Construction Management Foundations

domingo, 5 de abril de 2020 2:50 p. m.

Breaking the industry down

- Now remember, construction and the construction industry really includes the building of all fixed facilities and structures on the planet. So,
let's break that down a little. And let's take a look at the different types of construction that exist. So we can begin to categorize things and
look at the roles that are played by somebody that has this title of construction manager. Now I could spend hours breaking this all down and
listening all of the categories and construction types. But for the purposes of this course, let's break the industry down into two different types
of construction. Vertical and horizontal. So, what I mean by this is that when I say vertical construction, I'm generally talking about
buildings and when I say horizontal construction, I'm generally talking about things like roads and infrastructure. Now these are very broad
categories, I know. But they'll suit our purposes here for this course. So let's start with vertical construction. And let's take a look at some
examples. Again, this is a broad category and it includes buildings, homes, offices, hotels, schools, hospitals. Anything that starts on the
ground and gets built up. And even when we look at these examples, that I just listed here, there can be some substantial differences in the
types and complexity of these projects. And the people involved and their designing constructions. So for example, what I mean by that, is if I
use the term residential construction, when I'm talking to somebody here in my local community, they're going to equate this to mean the
construction of small single family residential structures. But if I use that same term while I'm talking to a colleague in New York or Singapore
or Dubai, they're going to be much more likely to envision the construction of high rise, multi family residential towers. So again, to keep it
simple and make sure we're all on the same page as we move forward, I'll stick with the term vertical construction to mean all of these
different types of buildings. Now conversely, when I use the term horizontal construction, I'm generally talking about the building of
infrastructure. Like roads, bridges, sewers, waterlines. Anything that gets built out horizontally or along the ground instead of going up. now
some other terms that you'll hear from different people in the industry to describe this type of construction, could include things like heavy
civil construction or transportation or public works construction. But again, the difficulty here is that if I use the term for instance, heavy civil
construction, some people in the industry are going to equate that to believe that I'm meaning the building of roads and bridges. And others
are going to assume that I'm talking about the construction of dams, or water treatment facilities. So again, like I said, we'll stick with our
terms here, of horizontal and vertical construction. All right, now as I've thrown out some of these terms and examples, no doubt that many of
you are probably thinking that most projects include both horizontal and vertical construction and you'd be correct. I can't very well build
something like a large hospital campus with patient towers and parking structures. Without first doing the site work like the grading, the
installation of utility lines, the construction of roads and parking lots. So, yes. Most projects do include examples of both horizontal and
vertical construction. And depending on the size or the complexity of the overall project, there may even be separate general contractors
overseeing each one of these different types of construction. So let me give you an example. At one point in my life, I ran what we referred to
as a general engineering contractor. We specialized in running horizontal construction projects. And these were generally street and utility
projects where the project owner, who was my client, was the municipality or government agency. However, we did one project with a private
owner and it consisted of demolition of existing buildings spread out over a 40 acre site. And then replacing them with a new shopping
center. Now, because there's such a large volume of horizontal construction work on this project, the property owner hired us as the general
contractor to manage and complete all of that horizontal construction and we left them with new utilities, parking lots and pads that were
ready to build on. Then they hired another general contractor who came in and specialized in the shopping center construction. And they
oversaw all of the vertical construction activity, like building the actual stores and shops. Now, on a similar project being built on a smaller
piece of property, the scope of the site work is probably much less and both the horizontal and vertical construction might be managed by
just one single contractor. So, that brings us to another question. Why do some construction companies who I'm going to collectively begin to
refer to as contractors. Why do they specialize in different types of work? Or different types of projects? So, I think to answer that, we need to
first recognize, how construction differs from something like manufacturing. So, let's talk about that. In manufacturing, I do something like
build a car at a factory. I build many of the same exact type of car. I do it over and over again in the same facility. In construction though, I
get instructions to go build a new structure in a new location. I'm going to go there, I'm going to build it once, then I'm going to leave and I'm
going to go build something else and I'm going to do it in another location. So. Even if I'm going to build the same building over and over
again, something like a bank or a chain of restaurants. The set of conditions that I'm presented with at each site, is still always going to be
unique. The actual ground conditions can change from one site to the next. The utilities services and connections might be different. Building
codes are going to change from one location to the next, along with things like zoning requirements that are going to dictate the overall
outward look and appearance of the building. Even though that building's ultimate function remains unchanged. So if we add to this, the
challenge is presented by constantly changing the geographic location of your operations. You can start to see how construction really
is different from virtually all other industries. Now, the result is that we have all types of specialization. Some contractors specialize in
construction in one geographical region. Some specialize in a particular industry, like healthcare or schools. And on the very large and very
complex side of the industry, some companies will specialize in the overall management of things like diverse, longterm construction
projects. Power plants or refineries. But, regardless of the size or complexity of the project, believe it or not, there is a common flow of
events that takes place, that's required to get the project from an idea, to a reality. So, before we get to far ahead of ourselves with that
building process. Let's actually back up a little bit and take a look at how the construction process starts and then how it progresses through
this flow of events that's going to encompass our entire process.
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 The process: How does it start?
- Okay, as we move forward keep in mind that by the definition we just established, the process always starts with an owner who has a
need. Now for our discussion here I'm going to say it doesn't really matter whether that owner's an individual or an organization like a
business or government agency. It also doesn't matter whether the project is simple or complex. It all starts the same. An owner has a need
and that owner has some vision of what they want to build to fulfill that need. Now somehow we need to get those ideas and thoughts out of
the owner and turn them into construction plans and specifications that we can follow in the field. This is step one. This is where the architect
comes in. Some people refer to this initial phase as programming, and it involves a series of meetings, interviews, and questionnaires that
are designed to pull information out of the owner in order to design a facility that meets that owner's needs. This process really takes a very
special and unique set of skills and we had the opportunity to interview an architect who's really good at this. So let's take a minute and hear
from Tom Reilly to get an idea of just how this first step works. - I'm Tom Reilly. I'm an architect here in Tempe, Arizona. Been out of school, I
went to ASU. Been out of school for about 30 years now, so practiced only in the valley. Architekton's a firm that's been around for 25
years. We're 40 people. Considered a mid-size firm. We do a lot of public projects. So a lot of higher education. We specialize in police
stations, courthouses. In private practice we'll do small gas stations. We team a lot for some of our projects. So if we're going after a
hospital, we'll go out and find the best hospital architect in the country or the world, and we'll be the local architect with the expertise and the
connections here in town and bring them in. We're also known as sort of a high-end design firm, so if we have a client that's looking for a
building that will reflect who they are and what their values are, we'll often get those projects. And often have to team for them because they
may be outside of our area of expertise. And again, they come in all sizes and shapes, but typically the first thing that you need to do is put
together a program and depending on what the project comes with, the project can come with a program or it can come just as I've got a
problem that I need you to solve. And typically what we'll do is help them determine a budget and get the budget aligned with the
program. So a program is essentially a quantitative list of spaces that ends up being a 30,000 square foot building. It can be done by room by
room or it can be departments. And it's also qualitative, so what are the things that are in those spaces? A lab building will have highly
complex programs for each one of those spaces, whereas a dormitory is pretty straightforward as far as what goes into a dorm room, but
they're both different. So it's a matter then of documenting that and normally we'll work with a cost estimator or directly with a contractor at
that point to help determine the budget and make sure that the program and the budget align with what the owner is expecting to spend. We
often call the program and phase problem-seeking and what we're trying to do, what the architect and the design team are trying to do during
that period is to find the problem so we know what problem we're trying to solve. And again, depending on the type of client, how big they
are, is it 12 departments that are moving into this building and we need to meet with all 12 of them, or is it a simple office and they have an
office manager and we want to work with them, so we have a pretty big toolkit to use in helping to determine what the ultimate program's
going to be. So for the larger clients, we do workshops and we typically will start off with a visioning and goal-setting workshop, where we'll
meet with the different constituents either in one large meeting or in a group of meetings and help draw from them through a series of
exercises. One of them we call card tricks and we essentially go to them and say, we'll have them all in a room. We often do it on their site
so it's someplace that they're comfortable. And we'll ask them, it's two years from now and your building's opening, what is the headline in
the paper that morning about your building? And as they start to elicit responses and we work the room, we're writing down literally on five by
seven cards what their responses are and putting them up on the wall. So they know that we're listening to them and then in the end after
doing a couple of these different card tricks and having an open conversation we'll have a wall full of cards. Then we do dot pulling with
them, where we give everybody three sticky dots and they come on up and they help prioritize what the important things are for them and so
it's a consensus-building exercise, it's also part of change management. It helps the people that are going to be moving into this new building
have some participation in where it's going. And typically what will happen is three to five big ideas will emerge on the wall right there in front
of them and we write those as goals. Those goals can be anything from it has to have a strong relationship to the pedestrian mall to it needs
to help people understand that we're a forward-thinking company even though we're in a historic warehouse district. So it creates a set of
goals that the design team can respond to later on in the design process. We also do one on one interviews, particularly to understand what
needs to happen in a space so we have to get into what these people do for a living and understand their work flow and understand who they
need to talk to, who they need to be adjacent to, do they have public coming into their space so we know whether to locate them by the front
door? Do they need sinks? Do they need special acoustical properties? So we do that through a series of interviews, record that, and then
loop that back during the design process to make sure that we've got all that correct. Sometimes it's simpler than that. We had a mortgage
company come in the other day and it's an office building that's existing and they want us to relocate their corporate headquarters. In that
case they simply brought us a list of employees, the list included whether that individual employee needed a closed office or was in an open
work space, and by groups, by departments, who needed to sit next to each other and then a very quick, took us about a half hour to elicit
what departments needed to be next to other departments and from that we were able to within a week complete a test fit to show them that
not only will they fit all their existing people into this new space, they've got room for about 20 percent growth. So that then becomes a basis
of a document to go to a contractor and say, okay, can we do this for, in this case, 1.1 million dollars? And they actually have something
physical that they can start to do takeoffs on, and start to understand what the cost implications of the design is. - Now as an architect like
Tom begins to draw these ideas out of the owner, they also have to start looking at things like the suitability of the site where they actually
plan to build.

