When it comes to managing construction, most companies are constructing multiple projects simultaneously, making it hard for the managers to manage, coordinate, control, and divide the costs and budgets needed for each project. A construction project consists of a million moving parts, so it can take a lot of time and effort to keep track of all the costs, invoices, and expenses to keep the project within budget.
You must stick to a reliable construction budget for the project to succeed. Having the proper funding for each project is a big job, and even the best and most experienced project managers need help with problems from time to time. It is nearly impossible to make a budget that fits a project’s real needs in every way. This is because construction projects are constantly changing, and the construction plan has to change when things change. As a result, you must keep a meticulous eye on managing costs and controlling expenses.
A construction company must ensure that every project is completed within budget to maintain profitability. You need the correct information to manage budgets. Someone has to get all the data, organize and store it, and then analyze it so that reports and other documents can be made. So how do you manage a construction budget and keep track of those costs to ensure you stay within budget? First, let us define a construction budget and why it is essential.
Defining a Construction Budget
A construction budget shows how much money will be needed to start a project, finish it, and pay for all the costs and expenses to deliver the project. It also includes some contingencies to accommodate emergencies or building costs that come out of the blue. It consists of all expected expenditures, and the money can be tracked with construction management software extensions.
To create the proper budget, project managers start by looking at the scope of the project plan, which is most likely a blueprint, to figure out what materials they need. Preparing the job site must include demolition costs, equipment rentals, permits, and inspections. As the project progresses, additional charges will start to show up to continue the project and ensure its timely completion.
Why Having the Proper Budget Is Critical to A Project’s Success
As stated earlier, a construction budget estimates how much a building, road, or bridge will cost. Usually, the general contractor makes a budget for a building project with the help of professional estimators and bids from suppliers and subcontractors. It determines how fast you can finish a project, how skilled the people you hire will be, and what kinds of tools and technologies you can use to ensure the most productivity and efficiency while keeping overhead costs low.
General contractors, clients, and other stakeholders have financial responsibilities that must be met for the project to succeed. Contractors only have a limited money supply, so they should make a budget for different parts of a building project. Setting up a budget helps builders estimate costs by making it easy to figure out how much money is needed for each project task. It also helps put the essential project parts in order of importance.
Budget overruns are one of the main reasons why projects take longer than expected, and it can significantly affect the company’s productivity and profitability. But if you have a reasonable budget for building, you will have fewer costs than you did not plan for.
What are the Three Parts of a Construction Budget?
No matter what kind of construction project you are doing, there are three main types of costs.
Direct Costs
These are the costs that are directly related to building the project. Some examples are materials, labor, and equipment – any expenses needed to complete the project. Contractors use the prices they get from suppliers and subcontractors to determine these costs.
Indirect Costs
These costs cover the design and other expenses that the project and its workers need. These costs are necessary for the project, but they have nothing to do with the building or its parts. Insurance, bonds, engineering, and legal fees are some examples of indirect costs.
Profits
Managing construction is still a business. And, to stay in business, you need to make money. It is the difference between how much money was made and how much money was spent. Profits depend on the type of project, how big it is, and what the contract says.
How Can You Control Costs and Manage Budgets Effectively?
Errors and wasted work are less likely to happen when there are good plans for controlling construction costs. It also helps people save a lot of time and money. There are many ways to keep construction costs in check. Below, let us look at some of the best ways to manage construction costs.
Make Accurate Estimates
Accurate estimates will get the project off to a good start and set the right expectations. This lets you know how much money the project will need and will lessen any chance of budget overruns in the future. Even though it may take more time at the beginning of the project, having the project manager ask for multiple bids from your subcontractors or suppliers is a great way to set cost baselines.
Utilize Construction Software
In today’s digital age, using construction project management software add-ons such as expense tracking or budget monitoring can help you manage your costs more efficiently. It can give you a real-time look at how a project’s finances are doing and ensures that teams have accurate and relevant information about the project. It puts all cost information in one place and allows you to change how costs are set up. This way, you can see if the project is still within your budget.
Review and Evaluate Your Budget Frequently
Your team should send you daily reports and tell you what is happening at the site. How much of the materials were consumed for the week? Are inventory stocks at a reasonable level? Are activities going according to schedule? This lets you keep your cost plans up to date. You can spot changes in costs early on and stop them from happening.
Update Your Clients with Project Reports
It would help if you used construction scheduling software to get data and make detailed reports that you can give the client. You can update them on how much equipment was used, how much material was used, and how many person-hours were used. The client will also be able to see how the project is going and make sound business decisions if they see something that could hurt the budget.
Keep Your Team on The Same Page on Current Costs
It would be easier to keep everyone on the team up to date if you could see how the project is going in real time. You can keep track of changes to the project with email alerts. Making sure the team sticks to the budget reduces the chances of going over budget and doing work twice. An efficient crew scheduling software can help bridge the gap in information and communication between the management team and the crew.
Reduce Possibilities of Change Orders
Change orders can change the path of a project in ways that were not planned. For the best cost control, make the change order process as simple as possible. You can do this through careful planning by considering all the critical details early on. You can keep the team organized and improve communication and collaboration by using cloud-based platforms. This way, the team can decide on change orders in a way that saves money at any project stage.
Choose Reliable and Professional Subcontractors
Subcontractors often cause projects to take longer and cost more than expected. Before you start your project, it would be best to have a group of subcontractors you can trust. This makes it less likely that your project will go over budget. Try to build solid and long-lasting relationships with your subcontractors. Chances are, you will work with the same ones in your service area.
Report Your Project’s Status at Regular Intervals
Using a project management tool or construction project management software extensions, the project manager should report on budgets and costs at every meeting. This keeps the team informed about where the project might be over, under, or on track. By doing this, everyone is held responsible for what they do. If one or more team members are not on board or causing problems, you should say something about it as soon as possible.
Set a Project Postmortem
Once the project is done, analyze and review what worked and did not work. It will help you not only with this project but also with projects in the future. This information will be helpful if you plan to do more work with the same team, client, and project manager.
In the end, a project will be considered successful from a cost point of view if it is done on time and under budget. If you do everything you can to reach these goals, the project’s success can be guaranteed, allowing you to exceed client expectations every time.
