The construction industry plays a vital role in stimulating the growth of a nation’s economy. However, the industry is often criticized for low productivity and quality systems. In order to drive productivity, many companies implement integrated project controls to ensure better performance and consistency of construction projects. Client satisfaction is an important criterion for measuring the performance of a project.
To measure the progress of a project, several activities serve as incredibly valuable packages of information. There are ways to express the advancement of an activity in progress. The number of days required to complete an activity, completion of an activity in terms of time, and work units are traditional methods of measuring progress.
Performance measurement is a systematic process of evaluating performance relative to pre-defined goals. It helps contractors, project owners and other stakeholders determine where they are and where they are heading in terms of performance. Measurement process can help identify stagnation and shortfalls while guiding steady advancement towards defined milestones. Time, quality, and cost are three major components of project performance. Schedule, budget, the quality of workmanship, safety requirements, and environmental performance are some of the important variables used to measure project progress.
Fast-paced projects that involve multiple shifts may demand daily progress reports. Large construction projects such as industrial plants and earth dams may require reporting frequency on a monthly basis. It is important to consider that formal reporting may be carried out monthly or weekly, critical operations may need to be tracked on a more frequent basis.
Controlling construction projects is about controlling their cost and time in an effort to meet the planned targets. The management team requires timely data that shows the status of the project. This is why accurate construction progress measurement has been considered critical to the success of a large project.
The ability to represent as-planned and as-built progress discrepancies, and effectively communicate progress information is considered a key component for successful project management. Without real-time accurate information, it is hardly possible to make corrective decisions in a timely manner.
The traditional formats of reporting such as textual progress reports and progress curves may not be sufficient to properly communicate project progress. These monitoring methods also require extensive data extraction and manual data collection which can waste precious time.
Measuring progress on construction sites is largely an inconsistent practice. Project managers can replace paper-based reports with advanced tools but the assessment remains a time-consuming process. The experience of the person who is reporting also plays a key role. Daily field reports do not often produce any actionable data.
Inadequate project control systems and lack of accountability result in deficient performance management. It takes approximately 5 to 10 days from the time a problem occurs to the time it is reported. The loss of that much time makes it difficult for project managers to devise any corrective control strategy in a timely manner. It is not advisable to end up reacting to actual delays as opposed to proactively addressing them.
How we can help
At Specialty Plant Services (SPS), we deliver independent field progress measurement services to large construction projects in Canada. As a reputable project controls provider, we use 4D construction simulations and presentations to deliver highly effective reporting and progress measurement services. Contact us for more information!