The process: From idea to design

- Now our architect Tom talked to us about the first steps in the design phase and he took us through one aspect of programming which
involved learning about the owner's ideas and needs. Another aspect of programming that also needs to take place at this stage involves the
research and application of regulatory issues, things that are going to effect the design and construction of this facility. So to explore some of
these issues, we're going to talk to Mo Glancy who's the Assistant Planning and Development Director at The City of Phoenix. - My name is
Mo Glancy. I'm the Assistant Planning & Development Director in the Planning and Development Department here at The City of
Phoenix. Our departments is really the one stop shop for all private development in the city of Phoenix. So what I mean by the one stop
shop in the development process is that anybody who wants to do a private development, anything from remodeling your kitchen to building
a new hospital or stadium, our department takes care of making sure that they meet all the requirements of the city. From planning and
zoning issues all the way through building code and then issuing permits and conducting inspections and finally issuing certificates of
occupancy. The first step in the plan review or the first step that our department does is when somebody selects a site or they consider
selecting a site, they'll come in and talk to us about what the development wants to be. They'll submit a pre-application package and we'll
take a look at it and make sure that it has the entitlements, that it does match the zoning that's required for that site, that the building is the
right size, that it's not too big for the site, that it meets the set backs, that it's the right height. Also look and make sure that it's not going to
be too big of an impact on traffic, or if it is, what's going to happen there. We'll talk to them about what type of infrastructure that they need to
bring in. And so at the very beginning of a project, a developer can find out what all the requirements are going to be and how much it's going
to cost to do that development and if the development's even feasible before they go down the road of developing a whole bunch of design

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to cost to do that development and if the development's even feasible before they go down the road of developing a whole bunch of design
documents. And a lot of times before they even purchase the property they'll come in and we'll sit with them and talk about that before they
purchase the property. And then as far as the plan review stage, once we get to the point where we feel pretty comfortable that the
development that they want to do meets all of the city's standards, meets the minimum requirements of the zoning ordinance and our city
code, then they would submit construction drawings. And those would be construction drawings for the building, the site work, grading and
drainage, and then also all of the infrastructure that they may have to build associated with the project. We review those plans to make
sure that they meet all of our city codes and ordinances. It's a lot easier to make a change on a plan than it is to make that change once it's
been constructed. So we review that to make sure that it meets all the codes and ordinances and then we issue permits for construction. So
why does a city have a zoning ordinance? Typically most cities have a general plan and that plan helps determine how a city is going to
develop. Where you're going to have high density areas, dense urban areas. Where you might have more suburban type areas. Where you
might have manufacturing and things like that. And so the planning department makes sure that, or the planning function, makes sure
that any development meets that general plan. And it's important because it determines things like how high you can build a building, how
much of the lot you can cover, the types of uses you can have, set backs, how close you can be to a property line. And it really helps a
community develop in a harmonious way. So you've got residential next to residential, you don't end up with a factory next to a residential
subdivision or a very intense use. It also helps you regulate where the higher density, so high rise multi-family would be in a more urban
setting and then you might have the low rise residential in the more suburban areas. So you might wonder why a city has a development
department, a planning and development departments or a development services, they have various names. And it really comes down to, we
do a lot of things. We facilitate development for sure and we work with architects and developers and contractors and homeowners to make
sure that development happens. But the real thing that we're here for is for the protection of the citizens of the city. Either from a zoning
perspective to make sure that the development is harmonious with what they expect to be in their area. And certainly from a safety
perspective on the building safety side. Typically, everybody has the same building codes. Almost all countries have the same building
codes. But the difference you find in countries that actually enforce those codes is the buildings actually get built per the codes. If you don't
do the plan review and you do the inspections, then it's very easy for that quality of construction to slide. What we have found is that having a
strong planning and development department, a development services department, strong building department, allows citizens to feel safe
that the buildings that they go into are going to be structurally strong, they're going to meet the codes, they'll meet the minimum exiting
requirements, they'll have accessibility. One of the things we really spend a lot of time on is making sure that buildings are accessible and
also that they're harmonious with the neighborhood. And so this gives citizens confidence that the buildings they live in, the buildings they
work in, the buildings they visit will be safe for them. - So you can begin to see how critical these initial steps are to the construction of any
facility. This really is where an owner's wants and needs start to interface with the rules and regulations in order to begin translating all of this
information into instructions on what to build. Now this can be a very long process but eventually it's going to result in a set of construction
drawings and specifications that'll allow us to move to the next step and start the building.

