Planning for Project Managing your Building
Project Management through Planning is the key to any successful building and will help avoid costly problems and delays 
If there is one thing the building industry is notable for, it is overpromising on delivery and always, but always being late!
You plan as a matter of course in your business, but how systematic is it? How many times have materials or people not shown up on time - and could the problem have been avoided if you had organised and planned far enough ahead? How much does it cost you while you wait?
The secret to good project management is to be able to think ahead and know:• who will be involved• what materials are needed and when• anticipate possible problems or hold ups• identify critical time related issues (Milestones) that must be completed before you can proceed to the next stage
Because construction requires the integration of numerous trades in your building, the management of subcontractors is an essential part of project management. As main contractor it is YOU who is totally responsible for all planning and project management and profits can easily be eroded through wasting time where no or poor planning has occurred.
The system we recommend using is the Project Management Bar Chart. This Bar Chart lists all the activities associated with the project and the time each step takes. Each item is movable, so you can factor delays in on an ongoing basis.
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Here’s how to put one together...
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Building Your Project Management Bar ChartAssuming a house with a concrete slab and following the construction sequence as closely as possible, first build a list of steps consisting of the following (you can modify to suit your own needs):
1. site establishment
2. site boundaries and building profile
3. boxing, DPC and reinforcing to perimeter foundations
4. services under-floor
5. concrete to perimeter foundations
6. fill, boxing ,DPC, reinforcing to floor slab and thickenings
7. concrete to floor slab
8. erect pre-nailed wall framing
9. erect pre-nailed roof trusses
10. external trim
11. roof cladding
12. spouting
13. external wrap including preparing openings
14. external windows and doors
15. external cladding
16. external painting
17. complete internal wall framing
18. ceiling battens
19. plumbing/piping
20. electrical wiring
21. door & frames
22. Internal lining
23. kitchen installation
24. fixtures and fittings
25. plumbing fittings
26. electrical fittings
27. external drainage
28. internal trim
29. painting
30. landscaping
31. cleanup
The range, detail and order of activities will depend on the design and construction of the house, but each sub-contractor should be identified as a separate activity so these can clearly be seen fitting into the programme. More than one step may need to be completed before a specific activity is started, and several activities often can start at the same time.
Now estimate how many days to allow for each of these activities. Make allowances for things going wrong - you must be reasonably generous in your approach to this number-crunching exercise and not use the ideal number of days.
At first this process may not be that accurate. It is not a guessing game, but the more experience you have the more accurate will be the outcome.
Using all this information it's now time to start the actual planning so:
1. Enter the activities on the graphed bar chart (as per the sample, on page XX), listing the steps vertically down the left-hand column
.2. Note the number of days per activity in the next vertical column. Excel (or any spreadsheet software) is ideal for this, is easy to set up, easy to adjust as the situation changes. Each box across the page represents one working day.
3. Starting with step 1 and working through each step, block out the boxes for the number of days allocated to complete the work. (You will need accurate time estimates from your sub-contractors)
4. Set your start dates for each of the following steps through the list.
You can start to see when the next step can start well in advance and alert your subcontractors accordingly, adjusting each step in the process by monitoring daily. Overlaps and concurrent work can be shown on your chart and it highlights both conflicts in activities and timings and resources.
Make sure you hold your sub-contractors and suppliers to account. If they say they’re going to be there on a specific day and time, make sure they are. Note when they don’t show up. Now you can start to monitor who your underperforming subcontractors are.
Now you can see them before they happen and you’re on top of your project and managing it!
Note: Activities won’t necessarily be finished in a specified timeframe just because you want it to and it’s better to be honest with clients on how long things will take rather than lie and have to front up about it later. Remember – your clients need to plan their whole lives around this project.
While your lines should generally indicate the length of time needed to complete each activity, in some cases there is no essential start and finish time required -- for example, external drainage. In such cases, the line on your chart should show the earliest possible start time, and most importantly the latest completion time for that activity. However, on that line it is also essential to show the number of days required to complete the activity so the extent of the work involved is always visible.
Note the latest ordering dates for any prefabricated work such as pre-nailed wall framing, roof trusses, metal windows and doors, timber doors, kitchen joinery, internal fittings and fixtures.
Also identified on your bar chart should be the BCA Inspections, as these will normally be linked to the completion of activities and play a very significant part in your project management of the building.
What you have now is an easily understood visual representation of the job. A copy should be on site for all parties to view (showing updates), and is a lever to make everyone involved accountable in achieving your targets.
Every day on a building site is different. Using a chart like this helps give:1. An easily understood timeframe and sequence for each step in the building project2. A more accurate estimation of the timeframe for the whole project3. A good basis for letting you know whether a job is worth taking on4. A good method for identifying poor performing suppliers and sub-contractors so you can sharpen them up or ship them out