Dr f Dejahang ( BSc CEng, BSc (Hons) Construction Mgmt, MSc, MCIOB, PhD)

1. 056 CONSTRUCTION PRODUCTIVITY-PART 2 Dr f Dejahang (BSc CEng, BSc (Hons) Construction Mgmt, MSc, MCIOB, PhD)

2. CONSTRUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Productivity level have a direct impact on the macro-economic success or failure of modern industrialised economies. • The industry employs a large number of skilled, semi skilled and un-skilled workers.

3. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • The industry deals with a wide range of building and civil engineering projects. • Improving construction productivity depends on many factors. • its activity also provides work for the economic sector.

5. PRODUCTIVITY MODEL • site/project manager Characteristics • management Factors • resource Management • management Systems • labour Characteristics • waste on site • delay and disruption • motivating Factors • hygiene Factors

6. CONSTRUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • The role of project manger: • Mobilising resources • Remove constraints and difficulties from the site To study construction productivity is complex and difficult. • Construction companies find it difficult, or are unable to study the level of productivity within their organisation. • Mainly, because of the limitations.

7. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY Common failures within the construction industry are often manifest in: • cost and time overruns; • poor quality workmanship; • repetitive work; • wastage on site and at the head office; • idleness within the workforce;

8. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • incorrect estimating; • poor planning; • lack of good quality product; • safety management-site safety and the level of accidents; • Claims; • Disputes; • poor quality machinery on site.

9. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Harvey and Ashworth (1998) have investigated that, despite Britain’s improved productivity, • West Germany, France and Italy are 104%, 41% and 12% more productive than Britain respectively.

10. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • In 2008 only 2% difference in productivity amongst top 100 firms. • Amongst average and small UK construction firms, up to 45% more manpower is required to complete a project compared to other European Countries.

11. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Dispute in February 2009. • The use of foreign contractors and skilled labour force on UK civil engineering construction projects. • Lord Mandelson appointed Mark Gibson (The Whitehall and Industry Group)

12. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • To review the UK construction productivity and make recommendations. • Larger index numbers indicate poorer productivity. • For example, relative to US Gulf Coast, UK projects have 11% worse productivity.

13. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Table1.01 shows comparative labour productivity between years 1998 to 2008. • US Gulf Coast 1.00 • Germany 1.05 •  Continental Europe 1.06  • The Netherland 1.08 • UK 1.11 • France 1.20

14. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • In his report Mark Gibson compared the productivity level amongst several European countries. • With USA construction contractors • His investigation showed that UK productivity has improved compared to earlier reports.

15. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Countries represented in Continental Europe were France, Germany, The Netherlands, Italy, Spain and Ireland. • However, to compare with earlier report UK productivity has been improving over the past 10 years.

16. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Q 1) Today’s Productivity level in West Germany, France and Britain are? 1-5% difference. • The construction industry employs more than 7% of Europe’s workforce and represents approximately 12% of GDP.

17. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • The world economic forum 2009 ranks Britain 76th out of 134 nations on productivity/ efficiency of public sector. • UK is behind countries such as: • Greece • Ethiopia • Mozambique.

18. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY Sir Michael Latham also identified: • potential for cost reduction in his report entitled ‘Constructing the Team’ (HMSO July 1994). • A potential 30% saving was also strongly advocated.

19. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY There are five basic resources used to produce goods. These are: • Capital • Land • Materials • Plant/ Machinery • Manpower

20. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY Use of high quality management techniques such as; • Planning • Scheduling • money invested in the project

21. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY Including: • improved Communication • efficient use of labour • efficient use of material and equipment Use other methods of construction productivity improvement such as: • Lean construction;

22. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Last planner system; • JIT & Quality Management Systems; • Construction Productivity-Logistics; • Productivity Improvement; • ISO 9000, ISO 9001, ISO1400; • Quality Assurance.

23. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Sir Michael Latham set up the Working Group II. • To find out what steps are required to improve Productivity. • The board agreed that a single solution to the problem is unlikely to be found. • The board concluded that some important tried and tested measures had already been taken. • These methods had proven to be successful.

24. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY Their recommendation suggested that issues such as: • Value Engineering (VE) • Life cycle costing • Pre-fabrication • Standardisation Which will improve the level of productivity.

25. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY Group II recommended the promotion of other techniques not commonly used in the UK. This included: • Total quality management • Total quality control and bench- marking

26. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY Project mangers can also improve construction productivity by: • The use of best practice productivity data which has been collected carefully and accurately. These information should cover areas such as: • Tendering; • planning processes; • The use of IT – based information management systems (MIS) for material procurement.

27. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Training site workers so that they become multi – skilled craftsmen. • The introduction of post qualification training on new products. • Methods and time management techniques. • The promotion of pre-fabrication and assembly.

28. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY Some researchers give reasons for the decline in productivity due to: • A big step in communication channels; • Often on large construction projects where there is a lack of a clear communication method.

29. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • The time that members of the management team spend on site obtaining data. • Writing reports and sending to different departments. • All these paper work diverts them from giving adequate attention to managing the project.

30. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Over looking areas on the construction site which need improvement during the construction period. • Lack of a ‘team effort culture’, which would bind all levels of the workforce together. • The lack of a speedy feedback system.

31. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Technological Factors-The smaller construction firms are less adaptable. • They are slower to accept the arrival of new technology. • They delay the Policy of increased mechanisation on site. • In general they are less competitive.

32. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • BSRIA in mid-90th has identified that the UK construction labour force lags behind other countries in terms of: • Skills; • Salaries; • working conditions; • Job motivation.

33. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • The report also claims that UK workers loose around 19% of their working capacity through late starts and early finishes. • compared to 5% in America • and 3% in Sweden and Germany.

34. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Q-visit BSRIA site and investigate if the trend has changed in 2009. • The reasons given by BSRIA for productivity decline in early 2000 were:

35. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Many UK sub-contractors do not organise and execute their work in a productive way. • mechanical/electrical (M&E) installation work that was monitored was characterised by numerous levels of sub-contractors.

36. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • There was a loss of 12% as a result of poor management. • storage of materials on site very poor. • Handling of materials were found to cause delay on all of the UK projects monitored.

37. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • On the more than 90 UK sites monitored, workers were found to have received no post-qualification training. • The average level of productivity in the UK projects monitored was only 56%. • Compared with the best-achieved productivity figures (benchmark).

38. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • Site workers in the UK were engaged in too much office administration • Above average inappropriate design and specification. • As a result, slowed down work. • Resulted in poor levels of house keeping.

39. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • time wastage was identified at all levels of the construction process; • from contract strategy; • Procurement; • project organisation; • services design; • and in the whole philosophy of construction.

40. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • There are other factors, which may cause a decline in productivity; these factors may arise from: • shortage of equipment • information • bad weather

41. CONSTUCTION PRODUCTIVITY • management style • wastage on site or at the head office • lack of training • variations in the scope of work, • disruption on site.