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The process: Building the structure

- Alright, with our plans and specifications in hand, it's time to start building. The time and the specific steps involved in this next process
really depend on the scope and the complexity of the structure or the facility to be built. But again, in general, the process proceeds in a
manner that looks something like this. Step one is going to be to physically lay out the project. Establish the boundaries and the
locations and make a plan that tells everyone where everything goes during construction, like where do I put the office trailer and my storage
containers and where does everybody park? So once things like that are done, it's time to mobilize and move the things that we're going to
need on to the site. Now mobilization usually is going to have to be coordinated with things like site work, which could involve clearing
existing structures, doing some earth work, getting the site properly graded. Soon after, it's going to be time to excavate and install
underground utilities which are going to be followed by foundation construction. The taller the building, the bigger the foundations. Now once
the foundations are completed, the structural frame is constructed. And again, depending on the project, this could be a system of concrete
columns and beams or it could be structural steel or wood frame or masonry block. After that, the floor slab's going to need to go in and so
will the roof and eventually it's going to be time for our exterior walls or building cladding. Along with any glazing or glass and exterior
doors. Now once the building is what we call dried in, meaning all of the exterior is completed to the point where the inside's not exposed to
the weather, it's time to install things like interior partitions and doors. Now during this process, it'll also be time to do things like extend
utilities into the different portions of the building. Now this might include electrical, plumbing and data connections. During this interior
construction, we're going to do things like construct the heating and air conditioning, the ventilation for the building system. Once all of this is
done, all of our walls can be completed and the ceilings can be installed. At this point, finishes like trim and paint can be scheduled, and once
that work's complete, the flooring can be installed. Now the final steps would be the installation of any specialty equipment. This could
include counters, appliances, lighting, building automation, anything else that's included in the construction contract. Now don't forget that
while all of this is going on inside, there's still work to be completed outside like paving and landscaping. And there might also be
improvements to the surrounding streets that are required, to facilitate things like access to this new project or facility. Once all of these
construction activities are completed, we might need to start things up and test them to make sure they work as planned. So some of the
equipment, like heating, air conditioning, ventilation systems, they're going to need to be started, tested and adjusted so that we achieve the
desired results. Now again, these are a lot of steps but this is a good broad overview of the building process. Remember each one of these
steps though, can involve many many details and schedules need to coordinated to make sure trades aren't working on top of each
other and that work is completed in the correct order. Now once we have everything working and the owner, the designer and any
government agencies have approved of the construction, the project can be handed over to our owner. Now these days, that project hand
off can also be a big task. So let's move on and discuss some of the things that can be involved in this final phase of the construction
process.

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The process: Hand off to the owner
- Whether it's as simple as a single family home or as complex as a modern skyscraper, the facility or structure has to be commissioned to
ensure it functions as intended. Now, this can involve enabling all types of systems, doing things like testing, load balancing, and
monitoring to ensure that everything works and that it works together. So gone are the days where we simply finished construction, got the
final inspection, and handed over the keys. These days, building automation systems probably have to be tested, heating, plumbing, and
other mechanical systems have to be checked to ensure they function as intended. Electrical and data systems have to deliver as
promised. And when all of this is tested and approved, we have to hand over what amounts to a set of instructions to the facility's owner. So
for example, when a builder hands over a house to a new home owner, they're expected to give that homeowner a set of instructions that
tells the homeowner how everything in the house works. Likewise, when a general contractor turns over a building or a bridge or a water
treatment plant, they have to give that new owner a set of instructions. And these days, oftentimes, they're also going to have to provide
some kind of training and they might even have spare parts and pieces that they need to deliver to the owner. The more complex the
structure or facility, the more complex and involved the instructions become. Now today, these instructions can be anything from creating a
binder full of instruction manuals to developing a dedicated website that shows the new owner how to use the facility and what's in it. So, let's
go ahead and hear from another construction manager, who's going to describe some of these processes to us. - So my name is Chandra
Reilly. I work at Sundt Construction as a program director here in Tempe, Arizona. And Sundt Construction is a 125 year old general
contractor. We focus our business primarily in three markets. We look at transportation, industrial, and building projects. I happen to sit on
the building side of the world. So, as I work through my projects, those are typically commercial, hospitality, entertainment type projects is
what I focus on. So the commissioning of buildings and of systems and that turnover process from the time that we're done with the majority
of the construction to the time when the client is going to take over the building has changed dramatically in just the 15 years that I've been in
the industry. The systems are definitely more complex. We recently actually hired an individual whose sole focus is what we call the low
voltage systems, so telephoning, security, surveillance, IT, all those sort of small wire systems that make up the guts and the brains of the
building. His job is just to manage and then commission those systems at the end, because they have gotten so complex. Additionally, we
have a lot more energy conservation code requirements than we did 15 years ago or even 5 years ago. California really started that
movement and now that energy conservation code has been adopted as part of the international building code. So that commissioning of the
HVAC, the air conditioning system, and all of the air movement systems in the building, has a much stronger sustainability and
efficiency focus than it used to. So it does take some fairly specialized individuals, people who actually understand these systems. To go
through and make sure they're working the way they're supposed to be working and work hand in hand with the engineer to say, okay, this is
what you drew, this is what we installed, let's make sure it's operating correctly before we move on. So that's a huge part of our turnover
process. So owner training has always been part of the general contractor's responsibility and to a large extent the sub contractor's
responsibility at the end of the project. I would say, we've gotten smarter about the way we handle this, especially as owner and operator
facilities management teams have grown, and we know that they don't keep the same people in the same seats for years at a time
anymore. So we do tend to videotape a lot of our in-person training, so that that's always available to them to go back to and use in their own
in-house training courses. A lot of the building systems now do have online resources, online manuals, how tos, little videos, anything like a
Youtube video now for how to program a lighting control system is available. So we do tend to lean fairly heavily on those digital
resources, particularly if we're trying to train remotely and give people strong leave-behinds. Cause I don't know about you, but you can sit
through an eight hour course about how to program a climate control system and you're going to wake up the next day and say, what did that
guy just say? Right, so it's really about leaving the documentation with them and making sure that it's organized in a way that they can
navigate through it and turn them into their own trainers, so that that building can be maintained the way it was designed to be. - So as our
buildings and structures become more complex, so do the demands placed on today's construction professionals. And again there's a real
growing need for construction managers who truly understand how a facility or structure functions and then can communicate this
information back to the new owner in a manner that allows them to use and maintain this facility in the most efficient manner possible.

The construction team

- Now remember, none of the activity we've discussed so far happens successfully without a whole team of people working together towards
a common goal. Now we started this course by talking about the fact that the process begins with an owner, who has a need. And we heard
from an architect, and we learned a little bit more about their role in the process. So, just to break that part down just a little bit, typically an
architect is going to need to be artistic. They need that ability that we discussed to transform verbal ideas into physical designs. They're the
ones that are going to interface with those regulatory officials, to ensure compliance with regulations. And they're going to review building
codes, to ensure that requirements are met in all aspects of the facility's design, ranging from details like number of parking spaces that are
required, to the proper size of rooms, the placement of electrical outlets, and the whole distribution of utilities. The architect plays the lead
role in that design of the project, but for some aspects of the design they're often going to need to bring in some additional design
professionals. So, for example, the architect may need the services of a civil engineer, to assist in site design, and layout. A civil engineer is
going to do things like run calculations on storm water drainage, to ensure that this site doesn't flood. They're going to determine how much
weight the ground can hold, so that foundations can be designed. That architect's also probably going to need the services of a structural
engineer, who's going to run calculations to determine things like column sizes, and spacing, and how strong the structure needs to be in
order to withstand things like wind and earthquakes, or other forces, and still be able to function for its intended use. Now, depending on the
functionality and complexity of the project, they might even need more design professionals, to includes things like electrical engineers,
mechanical engineers who might run calculations related to how the building is heated and cooled. But regardless of the number and type of
design professionals that are needed, these are all typically going to be under the control of the architect. Now, some architectural firms may
directly employ these specialized design professionals, but many others are going to subcontract with the people, or firms they need for each
particular project. Now, we also talked earlier with Mo Glancy, from the City of Phoenix. We learned a little bit about the role played by a
municipality, or a regulatory agency. But remember that this involvement is going to also continue during the construction process, as
inspectors are introduced into the process. Most projects are typically going to require multiple inspections by the government agency that
issued that permit to build. So, the role of these inspectors is to make sure that regulations are being followed, and that the overall
construction process is following the requirements that were laid out in those plans and specifications. Now, additional inspectors might also
be involved, to conduct much more detailed inspections, and these are going to relate to things like structural connections, or any work that
requires continuous monitoring. These inspectors, and sometimes we call these special inspectors, or deputy inspectors, most of the time
they're going to work for, and report directly back to our design team. Remember, the designers put a great deal of effort into the creation of
these plans and specifications that we're supposed to follow, and they want to make sure that things are being built correctly. Now, when it
comes to the building team, obviously the size and number of people involved is going to vary greatly, depending on the size and scope of
the project. In the opening chapter for this course we introduced several of these people, and talked about their positions. And, again, every
project is different, but there are some things that virtually every project is going to need. To start with, the owner's really going to want to
know how much this is all going to cost, before they write a contract, and tell the contractor to get started. And this is where an estimator
comes in. A contractor's going to employ one or more estimators, and their job is to go through every page, and every detail in the plans, to
estimate material quantities, equipment needs, and labor hours. All of this is going to eventually need to get turned into costs, so that the
owner, and the construction company can enter into a contract for this project. Now, once they get this contract, the construction company's
going to have someone on their team create a schedule, based on the information from that estimator. And then, eventually, all of this is
going to get handed off to the field, which is run by a person known as the superintendent. Now, the superintendent is typically a very
experienced individual. They've spent many years on construction projects, and they're going to have an understanding of how to read plans,
and specifications, and just how to translate this information into the building process. So, there are many things that a superintendent can
learn though classroom training and different types of education, but there's also a lot more that's really only gained through experience in
the field. Now, while the superintendent's typically the person that oversees all of this building activity on a project, there's also going to be
some additional, what we know as foremen, on the project. And they're going to be in charge of smaller teams of workers, who perform very
specific tasks on the project. Now, let's not forget that all of this activity needs to be managed. So, as the work proceeds, someone really
needs to keep track of that progress, so that schedules can be updated, materials and equipment can be scheduled, and people can be
organized. The owner's going to want updates on the progress, and the construction company's going to want to be paid, as different phases
of the work are completed. All of these functions are activities performed by the construction manager and their team. Now, the typical

