Ways to achieve on-time project delivery and types of construction contracts
A must read for all Planners & Schedulers
AACE International have now made available on their Source website, the 2020 AACE International Conference and Expo presentation by world renowned Planning and Scheduling Subject Matter Experts (SME), Glen Palmer and Chris Carson. This presentation is now available as a bonus technical article, titled “Top Ten Successful Approaches to On-Time Completion” and to me, it is a must read for all Project Planners and Schedulers.
The detailed article is full of very sound advice and is illustrated with diagrams and examples. The 10 recommended ways to achieve early and successful project completion from Palmer and Carson are:
Maintain a continuous no-cost performance ‘acceleration’ effort”
Perform a formal critical path analysis on a project
Use formal trending analysis to recommend mitigation actions
Assign a specific team member for each schedule activity
Provide a resource plan to ensure resource availability
Manage project delay claims timely to ensure best efforts to maintain the schedule
Develop and maintain a schedule-oriented culture
Manage resources by using off-site prefabrication (modularisation) on large projects
Update the As-Planned and As-Built separately, no less than monthly
Manage the project with an approved project schedule
Read the “Top Ten Successful Approaches to On-Time Completion”.
Networking and Your Career
Another interesting piece I read during the week was a blog post by Alan Zucker, where he talked about the importance of keeping in touch. It is often said that the “relationship currency” is so importance in one’s career and to buttress this point, Zucker quotes an Insider article that says 70% of jobs are sourced through professional networks. Head over to Zucker’s blog and read his tips on how to stay in touch with colleagues and professional friends. Consider this an investment in your career.
Read “Keep in Touch”.
Be transparent when it comes to delays
No one likes bad news but when it comes to project delivery, Andy Hewitt of Hewitt Decipher Partnership reckons conveying bad news about schedule delays to the client early is good and the right thing to do. He calls for honesty and transparency when reporting progress as this allows contractors to get the client on their side and possibly be awarded an extension of time (EOT).
Read “Delay & Progress Updates | why honesty is the best policy”.
Working on a Mega Project? Then keep an eye on Long Lead Items
Another blog post I’d recommend you read is from GleeYM Inc, which explains why one of the focussed activity during the Quantitative Schedule Risk Analysis (QSRA) of a mega project, should be the procurement of long lead items (LLI), as delays to LLIs not only have the potential to increase CAPEX but can also impact OPEX.
Read “1 Big Reason, Why To Choose Long Lead Item As A “Focused Activity”?”.
Do you know the different types of construction contracts?
As a Project Planner or Scheduler, one needs to be conversant with the terms of the project contract so that one can better support the project team. If you do not know much about the different types of construction contracts, I recommend you read this blog post from Digital Builder. It discusses the pros and cons of the 8 most common types of construction contracts. The post will surely enrich your knowledge.
Read “8 Main Types of Construction Contracts”.
And time for the weather forecast
Is the project your team is tendering for impacted by weather? Have you considered weather risk in your tender schedule? Mark Thomas has produced and made available on LinkedIn, a 3-page guide on how Planners and Schedulers should calculate and incorporate weather risks in their tender schedules. I think his guide is also useful to Planners or Schedulers involved in awarded projects where weather is an issue.
Read Thomas’ LinkedIn post.
… and the others
5 other blog & LinkedIn posts I read during the week that might interest you are:
