Zero option

How do you set about delivering from scratch an office block with zero defects? Add to this a client who wants to build “the best office in Watford” and you get an idea of the challenge that faced the project team building the Radius Watford office development. The right first time quality approach included the elimination of both cosmetic and fabric defects and a customer focus that related to the client and the potential end-user.

Defects were classified as either workmanship or design issues. The nature of workmanship defects meant they were relatively easy to rectify; design defects however raised the issue of ownership. The creation of a defects database in the preconstruction stage was used to identify potential problems. Wates Construction assembled the data log from an existing database and experience of known defects in this type of job. Input relating to the m&e side came from consultant WSP, in the form of identifying common themes in defects from previous projects. The database was then used to determine what buildability workshops followed.

A further classification of brief defect was identified. This covered differences between the client’s brief and the engineers’ specification. As Tom Smith from WSP noted: “There is a need to involve the client more so the designers and contractors can understand what the client is expecting and manage those expectations.”

A day-long forum was held to find out why defects occur and encourage supply chain feedback. A questionnaire formed the basis of the day, which was attended by more than thirty supply chain partners.

A team meeting, held at the preconstruction stage, established accountabilities. This included the main contractor, the subcontractors and the suppliers. As Tom Smith highlighted, “Defects occur because those doing the work don’t fully understand what they are doing. Either they haven’t been briefed, or they haven’t been involved in the process.”

Take the installation of the suspended ceilings. It was discovered that the ceiling fixer would put up the ceiling rods, the grilles and diffusers and the ductwork installer would fit the plenum boxes. However the plenum boxes would often interfere with the already installed ceiling rods. As a result it was decided that the ceiling contractor would also install the plenum boxes. Eliminating the problem was made easier as the discussions included people from WSP and m&e contractor Haden Young, as well as the ductwork contractor, fan coil unit supplier and ceiling fixer.

Gains were to be had from supplier involvement. The m&e contractors and suppliers, as well as the other trades, went through the specification to get a clear understanding of what was expected. It gave the opportunity to highlight any conflicts in the design.

Although the design responsibility on the m&e side rested with WSP, Tom Smith believes that they were able to provide a much better design because of the early input of Haden Young and the suppliers. It wasn’t a case of the contractor saying, “that’s wrong, that’s wrong, and that’s wrong”. It was about them using their experience and saying, “look, we’ve done it that way before and there was a problem. Why not consider it this way?” At the end of the day both parties understood the difficulties and the contractor could look at ways to mitigate problems.

Toolbox talks were extended to educate site workers about the aims of the project. Often used for highlighting matters such as health and safety, these were adopted to induce everybody coming onto site in terms of the zero defects philosophy. With the vision mainly at the client and senior management level it was necessary to translate it to those carrying out work on-site. Commitment and respect of other peoples work were instilled in workers’ minds.

So at the end of the day was Radius Watford defect-free? No is the answer.

The likelihood of achieving zero defects in a building of this scale is debatable. The industry relies on the interaction of many different people and trades, and no two projects are identical. However it was possible to eradicate a lot of the defects. To his knowledge, Tom Smith doesn’t recall any design defects, and to this can be added a considerable improvement in workmanship compared to a similar job.

Getting suppliers and subcontractors on-board at an early stage is one area for improvement. Benefits can also be drawn from having a team of designers, contractors, subcontractors and suppliers who have worked together before.

WSP and Haden Young had completed various jobs with Guardian Properties before and knew one another and the client’s objectives. This in turn highlights another need in the quest, namely zero defects in relationships.

What this team needs now is another similar project to benchmark the performance achieved at the Radius development.