Construction is one of the most complex industries in the world, and requires extensive coordination between stakeholders and teams to complete a project. Construction managers are responsible for overseeing every aspect of their projects, including construction designs, budgeting, scheduling, and subcontractor management. If they don’t have a solid system in place for monitoring progress on-site and across all projects, construction managers may find this difficult.
The digital building lifecycle approach encourages the use of data in decision-making. Projects’ overall performance can be compared, examined, cost-engineered, and optimised at every stage, (from design, to build, to building operations) – by using digital project management software.
The construction building lifecycle
In construction, several stages occur before and after the actual building process. These include:
- Project management
- Planning and design
- Procurement of materials and services
- Construction
- Post-construction reporting and audits
After the construction phase comes the facility management stage. This is when facilities managers oversee all aspects of operations in a building to ensure it runs smoothly and efficiently. There are many aspects to managing buildings, including:
- HVAC maintenance (heating system & air conditioning repairs)
- Plumbing repairs
- Fire safety systems
- Building access control and monitoring
- Security personnel
What challenges can a construction project manager expect?
The construction building lifecycle is a series of phases that begins with conceptualization, proceeds through planning and design, continues to construction, and ends with building occupancy and operations. The process can be broken down further into distinct phases such as feasibility studies, civil planning, site selection, project development, procurement, and scheduling.
Each phase has its unique characteristics that need to be considered by project managers to ensure successful completion. However, many project managers face challenges when transitioning between these various phases due to poor coordination or miscommunication with other stakeholders involved in the process (e.g., architects, property developers or engineers).
This can lead to a series of delays and potential unexpected costs that result from having to correct mistakes. In addition, project managers can often struggle with the idea of clearly defining and communicating expectations for each phase of construction to ensure quality output.
To address these issues, project managers should take a more holistic approach by understanding the full life cycle of construction projects. This will allow them to better coordinate with all stakeholders involved in the process and ensure that each phase is properly managed and executed.
Streamlining the construction project management process
The best way to streamline the construction project management process is to align it with the right technology. This will enable you to reduce project downtime and minimize overall costs, while also improving efficiency across each phase of the life cycle.
A good example of this is utilizing a BIM model for early-stage planning and design. By using a BIM model, you can easily identify and eliminate errors in blueprints before they become costly problems during construction, resulting in faster and smoother building processes through every stage of development.
Another way to streamline your construction process is by applying automation tools that allow you access from anywhere, at any time—allowing you more time on site rather than going back and forth between offices or facilities management teams trying to get answers about what needs doing next.
Construction management software platforms like PlanRadar allow you to access all building-related information in one place across the construction lifecycle. To learn more about how PlanRadar helps you to integrate your construction projects, you can try the app for free or contact us here.
The impact of technology in construction management
Aligning construction building phases with the right technology will help construction managers accelerate project completion and enable a smooth handover to facility managers.
A good example of how this can be done is by using construction management software to manage your projects from planning to completion and hand them over to facility management. For example, when you begin to plan your next project, you will see all relevant information at your fingertips on one page: key milestones, outstanding tasks, cost breakdowns, and more. This gives you an easy-to-use overview of where you are in the process so you can make informed decisions about what needs doing next.
Key differentiator to construction projects’ success
The most important difference between successful and unsuccessful construction projects is the ability to mitigate risks and challenges during planning, design, and execution. With a reliable construction project management solution in place, you can better align every step of a building’s life cycle.
- Plan: Make sure your team has all the information it needs to design a space that meets users’ needs—and prepare for any contingencies that may come up throughout the process.
- Design: Use 3D modeling software to build models that make the most efficient use of space, materials, and time.
- Build: Implementing advanced technology allows for an accurate visual representation of what’s being built with each step along the way.
- Manage: Monitor progress with real-time data collection so you’re able to meet deadlines while cutting down on costs and risks
Conclusion
In the end, you must be able to support your construction project at every stage of its lifecycle. The key is to make sure you have the right systems, digital tools, and people in place during all phases of construction so that when you transition from build and approvals into ongoing facility management, everything goes as smoothly as possible.
Building construction and handover is a process that involves multiple stakeholders with numerous touchpoints where mistakes can be hazardous and costs could skyrocket. That’s why it’s so important to make sure that the right digital tools and personnel are in place at every stage of construction.
By assuring adherence to universal design, digital building management tools can enable integrated solutions that offer in accordance with many design principles, such as accessibility and usability. They can provide the adaptability that characterises workplace design for the future, enabling our workspaces to shift in size, arrangement, and resources as teams alter. Machine-readable data is a key component of the rising off-site building trend. Analytics for the workplace can provide information on how various workspaces are performing and which ones should be altered.
Looking to get started with a construction management software that enables you to streamline your construction projects across all phases of building construction? Start your 30-day free PlanRadar trial here.
