Planning is key to productivity
The main contractor should have a timeline of project stages planned well in advance, with a full inventory of what materials and tools are going to be required at each stage.
Being able to effectively manage the flow of materials from source to site allows for a number of advantages:
- Significant savings and reduction of waste. Planning allows for materials to be on site every day as needed so that the construction team can work to maximum productivity. On-site logistical planning means that all materials are stored appropriately and are easy to locate. Again this speeds up the project and improves efficiency. A clean site is a safe site – good logistical planning avoids any clutter and is better organized, with knock-on benefits for health and safety.
To keep a construction site productive good planning is key. The general contractor has to create a timeline for each stage of the project far in advance of the project’s start. The plan must include a total inventory of materials, equipment, and tools needed for each stage of the project. When you effectively manage materials from their source to your site you enjoy the following advantages.
Waste reduction = Savings.
Planning in advance helps ensure that the right materials are on site every day so that construction crews can work without interruption. Logistical planning also means that materials are stored appropriately, easy to locate, and easy to move. This also speeds up the project through improved efficiency. Logistical planning helps a site maintain order. When a site is organized and tidy there are important benefits to project efficiency and worker health and safety.
Regular, on-time deliveries
An essential part of logistical preparation for a construction project is in choosing the most capable and reliable partners to provide the source materials. They need to be thinking along the same wavelength and be capable of following instructions accurately as there’s more to this role than loading a truck with the days/weeks’ worth of supplies. The best logistical planners will request that the truck is loaded in a precise order so that the most needed materials are the first to be unloaded, allowing the rest of the construction team to press on with work. A good partner will appreciate this.
How Logistics Works on a Construction Site
Logistics is about the movement of materials and equipment from where they originate to where the workforce needs them. This material and equipment need to arrive on time and undamaged. A simple illustration of logistics for construction sites is moving precast concrete from the plant it is made into the site. Also, when delivered, a crane will be needed to hoist the precast panels into position. So, the material is the precast panels, the equipment is a hoisting crane, and there is the crew that will use them. Getting all three components to the same place, at the same time, is what logistics does.
Logistics has a significant impact on profitability too. If the crane isn’t on site when it is supposed to be, installation crews for the precast panels are idle. They are getting their hourly wages even though the lack of a crane prohibits them from working. This kind of snafu is unprofitable.
Moreover, when it comes to construction, a delay in one aspect of the job can have far-reaching effects on job completion. If panels are late for installation, the crews that follow – electricians, plumbers, drywall erectors, and other trades may also be delayed.
What needs to be on a Logistic Plan
- Deliveries and Parking
- Planned Equipment Utilization + Staging Location
- Site Office
- Utilities | Permanent + Temporary
- Access & Exit Routes
- Temporary Fencing
- Phasing of Areas
- Dumpster locations
- Concrete washout areas
