.

Read more about the ins and outs of why zero waste is good for all companies:  Why zero waste is important for small businesses.