Whether you oversee a small scale business or a fully-fledged construction project, the responsibility that comes with being a manager can be daunting. Although the end product is a beauty to behold, the hard work the managers, architects, contractors, and laborers put in can be quite stressful. No doubt, construction managers have specific ways they do their work, but the below tips will help for an efficient workflow.
1. Use high-quality and appropriate tools.
In this line of work, there’s a wide variety of tools and equipment that can help you get the job done. However, it would help if you opted for the highest quality tools, appropriate for the work you’re doing. A technician can’t use a plumbing tool if you’re installing light fixtures, of course!
For example, Keyseater tooling is something you can’t do without. It’s a simple cutter used to cut slots or keyways into separate components to ensure that the two parts interlock and are appropriately oriented. This tool is top-rated in the construction industry, and there are different variations on the market aside from each popular cutting tool used to cut single keyways.
Companies like Leistritz Corp offer keyseater machines that are good for several hollows, internal splines, and even helix-shaped or coiled channels. They have variant machine models that permit several sizes of B axis rotary tables. Their keyseater functions are so dynamic that they can cut multiple grooves in a single position as well.
2. Get excellent and reliable plumbers.
Every building requires plumbing services. You should employ the services of a good and reliable plumber who won’t stall your construction progress. It’s best to research their background to ensure they have the years of experience to interpret your construction vision and make it a reality. If you’re lost on how to find a plumber in your vicinity, Google is your friend. Let’s say you live in Arvada—a quick search for ‘Plumber Arvada‘ will display a few reliable companies, such as FlatIrons Plumbing.
This father and son team have been in the plumbing business for about two decades. They offer great customer service and are always at the beck and call of their customers. Also, they deliver wonderfully on all their tasks and services. For the most part, they only receive good reviews from their customers and are five-star rated for their services. With the incredible work they do, it’ll be relatively easy and hassle-free for construction site managers to work with Arvada to solve any plumbing problem.
3. Monitor and maintain your tools.
Indeed, one person can’t have their eyes everywhere, but as a construction site manager, you should be able to keep track of your tools. You can’t have your tools go missing day in day out. That would make you incur more costs that you didn’t budget for, as you may have to replace the lost tools. This is why it would be best to create a system that can help you efficiently track your tools.
Asset Panda is one company that can help you in this aspect. They have a tool tracking system that helps you monitor all your equipment. This way, you’ll know which department of your site they belong to and even the tool’s condition. What’s more, their asset tracking experts can do a great job of advising you on keeping and managing your tools for better work efficiency. Regardless of the small tools at your Jobsite, once you have a barcode on each one you won’t be misplacing a single hammer anymore.
Even better is the fact they have many offers, discounts and free trials for current and new customers. Their system is so effective it saves you time, money, and stress. As a site manager, you’ll certainly benefit from their services.
4. Always have a plan, and stick to it.
It would help if you drew up a plan for each project as a construction manager. Your plans have to be precise—from the beginning to the end of the project. Each day, as you set out to work, you should have a goal to achieve and a way to track it. That’ll make your work as a site manager simpler.
You should also figure out how you want the project to turn out in the end, the tools and materials that’ll be needed, and the methods you’ll adopt. All these will ease your stress and ensure you finish your project faster.
5. Be organized and time conscious.
Time is money, as they say. Many people working on construction sites are paid by the hour or day. Construction site managers should manage their time properly and make sure that they take full advantage of the hours available during the working day. Both managers and workers should arrive at the site on time, work when they’re supposed to, and leave on time.
Managers should also ensure that they utilize all the resources available to them. It would help if you focused on important things first before attending to trivial stuff. It’s equally important that you follow your plan step by step. This way, you won’t have to return to a previous stage that gets missed due to disorganization.
6. Try to be humble and tolerable.
It’s often said that “we should first learn how to be a good follower in order to be a good leader.” Construction site managers are leaders and hence must be humble enough to work with others. There will be many other professionals working on the project with you. Some of them may be more qualified, educated, or have more experience in the job than you do and vice versa.
Indeed, being a construction manager is just one aspect of the business, so it makes sense to show humility in your dealings. It’ll also help if you can tolerate the divergent views coming in and bring all the various workers together to work harmoniously. Also, be mindful of the way you address your workers. Don’t be that person who’s always spewing fire at them. You must be firm but patient with them to establish yourself as a respectable and fair boss.
7. Keep in mind that safety always comes first.
Construction sites are sometimes a death trap if neglected and not well managed. Imprecise tasks and insufficient planning of the work, unclear responsibilities, and a lack of supervision all increase the risk of injury. On top of this, different weather and climatic conditions harbor increased dangers when working on construction sites. For these reasons and more, site managers have to be very careful in their dealings and ensure everything is in place to prevent accidents and injuries (for both the workers and the general public).
Managers should look out for any deficiencies in the work equipment used such as damaged cables, defective ladders or incomplete scaffolding, electrical hazards as well as fire and explosion hazards. Moreover, planning, appropriate measures, and regular training counteract such dangers. All this should be done to keep workers safe.
8. Be sure to read and understand the contract well.
A contract is a binding document between a company and a customer. As a manager, you need to make sure the contract is valid. It’s also vital to properly read the contract to understand all it entails—so that you’re not caught unaware in the middle of your project by specific clauses.
Be sure to read contract documents thoroughly and seek clarification on whatever you don’t understand. More importantly, don’t wait for problems and misunderstandings to arise before referring to the contract. Please read it as soon as you receive it.