5. One step ahead planning

The biggest problem in construction site is “waiting”; that is result of bad planning. Sometimes weather will affect your work or similar factor that are beyond your possibility of control, your crew ability is always in your hands and is up to you to plan their tasks in order to finish the job in time with highest quality. That is why one step ahead planning is so important. Predicting the forces or factor that could affect the job or in other words productivity of the project must be taken into account earlier, so when they arrived you will be prepared to treat them and use them to improve productivity.

4. Improve communications.

Poor communication between supervisors and workers can result in unnecessary mistakes and redo work, causing productivity to suffer. With proper training, supervisors can learn how to communicate assignments to workers and ask the right questions to ensure they get it right the first time.

5. Take advantage of technology.

Web-based project management applications, scheduling software, and other technological innovations can boost productivity by speeding up communications, providing workers with the latest project information in real time and making the construction process more efficient.

6. Set realistic goals.

Performance-based incentives can be an effective tool for motivating workers and improving productivity. But it’s critical to set realistic goals. If workers feel that performance targets aren’t achievable, productivity may actually decline.

7. Pay attention to safety.

The most important reason to have a strong safety program is to prevent injuries. But good safety practices also reduce the delays and downtime associated with accidents on the job site.

8. Manage overtime.

Excessive overtime can result in fatigue, higher accident rates, absenteeism and worker turnover, all of which can hurt productivity. Proper planning, scheduling and supervision can help keep overtime to a minimum.Improving productivity is one of the most effective strategies a contractor can employ to boost its bottom line.

Here are methods how to increase productivity at construction site in order to increase the profit margins:

1. Coordinate effectively

The most important thing that construction company should always do is to completely analyze every single phase in the construction process in order to understand which are the points where productivity can be improved. They should start by measuring key factors and setting benchmarks. But all the analysis can be worth nothing if they do not have the right person to delegate the tasks. The company needs to find a way to motivate the workers and check if everything is going on according the plan, plus ensuring that the construction site would be completed in previously estimated time frame.

3. Conduct an activity analysis.

Spend some time monitoring activities on jobsites and analyzing the results. Often, this process will reveal opportunities to improve productivity. For example, better scheduling and logistics can reduce delays that result when workers have to wait for materials or equipment, or for other workers to complete their work. In many cases, solutions are surprisingly simple, such as finding a way to store materials, equipment or tools closer to the areas where they’re needed, or storing materials on wheels so they can be moved more easily.Strategies for reducing personal time — such as locating portable toilets closer to work areas — can also have a significant impact on productivity. On one high-rise project, a structural contractor reduced the amount of time it took for workers to have lunch by arranging for a sandwich shop to operate alongside the structure.

2. Focus on unproductive time.

Research by the Construction Industry Institute shows that craft workers typically spend less than half of their time on tasks. The remaining time is spent on unproductive activities, such as waiting for equipment and materials, waiting for instructions or waiting for work areas to be ready. If, for example, workers spend only 30% of their time on direct work, your greatest opportunity for productivity gains is to focus on the 70% of worker time spent off task. In other words, reducing the amount of time workers spend off task will produce greater benefits than attempting to improve their efficiency during the time they spend on task.

In an industry as labor-intensive as construction, few things can hurt a contractor’s profitability more than unproductive workers. Here are eight tips for improving productivity.

1. Don’t blame your workers. While it’s tempting to blame poor productivity on lazy workers, late starts and excessive breaks, the fact is that most construction workers strive to be productive. More often than not, poor productivity is the result of waste and inefficiencies that are within management’s control.