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of the work are completed. All of these functions are activities performed by the construction manager and their team. Now, the typical
organization of that team, again, is going to consist of that lead, or head project manager. They're in charge of the team, and they're
probably going to have one or more construction management professionals working for them, and those individuals might be referred to as
project engineers. So, now that you've got an idea of how a construction project progresses, and the people that are involved along the
way, let's go to the next chapter and get a little more detailed look at the responsibilities of these construction managers.

But regardless of the number and type of design professionals that are needed, these
are all typically going to be under the control of the architect.

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What does a construction manager do?
- Part business manager and part building scientist. The construction manager's main goal is to safely deliver a project on time that meets
the owner's requirements and is constructed within the projected budget. Now, that might sound pretty straightforward, but when you think
back to all of the steps and all of the people involved, this can be a daunting task. Now, I'm going to say that there are three components that
make up every construction project, management, engineering, and construction. In order to ensure success, each one of these
components has to be present in all phases of the construction cycle, from concept and design, through building, and even onto
commissioning and hand off. Now, these components won't always be present in the same proportions, but it is critical that they all remain
present. So, for example, even during the programming phase where design is obviously going to play the biggest role, it's still important for
the construction influence to remain in order to ensure that the design is following a path that can be executed later. Now, the traditional
project management body of knowledge discusses a concept called the Project Management Triangle, or the triple constraint, or some
people call it the iron triangle. And this concept uses the analogy of a triangle where the traditional three constraints of project management,
which are considered to be scope, cost, and schedule, are shown as the three points of that triangle. Now, this analogy illustrates the
fact that you can't move one of these constraints without affecting the others, and these three constraints are also often competing
constraints. In other words, increased scope typically means increased time and increased cost. A tight time constraint could mean increased
costs and reduced scope, and a tight budget could mean increased time and also reduced scope. Now, a project manager working to
serve the interests of the owner learns to manage and keep these constraints in balance. Now, I like to use a similar analogy of a three-
legged stool to illustrate the three elements that every construction manager needs to manage. So, a construction manager working for the
building team really needs to learn to balance safety, quality, and productivity as they plan and execute the project. These three elements are
inextricably linked, and if one is ignored, the others will suffer. Now, I know in years past it used to be common to hear someone in the
construction industry tell you that you can only have two of these elements, so pick two and be prepared not to get the other one. I'm going to
tell you, years of studies and much progress within our industry have absolutely shown us that this is simply not true. If all three of these
elements are not balanced the project will suffer, and so will the construction company, just like the three-legged stool will topple over if any
of the legs are shorter or longer. So, for the construction manager running a building project, that simply means that your job is to manage
resources to deliver a properly completed project to the customer on-time, within budget, and without causing harm to any of the
people doing the work. Now, managing the safety and health of the people building the project and ensuring they arrive every day to work in
an environment in which they will not get harmed helps to ensure that their focus will really be on quality and productivity. Now likewise, if
everyone really understands the expectations for quality on the project, they can work productively at meeting these expectations without
wasting time doing extra work or potentially doing re-work that could expose them to risks that weren't present the first time around. Now, I
could probably continue with many of these examples and analogies, but let's just stick to the basics and say that as a construction manager
it's important for you to strive to manage your resources, particularly the people working on your project at the work phase, building the
facility, in a manner that's going to allow them to work productively. Now remember, a productive work environment is one that allows people
to also work safely and produce a quality product. The way to ensure all three of these elements are considered is to pre-plan your activities
and tasks, and I can't overemphasize that. One of the mistakes that really gets made in construction is that sometimes we forget that our
sites and working conditions are constantly changing. They change from one project site to the next, even though out overall task might be
the same. And on a construction site, our conditions can absolutely change from day-to-day or even hour-to-hour as the work progresses
and different trades move through the site finishing their work. So, the job of the construction manager is to recognize these changing
conditions and then develop realistic plans for execution that take actual site-specific conditions into account. Too often in our industry, we
forget those first three components that I discussed all need to be present and will tend to let the construction component run free without
enough influence or help from the management component. So, that gives you a pretty high level idea of what a construction manager needs
to understand. Now, stick with me as we move on and we'll hear a little bit more from construction managers as they tell us how they pull this
off on a daily basis.

