Overcoming 5 Challenges in Construction Execution: Informed Decision-Making
This article continues our 5-part series that shines a spotlight on how to tackle the following challenges in construction execution:
Here, we focus on the third obstacle: making informed decisions throughout an entire project lifecycle. Successful construction projects delivered safely, on time, under budget and with reduced carbon footprints realize the highest returns on investment.
To achieve this, the ability to make informed, evidence-based decisions throughout is essential so as to premeditate and practively correct for problems. However, managing information for completion, accuracy and accessibility in the face of complicated engineering, technical challenges and diverse stakeholder interests is hard. The solution is to adopt new digital tools and ways of working.
THE PROBLEM: MAKING INFORMED DECISIONS THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE PROJECT LIFECYCLE
Coordinating disciplines, teams and schedules in the absence of a unified source of project information can compromise effective decision-making in construction execution and during handovers. Lost or inaccurate information is a product of poor information management and results in lost time, lost money as well as compromising safety and other project outcomes.
These lost efficiencies are at least partially attributed to relying on paper-based systems to manage project execution and handover processes. Information gets lost. Archival information disappears. Transparency and accountability are compromised. Further, time spent searching for information is time lost.
By making the right decisions throughout a project’s lifecycle, activities occur safely and in sequence, streamlining project workflows. The ability to make proactive decisions revolves around information management.
What enables informed and proactive decision-making throughout a project’s lifecycle?
THE SOLUTION: A SINGLE SOURCE OF TRUTH
Existing systems that rely on paper and manual systems send workers running around to get hard-copy signatures, involve manual data entry into rudimentary systems and unnecessary transport. Such ways of working are inefficient, vulnerable to human error, piecemeal and often incompatible with one another.
Optimal information management before, during and after construction execution enables optimal project delivery. The ideal solution is to have one centralized digital system that operates as a single source of truth, collating all project information -- from materials to handover -- into a single, comprehensive, quality-assured and accessible system.
CONNECTED DELIVERY
A single system that stores and manages information from fabrication to work packs to joint integrity and integrates readily with existing systems optimizes project (and asset) ROI.
A more comprehensive version of this article was first published here.
To understand how adopting a single source of truth can help increase your project's bottom line, book a demo.