When it comes to turning profit in our industry, manpower is the name of the game. Time ontools needs to be consistent to ensure timely completion. In order to facilitate this, each trade has to have capacity and opportunity to come in and do the work. Waiting on other crews to finish and/or doing more work than necessary to “stay ahead” is only preventing a steady manpower cadence in the long run.
The success of any job requires a diligent focus on manpower – and not just making it happen but, rather, making it happen strategically. And this means smaller crews and smaller handoffs so we have capacity to reduce variance, increase productivity and decrease labor costs.
Constant and direct communication is the need. It’s the only thing that can prevent bottlenecks and ensure flow, by ensuring a steady stream to have confidence to plan for consistent and balanced manpower that improves direct work.
An Interactive Interface
What makes the necessity for an interactive interface so important? We, as an industry, can’t keep waiting for weekly meetings or even the marking up of Team Boards daily to measure our progress and guide our next steps. It just adds extra work. What we need is constant and direct communication between all the trade partners to enable the seamless handoffs along the Balanced Production Front (BPF). The BPF focuses trade communication on specifics that can be communicated in shorter conversations that come to the point with “yes” or “no” responses and the project status becomes almost “binary”.
The CFMX App was designed to do just this!
The FYI on BPF
Do you believe that smaller areas and smaller handoffs can meet the owner demand? This is the foundation for trusting the BPF and the ultimate answer to breaking our industry-wide “wait and see” attitude. Below is a simple matrix that points out the difference between a one-week handoff plan and a two-week handoff plan.
The secret sauce here is intentional focus on both flows: Process (handoffs) and operations (moving work zones). Progress must be assessed on a daily basis trade, tracked accurately and reported daily in order to ensure optimum results on any job performance.
With each trade completing each area at the same pace but handing the area over to the next trade in one week instead of two weeks, the project finishes 40% quicker.
This is what the CFMX app was designed to do for you!
Daily Download
It’s a daily status matrix that tracks every trade progression for you so progress so last-minute delays can be avoided, with the correct steps taken proactively (not reactively) to fix potential problems. See for yourself…
Full View Work View
With this interface, colors are used to track status progress, as well as provide the specific status of the work progressing through each trade handoff. And all without the need for weekly meetings or status downloads. Instead, everything is tracked and managed in real time via an easy, online interface that all trade partners have effortless access to.
The Full View option allows for viewing the entire CFMx to status the overall project and identify areas of delay or potential bottlenecks. To the right is the Work View, which is enlarged enough to allow touch screen manipulation and updates from the mobile handheld. A single tap will also allow for real-time workflow updates made by the trade partners and superintendents.
Drilling Down
After inspection, the Superintendent will then determine the status of the work to be started or finished and the CFMx either remains yellow or becomes green if finished.
Take a look…
Trade Partner Interface: Superintendent Interface:
Collaborator Update Screen Super Collaborator Update
With the CFMx app, trade partners own the handoffs and the No Flow Circle stays at bay indefinitely.
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