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A day in the life
- We've talked about some of the different roles that can be played by a person with the title of Construction Manager. So, now let's hear
from a few people who actually have this title, and learn a little bit more about what they do each day. - My name is Nate Gorrocino. I'm a
Project Manager for Sunland Asphalt. We are a heavy civil contractor in the state of Arizona. We work primarily in asphalt related
projects, such as roads and streets. - My name's Lew Laws. I'm a graduate from Arizona State University, a long, long time ago, 25 years
ago. Actually graduated with a Mechanical Engineering degree. Never thought I would ever be in construction. I graduated during a
recession, though, and could not find the job that I wanted, so just kind of fell in my lap by one of the ladies that I worked with at American
Express in Customer Service, her father just happened to work for Johnson Controls. And she said, "Oh, you're an engineer. "They're looking
for engineers." 'Cause everybody uses the word engineer, ya know? So I went in and talked to him, and they liked me, and so I worked doing
billing controls for about a year and a half. Worked for a mechanical contractor as a sub. They liked me so they offered me a job with
them, so I went and worked for a mechanical for about five years. Then decided that I wanted to be the guy and get into actual general
contracting. And so I started that about 20 years ago, and worked for a small GC, and then about 16 years ago, I actually left there and went
to work for DPR Construction, which is a very large, national general contractor, and worked as a construction manager for them, building
very large projects. - As a Project Manager, I deal with the entire life cycle of a project. Once that project is awarded, I deal with the setup in
terms of signing up the subcontracts for that project, establishing a cost coding system, in order to track the project, and getting any
permits that are necessary to begin the project. I also deal with scheduling crews, scheduling equipment. My responsibilities also
include project forecasting, change orders. I deal with internal updates, approving invoices, and managing subcontractors. Time
management is pretty critical as a Project Manager. I do my best to spend 50% of the time in the office and 50% of the time at the
jobsite. But of course, there are days where I don't make it into the office, and there's other days where I don't make it out onto the jobsite. I
just do my best to try to be involved in all aspects of the project, in a sense of the business side of things and having to report the costs, as
well as the field side of things in terms of making sure we deliver a quality product. - So I had a lot of different roles in a way, although it was
always as a Project Manager. So it was neat when you're in your 20s and you're managing projects that when you're in your 40s or now 50,
it's not quite as glamorous as it was when you were younger. Done all kinds of projects, specializing in data centers, when that was really hot
back in the late '90s, early 2000s. Did a lot of hospital work after that. Really found my passion though when I actually redid some hundred-
year-old buildings here in Phoenix, the Phoenix Union High School buildings for the U of A. We turned them into their Phoenix branch of the
medical school, back in 2003. And I realized what I really loved to build was architecture. Really about the only thing that DPR Construction
does is it's really focused on architecture is higher education. And so, I was lucky enough to really be able to parlay that U of A work into
doing all kinds of great projects for Arizona State University here in Phoenix. So I built, really what became the entire campus for the
Polytechnic arm of ASU, where we took over an old Air Force base and turned it into a university. At that time it was really just old
barracks and some things like that, and we really put the first 11 buildings on there that became the crux or the heart of the Polytechnic
Campus. Went on from that, built the new business school for ASU, the W. P. Carey School of Business, which is just a gorgeous
architectural building. And then from there, I went and built the new law school for ASU in downtown Phoenix. And that one's probably the
peak of the architecture that I've been associated with. That one's just an amazing architecture building. - You can start to see that whether
we're talking about horizontal or vertical construction, large companies or small, the common theme in the roles played by the construction
manager, is that there really is a need for a combination of knowledge and skills that includes both management and building science. As we
continue, we'll take a look at how the industry is organized, so you can get a better understanding of the different types of skills and
knowledge that might apply, depending on the type of company and the work they perform.

How is the industry organized

- As we step through the processes in the previous videos, we also begin to break down the structure of the industry. We discussed the
architect and the fact that the architect will traditionally have a contract directly with the owner for their design services package. Now, that
architect might also have an additional contract with the owner to act as the owner's representative during the construction process. Under
this type of arrangement, the architect might provide services that could include conducting progress meetings, overseeing quality, approving
changes, and just generally being the point of contact for the owner during construction. Now, that scenario that I described so far is the
typical method used on a vertical construction project. If this were a true horizontal only construction project, the roles that I described as
being played by the architect might actually be played by a civil engineer since there might be little, if any, architectural design in that type of
project. Now, in addition to the architect, the owner is also going to need to hire a general contractor who will be the single point of contact for
that owner to the building team in the field. The general contractor will be responsible for setting an overall price for construction that they
and the owner will agree on and put into a written contract. They'll manage the overall schedule and the progress of the building
activities, and they'll hire the personnel, the equipment, and the subcontractors as needed to perform the work outlined in their
agreement with the owner to result in a finished facility. Now, there are general contractors who self perform some types of work in the
field by directly employing skilled tradespeople, and there are others who only perform management and oversight activities. I'll give you an
example. The company I described earlier that I ran in California was a general contractor that was hired primarily by government agencies
to build roads. We produced the schedule and managed the overall project, but we also directly employed individuals like skilled equipment
operators to grade and pave the roads, and labor to install underground utilities. Now, we had competitors who did the same, and we had
other competitors whose employees only performed management and oversight functions. They subcontracted all of the actual work to be
performed. Now, this is common in construction, and as a project's scope increases in size and complexity, I think it'd be very rare to find a
general contractor who self performed all of the work on a project. In fact, most general contractors will really try to specialize in being
general contractors or construction managers, and they'll hire those subcontractors to perform a large portion of that physical building activity
in the field. Now, this begins to relate back to what we talked about at the beginning of this course when I discussed how construction is
different from other industries. As a general contractor, remember, I typically have to move from one geographic location to another as I get
hired to build different projects. As this geography becomes more diverse, it becomes logistically difficult for me to move people and
equipment from project to project. At some point, it just becomes more efficient for me to hire a subcontractor who is physically located in
each geographic location. Likewise, the diversity and the scope of work that might be included in any one construction project can really drive
the need for more and more specialty subcontractors. Now, you'll begin to see that all of these conditions and all of these changing
conditions can really start to pose a challenge to the general contractor, so think about it. Everything I build is going to be built at a new site
or location, and I'm going to assemble a team that's probably different than the team I assembled to build the last project. Even if I hire the
same subcontractors, I don't control their labor force, so I may or may not get the same people that were on my last project. All of this is also
precisely why most projects are built under this arrangement where an owner hires one design firm who assembles the design subtrades that
they need, and one general contractor who assembles the crafts and the subcontractors that they need to build the project. An owner, just
generally, is not going to have the skills, the knowledge, or the personnel to directly hire and oversee a team of individual trade contractors to
build their building. They need that general contractor and their expertise to assemble and manage that build team. Now, the subcontractors
that are hired by the general contractor, again, they'll likely specialize in one type of work, and they'll directly employ the labor and the skilled
craftworkers that they need to perform that work. Generally, it's these trade contractors that employ the people that we see in the field and at
the actual workface. Now, these trade contractors, and we also call them subcontractors or specialty contractors, they'll still have a need for
construction managers that understand and can manage the overall process, but they'll tend to have a need for construction management
professionals who are well versed in whatever their particular specialty is. Let me give you an example. I think I'm a pretty good general

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professionals who are well versed in whatever their particular specialty is. Let me give you an example. I think I'm a pretty good general
construction manager. I understand the overall process, and what's needed from beginning to end to get a new mid-rise office building
constructed. I'm also a concrete expert, and I can easily go to work for a concrete contractor and be successful in a construction manager's
role in that type of specialty construction firm. I would not, however, do well at a heating, ventilation, and air conditioning contractor. I don't
know enough about that type of specialty trade, and I would require quite a bit of training and learning before I can effectively manage their
work. Now, the other big difference between being a construction manager for a general contractor versus a trade contractor is that I'm going
to spend more time directly managing people at the workface when I work for a trade contractor, because it'd be my skilled labor force that's
performing the physical work in the field, as opposed to playing the role of construction manager at a general contractor where I'm going to
spend more time dealing with and managing other companies as a whole, our subcontractors, rather than individuals. Now, whether it's a
general contractor or a subcontractor, remember, that as the size of the company increases, so can the responsibilities and knowledge that's
required. We looked previously at the different roles that can be played by a construction manager, and depending on the size of a
company, a construction manager might wear many of those hats during the course of a day, while some larger companies may have all of
those roles split up and well defined and divided. In this chapter, I think we've really covered the overall construction process. We plotted out
the common flow of events that needs to be present on every project, to some degree, in order to ensure its success. We also looked at the
roles traditionally played by the construction manager throughout these processes. As we continue, we'll take a look at how some of
these processes and roles are changing based on things like advances in technology and the adoption of some new ways of thinking.

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 I understand the overall process, and what's needed from beginning to end to get a
new mid-rise office building constructed. I'm also a concrete expert, and I can easily go
to work for a concrete contractor and be successful in a construction manager's role in
that type of specialty construction firm. I would not, however, do well at a heating,
ventilation, and air conditioning contractor. I don't know enough about that type of
specialty trade, and I would require quite a bit of training and learning before I can
effectively manage their work. Now, the other big difference between being a
construction manager for a general contractor versus a trade contractor is that I'm going
to spend more time directly managing people at the workface when I work for a trade
contractor, because it'd be my skilled labor force that's performing the physical work in
the field, as opposed to playing the role of construction manager at a general contractor
where I'm going to spend more time dealing with and managing other companies as a
whole, our subcontractors, rather than individuals.

