How do you handle conflicts and disputes arising from coordination drawings review and approval?

Setting up a team atmosphere is the best approach I have found to keep a project on budget and schedule and the best way to resolve issues that arise. Go into the construction phase with the attitude that nothing is perfect, and we all have the goal to create a great project together. Problems and issues that arise are tackled and solved together. Never discount the experience of a contractor. I've learned a lot from contractors over the years.

As previous comment. Plus total transparency between all parties with constructive comments and thinking aloud being encouraged for opinion, debate and collaboration. On too many larger projects with multiple agencies/ stakeholders there are hidden agendas and a few whom will try and “win” over conversations at the expense of others.

Complete transparency with all parties. Problems; seek a solution not a candidate for blame. Take on board manufacturers, suppliers, sub-contactors and main contractors input early on in stages 3 & 4 or earlier. Avoid "fire fighting" solutions on site.

It is important to understand what are the communication protocols and channels for coordinating with stakeholders and team members. Some of this may already be outlined in the project specifications and teams must follow that to handle these issues optimally.

We document everything including a summary of a phone or site discussion. We jokingly refer to it as “People’s Exhibit A”. The idea is that everyone is moving forwards together towards a shared goal; having everyone on the same page is crucial. There are design gaps and ad-hoc site conditions which need resolution and an SI (site instruction) is usually sufficient to capture and resolve it. On one site there were many ad-hoc changes discussed with subtrades but were not documented or otherwise shared amongst the other subs and so confusion and conflict arose. As a sub, it is hard to run a project well if one has to return to the site every day to see what got changed without a communique.

Just act crazy, start smashing things and it will be easier just to agree with you than argue ?? Because well-timed joke can help ease tension in meetings, but be cautious not to undermine the seriousness of the discussions.

The above are good broad guidelines for dealing with coordination. The variables are money, manpower, and scheduled time. Money is tight and sometimes neither the GC or designer want to go back to the client for more money, and so it is passed along to the subtrades to digest. Unfortunately this can bankrupt a sub or sour the relationship enough that the sub will not work with the GC/Designer again. For coordination there are sites like Procore, but they tend to be little more than a shared drive with actionable comments. If used well it resolves issues, if not used well then it can become a passive-aggressive means to say “the drawing’s in Procore, do I have to tell you to look at it?”. Timely communication is the key, as is listening.