BSRIA has been steadily building up an impressive body of work over the last ten years which gives m&e contractors hard evidence that if they adopt best practice techniques, on-site productivity will soar. A simple lesson, but one that it is worth repeating.
BSRIA's latest site productivity report, the findings of which were exclusively revealed in last month's EMC, was the starting point for a Question Time-style discussion at this year's briefing, with BSRIA publisher Roderic Bunn in the David Dimbleby role.
Before the audience were asked to pose questions to the assembled experts, Alan Crane, chairman of Rethinking Construction set the scene. "If teams adopt best practice, productivity improvements will flow very quickly," said Crane. "You could describe it as a no-brainer, so why does this obvious link need spelling out?" Crane urged delegates to pick up BSRIA's productivity report and investigate how the recommendations could be taken forward.
BSRIA's head of process and productivity Glenn Hawkins outlined the key findings from the report. The most important observation being that, despite the cynics saying that initiatives such as Rethinking Construction have achieved nothing, his studies would indicate that some construction project teams have realised significant improvements in site productivity during the last five years.
His research identifies project teams that have reduced system installation times to less than 10% of conventionally accepted timeframes. "Further reductions are easily in reach," said Hawkins. To do this there must be more use of components that fit together easily on site and greater use of sub-systems and assemblies created off site.
Successful project teams were prepared to collaborate on changing conventional construction practice, rather than trying to manage or improve flawed, inappropriate or overly complex processes.
The most successful projects we monitored were carried out by integrated teams
Glenn Hawkins
Conversely, the projects with poor site productivity were characterised by hierarchies and subcontracts, trade demarcation and use of traditional products.
And so to the debate. The first session centred on design issues and Roderic Bunn chaired a panel of experts made up of Martin Long of developer Stanhope, Jerry Young of consultant Buro Happold and Jayne Hall of distributor BSS alongside Glenn Hawkins.
The first question came from Eric Ostrowski of EC Harris: "How do you design in off-site prefabrication?" Martin Long felt that "clients were key to any project initiative and off-site prefabrication is no different." While clients could point to the benefits of more work off site in terms of time and quality, more research needs to be carried out on the cost benefits.
Jerry Young thought that the key thing is to consider off-site possibilities at feasibility stage and not at design stages. "There is a lack of strategic thinking in many construction projects," said Young. "The ACE and RIBA Conditions of Work are not in tune with modern construction methods."
Neil Burns of FaberMaunsell wondered whether prefabrication and productivity were enhanced by standard solutions. "We need greater standardisation and a rationalisation of sizes," thought Hawkins.
Attention turned to what sort of selection and procurement procedures should be put in place. "Enlightened clients bring in their contractors early," said Young, "but not many projects are done that way. In Europe, contractors are brought in early and they have their own designers on board to take things further. That way you get their experience of buildability and productivity but you can still get lump sum cost certainty." Young thought that the UK market was very "consultant-driven" and doesn't allow the contractor into it.
Andy Ford of Fulcrum Consulting, who posed the question to the panel, responded with his experiences. "The contractor needs to bring with them the knowledge of their various subcontractors – not all do."
Given the focus on integrated teams in the recent Accelerating change report, it was not surprising to see the issue raised here. "There is an Alzheimer's effect in construction," thought Martin Long, "and each job does turn out differently."
Long put it down to the lack of consistent teams but argued that it is individual team players not companies that are important.
If teams adopt best practice, productivity improvements will flow very quickly
Alan Crane
"The most successful projects we monitored were carried out by integrated teams," said Glenn Hawkins. "There are a lot of people in construction not investing in change. The money is there – it's just that they are so inefficient they are are wasting the money that could be invested."
Many m&e contractors will have felt that the recent spate of on-line bidding is a return to the bad old days of Dutch auctioning, with little chance to put their case for value-added solutions. Mandy Newson-Webb of Trane asked the panel how they saw this practice fitting in with Rethinking Construction?
Jayne Hall of BSS argued that it was only a small part of the e-commerce picture and thought that selecting partners and working in teams is where the real cost savings will be made.
Glenn Hawkins went one further. "With 9% of the working day lost collecting or waiting for tools and equipment, whether you can buy cheaper is neither here or there in comparison with lost labour time – labour accounts for 25% of costs."
Martin Long thought reverse auction on-line bidding "an awful way to go. We need an industry that is healthy and these processes make profits even lower. The low bid has always been the enemy."
The second session moved to the construction phase with Glenn Hawkins joined on the panel by Kevin Burrows of specialist trade contractor Gardner, Paul Sims of Bovis Lend Lease and Alan Crane.
Hawkins listed some impressive stats from the projects monitored during the productivity study: collaborative working at Stansted Airport had delivered mechanical installation times that were nearly ten times faster than BSRIA's best practice rates for traditional methods.
At Christ Church Court, the project team reduced workforce time management delays to 2% of available time; the comparable figure in BSRIA's 1997 study was 19%.
John Packer of John Packer Associates wanted to know whether the panel thought that construction programmes were realistic. Kevin Burrows put forward a common complaint when he said that it doesn't matter whether or not you are prefabricating if the trade contractors' time has diminished because the structure has gone up late.
Source
Electrical and Mechanical Contractor
Postscript
For copies of BSRIA's Site productivity improvements report, contact BSRIA on 01344 426511.
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