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Alternative project delivery methods

- The construction industry has traditionally been configured to deliver projects using that Design-Bid-Build method of project delivery that
we've talked about so far. And the steps that we've described so far in this course have really described the roles that each entity plays in the
construction process under that type of project delivery scenario. Now this has historically cast the Architect in the role of the Master
Builder who oversees the construction process and works with the Owner from inception to handoff. Under that scenario the General
Contractor didn't become engaged in the process until after the design was completed and they were asked to review the documents and
submit a bid. Most often there would be several General Contractors who would submit bids to the Owner, and the Owner would commonly
choose the lowest priced bid and hire that General Contractor to build the project. Now as the industry has evolved over the years, we really
began to recognize some inherent problems with this project delivery method. And we had the opportunity to discuss this with several
industry professionals. - In an ideal world, the Contractor and the Design Team would be at the table on the same day, starting the project at
the same time, and functioning as a well oiled team. So that you get some real-time budget feedback, every time you start to draw
something. So there should be that feedback loop between the Architect and the Contracting Team, understanding schedule implications,
scope implications, cost implications, of the way the design is evolving. And that really, in our role on the pre-construction side, it's not to tell
the Designer what to design, it's to tell them the impact of the design decisions that they're making, on the overall construction process, and
the cost and schedule of the final outcome. So the industry really has evolved from a traditional, what we call a Hard Bid Environment, where
the Contractor doesn't put a price to the documents until they're finished, to what we just talked about on the pre-construction side as a more
integrated project delivery where we've got the Architect and the Engineers and the Contractor working together from the very beginning of
the job. Different types of projects benefit differently from that project, or from that process. If you have a project that's very
prototypical, prototypical hotel, or a prototypical drugstore, or something that gets built almost the same way over and over and over
again, the value of that pre-con process is not as high as it would be as if you've got a one-of-a-kind hundred million dollar, very
sophisticated, laboratory building, right? And those are sort of the two ends of that spectrum. There's everything in between. But we do see
the highest value of that collaboration when we're looking at very unique projects. Projects that require a lot of innovation, something that's
never been done before, something that's never been done before in that place, even. And that's where we see those big payoffs, in the
Integrated Project Delivery process. - So over the course of my career, I've been able to watch a transition in project deliver methods. So for
Public Projects we've gone from Design-Bid-Build to Integrated Project Delivery which includes CMARs, Construction Manager At Risk, and
Design-Build. So in the old method, it was a credibly adversarial. So the Architect would put together a set of drawings that become the
contract, and then they would go out and the low bidder, regardless of their qualifications, would get the project. And some Contractors were
great and, but other Contractors we're bad actors in that field. So there was actually Estimators that would do what's called The Gray
Areas. So there's no such thing as a perfect set of drawings. It just doesn't exist. Owners can't afford 'em, and it wouldn't make sense to put
that much effort into them. So the people would bid the gray areas and know that after the contractors let, after they got the contract, they
would be able to get Change Orders to make up the difference and get the project built the way it was intended, and that the way they could
tell from the drawings that it was intended. So under the Integrated Project Delivery method, the Contractor is at the table with the
Architects, with the Engineers, with the Owner, from the very beginning. And they have a stake at it. They're selected just like other
professionals, through qualifications based, it's not based on fees any longer, and they're there to help the team and they provide a number
of things. Cost Estimating, Quality Control on the documents, Constructability, and so they're another expert, another voice, at the design
table with us. And over the 15 years that we've been using that process for Public Projects here, it's been amazing to watch the quality and
the professionalism of the Contractors rise to take advantage, and honestly the projects are better, the outcomes for the Owners are
better, the value that they get for their money is better. It's been a, it's been really fantastic to watch. And it was something that the Architects
honestly fought at the very beginning. They were afraid they were going to lose control. And what they found is, is that they have another
partner at the table. And they're able to deliver their services more efficiently and at a higher quality. - So as we heard, a common issue
under Design-Bid-Build is finding out that the project's going to cost way more than the Owner's budgeted, or it's going to take longer to build
than they expected. And as materials and methods have become more complex and structures have become more complicated and
diverse, we've seen a rise in these issues. Now why is this? Again, quite simply, the Architect is just already being tasked with keeping up
with more and more regulatory issues. And they're faced with Owners that are demanding more sophisticated structures. They just can't be
expected to keep up with the ever-changing costs and methods of construction. This is where the Construction Manager is being pulled in to
lend their expertise on things like Cost and Constructability, early on in the design phase. So in these scenarios, which I'm going to refer to
as Integrated Project Delivery Methods, the General Contractor's brought into the project at the same time as the Design Team, and they're
paid to work wit the Design Team to help develop a Project Plan that's buildable and'll meet the budgeting constraints. In these methods of
project delivery a Construction Manager who works for the General Contractor, gets tasked as that Master Builder. And they'll work side-by-
side with the Design Team to provide input on things like materials and methods. This really results in the ability to identify and quickly
resolve issues early on in the Design Phase, instead of dealing with them during the Building Phase. And one of our industry experts gave us

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resolve issues early on in the Design Phase, instead of dealing with them during the Building Phase. And one of our industry experts gave us
a great example of how this benefited one of his projects. - One of the big changes in the way Owners go out and get business from General
Contractors. And the biggest shift has been gettin' away from that Design-Bid-Build mentality where you go out and you do Street Bids and
it's really just about the cost. Really, Owners got sophisticated, including the Government, believe it or not, and they realized that they really
weren't getting value for what thought they were saving, when it came to that money. They were ending up with inferior projects. They were
ending up with projects that they found out, after they put a years worth of effort into it, couldn't be built for the money that they had, and then
they had to start all over again. They were finding that it just wasn't working and so something hada be done. And so really the Construction
Manager at Risk kind of came into the forefold. Started off with a lot of private companies and then moved into different Government
Agencies. And really became the model of how to, how to get stuff priced, and built, in the quickest amount of time, with the most amount of
partnership between all the entities. So you ended up with not necessarily the cheapest project from a dollar standpoint, but definitely the
highest value project. And that's really what everybody wants. So the business school's a great example. We started off with that
project, coming in really about two weeks after the Architect had been chosen. And so in a real true, CM at Risk or a Integrated Project
Delivery model, the Architect and the General Contractor and the Owner, are really partners. And they really start at the very beginning. And
so we were able to find out very early on on that project, that the Skin that they wanted for the project, that the architect thought was
great, and we all thought was great too, it was gorgeous, was going to end up costing almost 30% of the budget. And that doesn't work. You
can't have just the Skin on your building be a third of what the overall building costs. And so we found that out very, very early on, were able
to work with the Architect, and then also with some Sub-Contractors, to come up with alternatives that were affordable and still provided the
look and the feel that the Architect wanted. So we went from this extremely expensive $130 a square foot cladding, to a brick, a very
interesting brick facade that has bricks that stick out and give a three dimensional flavor and shadowing and all this other great stuff, for $15
a square foot for the actual cladding itself. Very, very affordable. Fit right in. I think it went, Skin went down to about 9% of the project. Which
was really kind of where it should be. Those numbers probably don't work if people do 'em. (laughs) But it's okay. And then that's just a great
example of what happens. Design-Bid-Build, they would have kept this Skin, they would have gone out on the street after eight months of
designing and all the prices would have come back in, there'd be like: "We can't do it!" So we got to start all over again. Well this was all
settled in a week and a half. And the process kept on going and the design was on time, therefore the construction could start on time. - This
is a great example of how by inserting the Builder and their Construction Managers into the process during that Design Phase, the Owner
can save time and money by allowing the whole team to communicate early so that the project is in the anticipated budget range and is
buildable in the anticipated time frame. One thing to keep in mind though, is that the Owner does expect the General Contractor to identify
these issues during design, so that when a final cost is agreed upon, it doesn't change during construction. This type of project delivery does
place an additional burden on the General Contractor, as they really are expected to be experts. And this is where the term Construction
Manager at Risk or MC at Risk, or CMAR, comes from, when describing this type of delivery method. But ideally this does result in a much
smoother construction process as all of the construction issues can be worked out during the Design Phase. Now this is one of the trends
that's really driving demand for knowledgeable Construction Managers. Let's continue though and take a look at how some other
changes, like changes in technology, are also contributing to that demand.

