Precise Documentation with Locationbased Scheduling
“What is saved is earned,” says an old proverb. In just 5 minutes in the construction trailer, Kristine Ann Barnes from Niras averted an additional invoice of 85,000 DKK for the project from a trade contractor by having her location-based schedule and site documentation 100% in order. Accurate recordings reduce conflicts on the construction site, allowing room for good collaboration where everyone can meet their targets.
Heavyweight Scheduling Expert
First mover with location-based scheduling Kristine Ann Barnes is a heavyweight in scheduling. She was a “first mover” in the use of location-based scheduling on a construction project back in 2006 but truly started in 2008 when she, along with a few colleagues, introduced and implemented the method at MT Højgaard. Since then, she has continued working on planning and optimizing processes in construction with several major contractors and now works as a process consultant with a focus on location-based scheduling at Niras.
The most important tool is location-based scheduling
The most important tool in her digital toolbox Over the years, Kristine has been present on hundreds of Danish construction sites. The most important tool in her digital toolbox is location-based scheduling and the new app Exicute from Exigo for site documentation. On her LinkedIn profile, Kristine describes some of the advantages of location-based scheduling: “Location-based scheduling results in better mutual understanding and thus fewer conflicts during the execution phase. It provides a much better overview of the construction process than any other tool.”
Better workflow, eliminate waste, and find optimization opportunities
Kristine continues: “We achieve better workflow, eliminate wasted time, and find optimization opportunities. There’s no project where it can’t be applied! It fits naturally with residential construction, but it also works in complex commercial construction with few repetitions, and usually beyond expectations!”
Well proven app for progress registration
In recent months, Kristine has conducted site registration at the Hans Knudsens Plads construction site for Gefion Group using the new app Tactplan Control. The registrations are sent from the app back to Kristine’s location-based schedule in the Schedule Planner software (replaced by Tactplan Schedule).
Site progress has been a challenge in the past
“I used the follow-up form from Schedule Planner (replaced by Tactplan Schedule and Tactplan Control) for site registration and construction meetings. Red = behind. Green = finished. I printed it all out and carried it with me along with a floor plan where I noted my registrations. In the evening, when I entered my new data on my PC in the office, I must admit that I often sat there and thought, ‘Oops… Did I actually check the ventilation on the fifth floor?’ And then I would either guess or drive back to the construction site to check again. With the new app, I enter site progress while I’m on-site.”
Wild West in Construction
In another construction project, Kristine experienced a trade contractor rushing in with an additional invoice of 85,000 DKK. He claimed to have lost that money because the electrician before him was not finished on time, so he and his crew had to go home.
Kristine laughs: “The construction site can be the wild west sometimes. Individual trade contractors want to invoice as much as possible – as quickly as possible. And that’s okay; that’s how the game goes. ‘If it works, it works.“
Documentation is key
“I retrieved my schedule and site registrations. He claimed it was about the 1st floor in block A the week before. But here I could document to him that the electrician had actually finished 5 days earlier, so there was plenty of time and space for him and his crew. But he didn’t give up easily and continued to argue. So, it was the 2nd floor in block B instead. But again, I could document that the previous contractor had finished on time, and there was time and space for him. I confronted him with the ‘gaps’ where he should have been on the construction site, and it turned out that the trade contractor and his crew had been on another construction site those days.”
Accurate recordings and documentation
Accurate recordings and documentation put me in a very strong position “The time when I make my registration is automatically recorded in the app. This means that when the painter, for example, comes and says he’s behind because the carpenter wasn’t finished on time, I can look at the app and tell him that the carpenter was finished on time last Wednesday when I made my site registration at 11:05. I can show him pictures of the finished floor and at the same time show him the consequences of his delay for the move-in date. That type of documentation puts me in a very strong position as a process leader. And when the documentation is clear, there are far fewer discussions about site progress, promoting good collaboration on-site.”
The good flow
Kristine talks about an episode with a carpenter on another construction project. He was everywhere at once, and he didn’t care about Kristine’s location-based schedule. He had workers in all 30 apartments simultaneously, and it had significant consequences for the bricklayers and painters who came after him.
Random work is problematic
“The carpenter thought he was wildly efficient; he had workers spread across the entire construction site. But in the big picture, he was far from efficient. On the contrary. The good rhythm, the good flow, and the good collaboration between trades were destroyed. Both the bricklayer and the painter tried their best to adjust their work to the carpenter, but they were extremely frustrated because he was everywhere, and his work was only half-finished.”
Transparency and good collaboration
“When working with location-based scheduling, everyone has to get on the same train. And when everyone does, it’s incredibly effective. With location-based scheduling and the Exicute app from Exigo, there’s less room for discussion. I have my documentation 100% in order, and if anyone is in doubt about anything, they can log in and follow along, providing transparency in progress.”
Good working Environment on-site
“And that’s great! Then we can focus on doing a good job together, something we can all be proud of, in a good working environment on-site where everyone can meet their targets. I highly recommend location-based scheduling and Exicute. The investment in software and the app quickly pays off. I ‘earned’ 85,000 for the project in 5 minutes with the trade contractor in the construction trailer, and that’s just one of many examples.”
Would you like to learn more?
Did you get inspired by Kristine Ann Barne‘ method for planning, management, and follow-up?
Reach out via email, and let’s set up a time for a one-on-one online introduction to Tactplan. Engage in a conversation, ask any questions you may have, and explore how incorporating these effective methods could benefit your construction management.
Contact: Info@tactplan.com
