Let’s face it: staying on schedule is difficult for any contractor. Even when extra time is built into the job progress schedule, it’s all-to-easy to blow through deadlines if the weather doesn’t cooperate, if labor shortages tighten, or if material deliveries are delayed.
Staying on schedule is good for the customer, but it’s also good for the contractor’s margin. Speedy and efficient worksites mean contractors can do more with less, which means profits increase.
At Metro, we’re committed to helping contractors stay on schedule. Here are a few tips to help.
Keep Materials and Equipment Organized
If equipment and materials are in disarray, scattered around, and not protected well enough from the elements, it will slow down every part of the project. If workers need to search for supplies, time is wasted. If crews can’t quickly determine inventory levels, they might over-order, wasting money. If materials aren’t packed and stored correctly, they can get damaged or, worse, pose a danger to on-site workers.
However, it’s difficult to keep worksites organized. That’s why Metro works with customers to create strategies for deliveries that stage materials near the installation area and coordinate the delivery at the right time.
Metro can also help supervisors break up deliveries into manageable increments, delivering the right materials at the right time to the right place on the job site. This allows supervisors to keep worksites in order without interrupting the progress of other crew members.
Communication is Key
Check-ins are one way to ensure better communication. When projects start, include all stakeholders, supervisors, and workers in downloads. Agree on scheduled check-ins, and make sure they happen. These check-ins allow teams to identify issues early on. In addition, they provide opportunities for the team to make adjustments at the right time, which increases the efficiency of the entire project.
Repetition is another tool that can increase shared understanding among team members. Don’t be afraid to repeat instructions. On a busy worksite, repetition is one way to give workers the confidence to move ahead efficiently. By repeating schedules and next steps, team members know directions stand, job orders are still in place, or the team members know instructions are not negotiable. Sharing job details early and often makes the whole team less likely to make order errors, miss deadlines, or run into delivery problems.
Make Subcontractors and Suppliers Part of the Team
A site superintendent or supervisor works to keep the project on schedule. But they shouldn’t have to do it on their own. If they work with subcontractors, stakeholders, and suppliers who work together smoothly, it’s much easier to stay on track. In addition, strong teams will often spot potential issues, create contingency plans, avoid delays, and adapt to changes more efficiently.
Make Sure Everyone Knows the Construction Schedule
Construction schedules are a tool that contractors use to keep the project profitable. So, it makes sense to share it with suppliers and subcontractors. At Metro, we ask our customers to share the entire timeline so we can add value and make deliveries at the appropriate times, understand our role in the schedule, and make recommendations that maximize efficiency.
When we have access to the schedule, we can use our extensive experience handling similar construction projects to recommend ideas that may keep the project on schedule.
Lean Into Phasing
Contractors in the NYC region often work on job sites with very limited space. When Metro works with contractors and developers to phase deliveries, we create custom bundles that contain just the supplies necessary for the current phase of the project or a specific floor or area of the build.
Phasing makes it simpler for supervisors and site managers to keep track of inventory; maintain tidy, safe worksites; and reduce waste (and waste hauling).
Choose the Right Building Supply Distributor
Metro’s team asks clarifying questions upfront to ensure the delivery instructions are comprehensive and correct. We add the most value when we can work as a member of your team. We work on formatting orders and deliveries in ways that help contractors keep the worksite tidy and safe. Whether delivering to an undeveloped pad site or to multiple locations in a high rise, we pack materials appropriately and deliver on time.
At Metro, all sales representatives are experts on what they sell. We help clients choose the ideal materials for each project and try to keep budgets in line through our commitment to value engineering. Contact Metro today to discover how we can help you succeed.
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