Technology in construction
- Recent advances in technology have had an incredible impact on the construction process in a very short period of time. And I think they're
going to continue to drive change, moving into the future. Some of the influence that technology has had on the construction
industry includes things like global positioning systems and lasers to increase the speed and accuracy of layout and positioning. Now some
of that type of technology has been in use for a while now. And it's been widely adopted and integrated into our processes. These days we
wouldn't even consider installing something like a drop ceiling grid without using a laser to level it. This one piece of equipment
increases both the speed and the accuracy of the installation. Now other technological advances though are newer and they're not as well
adopted at this time. So take drones for example. I can now have at my disposal, a small, lightweight, flying high definition camera that I can
use to inspect my job site including those areas that would otherwise be difficult to reach. So I recently wrote about some of the new rules in
the United States that allow us to now start using these machines on our project. And I talked about how utility companies are beginning to
equip their line trucks with drones so they can drive up to a pole, deploy the drone and inspect remotely via the camera. Think about applying
the same concept to the inspection of a roof. If I'm the project manager or superintendent and I want to check the progress at the end of the
day or inspect the quality of work done that day, I can deploy a drone and do it from the ground after everyone is off the roof without having
to even climb up to the roof. And I can record it and end up with a video record of what's been completed. And this is much safer than having
to climb up there and work from a high location. So the list goes on and on and it's going to continue to grow. Obviously computers have
been contributing to the evolution of the construction process for quite some time. And now tablets and smart phones have accelerated some
of these advances. And I think that one of the most important example's of this is the use of digital drawings and documents. When I think
back over the years at how many processes were effected by access or actually lack of immediate access to construction drawings, it's
incredible that our industry hasn't been even quicker to embrace digital drawings and documents. Clients that I worked with and
companies that have really embraced digital documentation will go on forever about how this has had an incredibly positive impact on their
processes. Think about never having to carry around that huge roll of blueprints or that huge binder full of project specs. But still always
having them available wherever you go because they're digital and you can pull them up on your tablet or your computer. Or go even further
and take a look at the latest three dimensional building information models or BIM. These models allow us to move from the two dimensional
plan views that we've always used in construction to a three dimensional view that includes all of the elements and materials that we're going
to use shown in place and to scale. And by doing this we can help resolve conflicts and collisions and congestion. So if you want to see
some great examples of digital construction drawings and building information modeling, make sure to check through our online library for
Bluebeam courses and BIM courses. In the meantime let's move away from technology for a moment and look at how some
improvements are being brought about just through some changes in the way that the industry looks at some things.

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improvements are being brought about just through some changes in the way that the industry looks at some things.

Changes in thinking
- Over the years, there have been plenty of changes in the way we think about things in construction. These changes in thinking have been a
long time in the making, and they have not happened quickly. One of the first real major efforts at effecting change in the industry came in
the late 1990s when a division of the United States Department of Commerce, called NIST or the National Institute of Standards and
Technology, issued a series of reports called the National Construction Goals in an attempt to establish a sense of direction for the
betterment of the industry. Now these goals were developed with the cooperation of industry, and they're significant. And even though they're
20 years old, they're worth discussing here because of their scope and their impact on the industry. One of the things that was so
significant is the level of improvement that they identified as being needed. For example, they identified the need for a 50% reduction in
construction work injuries and illnesses, and a 50% reduction in project delivery time, as well as things like a 30-50% improvement in
occupant comfort and reduction in pollution. These are huge percentages here. We're not talking about let's just get a few percentage points
better, we're talking about major industry stakeholders committing to writing that our industry needed significant improvements, and that they
believed they had the room to achieve these improvements. So fast forward 20 years since these goals were established, and I believe we
are seeing significant changes. We approach the management of the safety and health of our workers on construction projects much
differently now than we have in the past and we're starting to approach the scheduling and management of our activities differently to
facilitate safety. Let's look at some examples from our industry experts. - I can't think of many more industries or professions where safety
has such a huge emphasis. Manufacturing is probably the only other industry I can think of where you have so many moving parts, you've
got equipment, you've got a lot of humans packed into a very small space, and they all have tools in their hands generally, right? So there's a
lot of opportunity for human error and for injury on any job site. And as an employer and as a project team leader, I take that very
seriously. My number one job is to make sure everybody goes home safe, and that is above and beyond meeting the schedule, meeting the
cost requirements, that's number one, and we have to find a way to do all those things in tandem. So safety and schedule and cost all have
to play together, because sending somebody home with an injury just because we had to make them rush to get the work done is not
acceptable. When you talk about how safety planning and safety processes play into the way we do construction, a lot of it has to do with the
pre-planning that goes into the job. On a concrete job, for example, we look at casting in attachment points for the safety rails. We look at
casting in attachment points for the lanyards that people use when they tie off. We look at how we scaffold buildings and how far up we're
putting people, how long that scaffold's up, how long are the people on the scaffold. We look at all of those activities and not just from a
what's the fastest way to get it built standpoint, but what's the safest way to get it built? A lot of times, and this is where you can start to see
the evolution of safety and construction and what people have begun to realize is that the safest way to get it built is also often the most
productive because people work more productively when they know they're in a safe, secure environment. They have less re-work. Their
efficiency, their units that they put in place over a course of time improves because that whole mentality of worrying about their own physical
safety is off the table at that point, and that's what we try to drill into our supervisors and our foremen that this is actually going to make
them perform better in the end, we just need to get used to that idea and wrap our heads around it a little differently. - As a project manager,
another one of my responsibilities is safety plan implementation. Making sure that we are building the job as safe as possible. Safety
includes wearing your PPE, your Personal Protective Equipment from everybody on the crew including the labor that has a shovel in his
hand to myself and anybody that steps foot on the job site. - Yeah, so safety has evolved quite a bit. I think I was lucky enough that I think I
made it in when the evolution had already kicked in quite a bit, but I can go back and remember talking to the old guys 25 years ago and they
would tell me how it used to be done and there's a huge shift from then. But even in the last 25 years I've seen a huge emphasis on making
sure everybody goes home at the end of the day in at least as good of shape as they started that morning. I think one of the biggest
evolutions is the fact that it's harder and harder to say that the large contractors of today are that much different from everybody else. I really
think the idea of a safe work place has now gotten into almost every nook and cranny. I did do some consulting a few years ago for a TI on a
restaurant, and I walked in and I couldn't believe it. I mean, everybody was in there working in shorts, no hard hats, they had a mezzanine
with no guard rail anywhere on it with a guy working a foot from the edge with his back turned to it. So it is still ongoing. It's still out there, but
it's becoming less and less. A lot of this was dictated through OSHA and some things like that, but a lot of it was just common sense. It didn't
make sense. It didn't make cost sense even, if you want to put it in dollars and cents kind of stuff to not work safe. It's just, there's too much
liability now. Somebody does get hurt, it could cost you much, a thousand times more than it would have cost to prevent that, and I think
people have realized that. I'd like to think a lot of the safety is done for the right reasons, too, because we truly care about the people out
there. And believe it or not, I see the newer ways of contracting kind of also being a small part of why that happens. As we have CM at risk,
as we have integrated project delivery, as we use a lot of the new technologies and such, everybody's a lot friendlier, everybody's a lot more
team oriented, and I think that that has gone down to the labor level. It's a different world now out there as far as everybody generally
respects and likes each other now. When that happens, and you get there by not having all of these fights over my thing goes there, no my
thing goes there cause BIM took care of that, or this is going to cost way more than we ever thought, you take all that out, and when people
are actually starting to care about each other on a personal level, safety just has to get better. Because now it's not just you out there, it's you
and everybody else around you looking out for everybody. And I think that's, hadn't really thought of that before, but I think a lot of that might
be because of some of the new contracting methods. - Now scheduling has also always been a challenge in construction and this relates
back to those differences that we've discussed between construction and manufacturing. We just have not been able to apply successes in
manufacturing productivity processes to construction. Now I will say that I think this is beginning to change with the advent of what is known
as lean productivity. Lean is a process for continual improvement that's been tried and tested in manufacturing, but it's also a process that
appears to lend itself to construction. Now some companies are starting to do just that and we had the opportunity to hear about some of
these experiences and their results. - Yeah, so you want to know my thoughts on lean construction. I do think lean has changed, one of the
other things that has helped change the industry as far as how we do it and how we interact with each other, and lean construction, one of
the main points of that is that the planning is not done from the top down, but is actually done by the people doing the work. And so they're
responsible every week to figure out what it is they're going to get done that week. They commit to it. They say if I get this done then the next
guy can do his thing. And the top, the general contractor guy, is really more just there to make sure that they follow up on the
commitments, rather than dictating to them. And so I think there's been a huge change in how people interact with each other out in the field
because of that. When they're not being commanded, when they're the ones actually making the choices and being able to drive the
job, they're happier about it. They're more bought into what it is they're promising. And then, on the flip side, when they don't make a
commitment, they have peer pressure from the other sub contractors, and the other people that were waiting on them, to not do that again. It
still sticks in my mind, we had a plumber on a job I did a number of years ago, the first time myself and my superintendent have ever
implemented lean. And we saw right off the bat that it seemed to be working really well. This guy just would not play. Just would not
play. And every week, in the meetings, how come you didn't get your stuff done? Well, I just didn't get it done. We said, okay, just try this,
please. And it took him just about two weeks and he actually became our biggest proponent on the job site for lean construction. He really
saw the benefit that it provided to him to be able to control his own life and his direction on the job. So that really got me excited. I said okay,
you can see a sea change in how people do their work. And there's a huge benefit to that. - Now, our industry is not one that's quick to
embrace change, and in many cases, we have continued to do the same things the same ways that we've done them for years. But I do think
that we're at a point as an industry where things like technology, new materials, and an emphasis on worker safety are having a very real and
very positive impact on construction. This is certainly one area where continued education for construction managers can really help improve
construction, and I think it'll continue to change the way we think.

