Overcoming 5 Challenges in Construction Execution: Keeping Projects On Time and Under Budget
This article is part 2 of a series addressing the following 5 common challenges in executing complex construction projects:
This article looks at how implementing new digital solutions helps meet and exceed both scheduling and budgetary targets, ensuring successful project outcomes.
The Problem: Time and Money Overruns
In the realm of construction execution, EPC contractors and operators face a significant challenge – the ability to execute projects on schedule and within budget. The majority of projects in this sector tend to overrun, often deviating from their planned schedules by a staggering 29 percent and exceeding their budgets by 80 percent.
These figures underscore the severity of the problem, and it becomes even more pronounced as project scope and complexity increase. Whether it's navigating convoluted upgrades and maintenance projects or managing high-value capital projects, staying on track both in terms of time and budget can feel like an uphill battle.
The reliance on paper-based systems and labor-intensive processes only exacerbates the situation, making it difficult to achieve project targets. This inefficiency leads to excess costs, lost productivity and a general lack of resiliency. Shockingly, the simple act of filing paperwork alone can consume roughly 5 percent of operational budgets.
For industries operating offshore, the use of paper-based systems demands up to 85 percent more person-hours. Those who cling to paper-based processes find themselves spending three times more time on operations and maintenance tasks than originally forecasted. Time, as they say, is money. Moreover, human errors invariably result in lost information when everything is paper-based, significantly impacting an organization's ability to pivot and respond flexibly and proactively.
This lack of resilience makes reliance on paper an increasingly risky business model, unveiling the paradox of those who persist with outdated working methods. A sobering statistic reveals that a staggering 70 percent of businesses would fail within three weeks if a natural disaster, such as a fire or flood, were to destroy their paper records.
In this digital age, solutions abound that can supplant paper and manual work systems, controlling expenditure, managing productivity and making businesses more resilient.
The Solution: Digital Construction Management Tools for Successful Project Outcomes
To ensure that construction execution projects stay on track, it is imperative to equip teams with the necessary tools, equipment, materials and information at the right time and in the right place. This holds true for everyone involved, from onsite workers to managerial and executive levels. It's crucial that all stakeholders have access to accurate, complete and real-time information to ensure seamless scheduling and logistics.
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The journey toward ROI-enhancing transformation begins by digitizing systems and digitalizing processes for improved efficiency, accuracy and forecasting. Adopting technological tools eliminates time lags, inaccuracies and confusion, enabling staff to make evidence-based decisions from the outset, as well as to proactively anticipate bottlenecks before they arise.
Sophisticated digital tools not only reduce room for error but also grant all team members access to real-time project, activity, facility and materials information at any time and from anywhere. These tools bring a myriad of other benefits to the table.
The Bottom Line: Digital Construction Execution for Successful Project Delivery
EPC contractors dealing with construction execution projects, which often exceed their budgeted values, must embrace new ways of working to achieve favorable outcomes. This isn't just about financial considerations, there are reputational and sustainability elements at stake as well.
Staying competitive necessitates a drive for increased efficiencies while fostering transparent, provable and accurate communications. Additionally, the ability to predict potential bottlenecks and other pinch points well in advance contributes to overall project coordination and cooperation.
Ultimately, it's the outcome that matters most. Embracing new tools and technologies while phasing out paper and other outdated systems is the way forward to ensure reputable, quality project work that meets and exceeds time and budgetary constraints.
This article is also published here.
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