Construction Labor Budget - Alternate Perspective

Improving craft labor productivity in construction will significantly reduce risk while providing a long-term competitive advantage for the contractor.

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It will provide job security and opportunities for every member of the team from the apprentice on the front-line through the senior management.  

Field Productivity: Your Project Budget an Alternate Perspective. Invoice representing the impacts of minimization.

For most contractors time spent on actual installation is less than 65% of the day.  The labor studies that form the foundation for the estimating unit databases we all use provide details for how time is spent in the field.  

As contractors focus on creating the “Perfect Day” for their field they must look at every step in their value stream focusing on minimizing all work that does not directly add value to the customer.

Sometimes it is important to backup and look at this non-installation time from the project level rather than seeing it as embedded in every labor unit detail.  This perspective allows you to make bigger decisions impacting productivity including:


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Construction Labor Budget - Alternate Perspective
Field labor is the often the biggest variable on a construction project - making it the biggest risk and opportunity....

Construction Labor Budget - Alternate Perspective
Field labor is the often the biggest variable on a construction project - making it the biggest risk and opportunity....

Levels of Improvement: Start with the Foundation
Every process in your business including field productivity will go through three levels of improvement: From predictable to productive to scalable. Trying to skip levels is the surest way to slow down improvements across the company.
General Mattis and Making Speed Part of Your Culture
The concepts of speed, harmony, commander’s intent, and leadership form the bedrock of General Mattis’s philosophy. Make speed your competitive advantage in your career, on your project, and as a contractor.
Degree of Discretionary Time with Growth in Role Levels and Business Size
The degree of discretionary time that someone has in doing their job grows with their role level - for example from crafts person to VP of Operations. For similar roles, that time decreases with company growth as the job roles become more tightly defined.