How do I become a construction manager?

- By virtually any measure, the construction industry is the single largest industry in the world. As we said at the beginning of this course, it's
responsible for completing the work being done to develop the surface of the earth to meet our needs and the needs of our society. As long
as those needs continue to change and evolve, the industry will continue to grow and the demand for educated construction managers will
continue to increase. Today's construction management professional has to work to stay up on the latest trends and developments in the
industry. So, with that in mind, we'll definitely be doing our part to continue to publish courses here that'll help you do just that. We've already
tackled some of the changes in the industry related to technology and you can find courses here in the online library related to things like
managing digital construction drawings using software like Bluebeam or creating building information models with software like Revit or
Navisworks and you can learn how to manage your scheduling tasks with software like Microsoft Project. So, make sure to explore our online
library of courses and stay tuned as we continue to grow that library. I want to thank you for watching this course and encourage you to
continue to seek out knowledge and professional development opportunities so you can improve your skills as a construction management
professional. And then I'd also like to leave you with some parting thoughts and inspiration from the other professionals who contributed to
this course. - So, if you're the kind of person that you know, stops at a construction site and sits there and watches for 10, 15, 20
minutes what's going on in the construction site, just because you want to, you're probably interested in construction, you just didn't know it. If
you're the kind of person that just walks by and if something clangs, they look up and then that's it, construction may not be your thing. But

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you're the kind of person that just walks by and if something clangs, they look up and then that's it, construction may not be your thing. But
for those that really, really pay attention to what's happening in the world around them at a construction site, and I see lots of people like
that, you might be interested in construction. Don't be afraid to actually you know, go to a construction trailer and ask you know, what do they
do. You know, maybe they'll take you out for a tour. Can't guarantee it, different job sites are different but they might and then you can kind of
get a little better feel if that is something that you might be interested in. - My biggest advice to anybody that's studying construction
management is to complete at least one internship. Completing an internship allows you to put to use what you've learned in the
classroom with what you plan on doing in the future. It also presents challenges that are important to go through in order to understand what
you're getting yourself into when you choose the career path of construction management. - So, some advice I would give you in dealing with
your municipality as part of the development process, definitely spend some time, come down, meet the department. If you have questions
on your project, come in and visit with the department, ask them those questions. Try to develop those relationships with the plan of yours,
the inspectors in your area. They're a great resource, they really are. They'll save you from making decisions that may cost you in the long
run, they'll keep you from going down a path that's not going to work. It also really helps because when you form those relationships, when
they've got a question on your project, they can call and you know, they're a little bit more apt to pick up the phone and ask you a
question, rather than just writing a correction note and sending it back to you. I know from my perspective, I started out as an engineer
designing buildings, never really envisioned working for a municipality but it's been a very rewarding career. I've been able to work on some
incredible projects here at the City of Phoenix. Way more complex and certainly a greater number of projects than I would have been able
to if I was just focusing strictly on the design and it helps you, not only influence the development in a city, but you get to form great
relationships and it's a tremendous learning opportunity. - It's a field that you have to be incredibly passionate about or you're not going to
make it. And so, the people that we know have gotten through the tough times. For architects, the times that you're sitting there and all you're
working on is toilet stalls and designing toilet stalls for month after month, so we've all been through that sort of rigorous process and it's the
passion and the burning desire to build and design and change the world that gets you through that to a point where you really begin to be
heard and listened to and have your ideas brought to life and it's an amazing thing. It's an amazing profession to be able to turn around and
look and see how you've changed the city that you love, how you've had an affect on people's lives, how you've made people's lives
better, how you've artistically imprinted on them your love for nature or for sustainability or whatever it is that drives you. It's really an
amazing career. - There is no other career where you have the ability at the end of the day or at the end of a year or at the end of a very long
career in construction to look back over your shoulder and have such a tangible project, something that you can look at and point to and
show your kids or your grandkids or your best friend or whatever it is, whoever it is that you want to be proud for you, you have that and at
the end of that cycle, you have a body of work that really shows what your career was made of. And I can't think of any other industry where I
could have that and that is truly what gets me coming to work everyday.

So, as an exploit of time in this current quarantine period, I just finished the
course Construction Management Foundations.

I happen to find really interesting a point made here that I actually thought a
lot about as a young professional on my first job as Civil Engineer, the point
being, the take on the industry's new technology advancements and how
these are implementing change for the better in Construction Projects.

I think that once this strange time of in-house staying is over, we'll see more
interesting and creative ideas for the industry arise, as professionals in
construction might have a need to reinvent their product or service and new
technology might be a means to that end.

#constructionmodeling#buildinginformationmodelingbim
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