Taking on a construction project is no easy task – you must manage many details you could quickly lose track of. As a project manager, you must be prepared for external issues like weather restrictions, pricing volatility, temporary contractors, and internal factors that can cause your project to be delayed. In this case, you need to have an efficient and effective construction resource management system to optimize the use of the allotted project resources. This is why resource management is crucial in the construction sector.
This article outlines the challenges of managing resources. It offers a tactical plan to create a comprehensive system for your organization. But let us first comprehend the definition of construction resource management.
What is the Management of Resources in Construction?
Construction resource management focuses on managing your resources to ensure that projects are finished on time and within budget. You need to ensure that you always have the right number of resources at the right time so your project will remain productive.
Construction managers or project managers usually do construction resource management, from keeping track of the amount of time, money, people, equipment, materials, and available buildings to putting in a resource where they can be allocated optimally. Your goal is to use resources as much as possible and waste as little as possible to meet the project goals most efficiently and cost-effectively as possible. Using construction management software add-ons, such as inventory or crew management, can help you get a clear overview of everything that is happening with your project.
Common Obstacles You May Encounter When Managing Resources
Construction projects have many moving parts that must be carefully coordinated – from people to materials and equipment used in different locations or places. Not keeping a close eye on your resource levels can lead to less work getting done, equipment sitting idle, or wasted materials. When a company has trouble managing its resources, it can have severe time and cost implications for your projects. This section lists some of the most common challenges when it comes to resource management.
Handling Multiple Projects Simultaneously
More projects mean high profitability for the construction. With today’s demand for construction services, contractors are taking on more and more jobs with tighter deadlines. Managing multiple projects with different deadlines is challenging – tracking and managing every resource can be challenging.
Lack of Skilled Construction Workers
Even though there is a significant demand for construction services, the lack of skilled workers, especially in trades, poses a problem. Construction companies will have to work harder to keep track of a small number of workers and many projects. Scheduling your team is like putting together a complicated puzzle – you must ensure tasks are still completed on time without overworking your crew. With crew scheduling software, you can get valuable insights on how to assign tasks to your crew and ensure that resources are used in the best way possible.
Inefficient Scheduling System
Scheduling mistakes are almost inevitable in construction. Employees who work too much overtime cost a company a lot of money – when their workers are tired because they are less productive and more likely to get hurt or hurt someone else. Proper scheduling and resource management allow owners to look at project schedules and workload realistically, considering the currently available resources. Luckily, many digital solutions, such as construction scheduling software, can help you manage your timelines and deadlines to ensure your project’s successful delivery.
Delayed Material and Equipment Deliveries
The construction industry is prone to delays. Even with careful planning and scheduling, you must ensure that suitable materials arrive promptly. If not, your schedule needs to be adjusted. If they are delivered early enough, you will need a space to store your resources safely until they are used. If the parts are delivered on time, the whole project could be completed, or you might need to catch up on the work to install them on time.
Possible Changes or Roadblocks
A small change to a project can make it take longer and change its scope. When completing the foundation for your two-story home, you need to install the steel reinforcing bars before proceeding with the concrete pouring. Suppose the steel bars are delayed in delivery. In that case, this can cause a disastrous domino effect when you are in charge of more than one project. So, if something changes in one project, other projects must change their schedules and resources to fit.
Traditional and Outdated Processes
Many businesses still use paper forms and spreadsheets to keep track of their resources. While this is a low-cost alternative to software for managing resources – it is a manual process that is prone to human and waste. Consider using software that offers construction project management software extensions that allow you to keep track of your inventory and resource levels at any time, anywhere.
What Are the Benefits of Having an Efficient Construction Resource Management in Place?
As stated earlier, project managers are responsible for ensuring the project is delivered within time, quality, and budget constraints. This includes ensuring that the people, tools, and materials are at the right place at the right time. However, dozens of factors could be at play, and one wrong move could ruin your whole plan. This section lists some benefits you can realize when creating an efficient resource management system.
Reduce Costs and Stay Within Budget
Effective construction resource management makes it easier to keep track of staff cuts, schedules, and estimates. Properly scheduling your crew and allocating the right resource helps reduce duplicate work and makes management more productive. Construction software can help you automate administrative tasks, such as who checked out a specific piece of equipment for the day, how long it was used, and when it was returned. This helps reduce mistakes and costs and gives operations management more time to concentrate on project management’s more essential parts.
Track How Your Materials and Equipment Are Being Used
As stated earlier, using software for automated resource management can significantly affect how your company keeps track of its equipment. With just a glance, you can ensure that the right resources are available for those who need them for the day. It also helps ensure the equipment lasts longer by tracking its use and scheduling regular maintenance. With so many moving parts, having all the data about resources in one place makes it easier for you to utilize and optimize them.
Reduce the Risk of Misplaced Documents and Paperwork
Suppose you are still doing the traditional way of managing resources. You may have to do more paperwork and print more reports when you manage resources by hand. Monitoring sheets at the warehouse can easily get lost, or the routing of documents for signature can easily be misplaced. These reports are used to better share information about projects and work schedules, but switching to cloud-based software can let everyone be on the same page and make decisions when things change quickly. It reduces the need for printed reports since you can access valuable data in real-time, whether at the office or in the field.
Boost Productivity and Profitability
Having the right resources in place will help cut down on costly project delays significantly. It also lets your staff finish their assigned tasks for the day smoothly, without any obstacles to hinder them. You can also predict your staffing needs for the next few months or years. This way, you can efficiently assign resources to where it is needed, ensuring the productivity and profitability of the project as it progresses.
Easily Adapt to Changes
Changes to projects often happen in the construction industry. Effective resource management allows you to see how you can utilize your resources due to these changes. For example, the floor plan for your custom home was reduced by a few square feet. As a result, you will have to use a smaller quantity of concrete for your foundation. You could allocate your concrete to the second-floor slab of your home. However, to do this, you will need to store them properly. If not, they will stay dry, solidify, then eventually be rendered useless.
Make Sound Business Decisions Based on Consistent Data
Access to real-time data gives you accurate, consistent data to make resource allocation less of a guessing game. This can make a big difference in how profitable a project is, and you can make sure that decisions are made in a way that helps each project and the business as a whole.
So, How Can You Create a Plan for Managing Your Resources?
One of the first steps in managing resources well in construction is making a plan for how resources will be allocated and used. Here are some simple tips to consider when creating your resource management plan.
Know Your Project
Figure out all of the essential parts of the project – its scope, schedule, and budget. List the tasks and activities needed to complete the project, its duration, and its deadlines.
Figure Out How to Efficient Allocate Your Resource
Next, check which tasks need the same resources and when and how long they would need them. You can divide up the project’s resources in the best way. You will need to figure out the number of resources and assign them to the right tasks and phases of the project.
Continuously Review and Evaluate Your Plans
As stated earlier, the construction industry is prone to various changes and delays. As a result, your plan must be flexible. You need to keep a close on your resource levels and prepare a contingency plan in case something goes wrong.
