A smooth project handover process is essential to prevent project specifics from getting lost in the transition. A construction site handover clarifies the project’s status and directs all partners toward a shared objective. The lack of a defined project handover procedure will lead to misunderstandings, project delays, stressed-out staff, and dissatisfied clients.
Using a construction site handover checklist to guarantee that all your project needs are covered is one of the best and simplest ways to accomplish a successful handover.
So, what is a handover checklist?
A construction site handover checklist includes everything needed to continue with project construction, the project timeline, deliverables, and budget. This checklist can be used as a quick mental health check for you and can be approved by the client or another party to ensure that everyone is on the same page.
A construction site handover checklist compiles a list of all essential things that must be transferred during the handover.
This makes sure that nothing is missed during the entire handover procedure. To ensure a smooth transition, the project manager completes the handover checklist to make sure everything is transferred at the appropriate moment.
Here are the 4 things you need to know about construction site handover checklist:
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What’s In The Construction Site Handover Checklist?
The construction site handover checklist includes all the essential documents you need to transfer to your client during the handover. It includes:
- Health and safety protocols file
- The proposed owner’s manual for buildings.
- The construction diary
- A manual for the construction team
- Keys, fobs, and transmitter controls
- Current data on commissioning and testing
- Every certification and warranty relating to the project
- As-built plans created by consultants, specialized vendors, and contractors (or as manufactured and installed). Or a building information model that has been developed
- Copies of the requisite consents, waivers, approvals, and conditions
- Equipment test certificates for elevators, escalators, lifting apparatus, cradle systems, boilers, and pressure vessels
- Permits to store gasses and chemicals and to draw groundwater from an artesian well
Related reading: Discover how PlanRadar can help you create, find & resolve snag lists seamlessly
What Should A Project Handover Include?
The project handover phase is when the need to delegate managerial tasks and responsibilities within a project arises.
It requires the replacement of an existing project manager with a new individual who will assume the project manager’s function. This task is overwhelming since you need to transfer many documents to the client.
There are several requirements of a project handover to ensure that clients and stakeholders are on the same page and that the project produces the predicted results. Ideally, construction site project handover should include the following:
Planning
A project plan with the major milestones and associated dates will be beneficial during the handover.
This strategy will serve as a road map for the remainder of the project and guarantee that everyone involved knows not only how to get there but also what success looks like.
Make sure the entire project team is informed of the plan to ensure buy-in and a stake in its success.
Start by deciding who will participate in the handover process. Then set a deadline for the handover and let everyone know when it should be finished.
Early on in the process, create a communication plan. It must express precisely who and when to whom each piece of information is communicated.
Budget
An essential component of your project handover is giving your successor an up-to-date budget statement.
The statement should outline your current spending as well as how the remaining budget has been phased in. As part of the handover, be sure to include any rate cards, statements of work, purchase orders, and other pertinent papers.
Project Deliverables
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The best method to guarantee pain-free project handovers is to manage your information and project delivery in an effective and organized manner from day one.
Establish the deliverables needed for handover and create the paperwork for the job’s completion. Keep in mind that the owner must find the end-of-job paperwork to be consistent and meaningful.
Your business analyst will help you at this stage by recording each deliverable’s features in accordance with customer requirements.
A timeline specifies when tasks are due internally and when they are due to clients should also be there. For your team to examine and make adjustments before presenting the finished product to the client, these due dates should also contain a minimum of 2-3 day buffer.
Documentation
You should have all of the handover-related documents available after the testing and commissioning documentation is finished. Your job is to gather everything and double-check that you don’t miss out on the following necessary documents:
- Handover acceptance document
- Operating instructions
- Procedures and templates for maintenance
- Logs of maintenance
- Issues that need to be resolved, next steps, and snagging lists
- Contractual records
- Reception report
- Records related to version control or configuration management and any project- or deliverable-specific documentation are the final items.
Team Introduction
Introduce the entire team to the new project manager. They need to be aware of who will be in charge in the future.
Describe each team member’s expertise, strengths, and shortcomings to the new project manager as you introduce the team to him.
This will assist the project manager in leading the team efficiently and in determining whether any team members require a position change. Better team collaboration on a project creates high-quality results.
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What Are The Steps For Handover?
The handover is frequently carried out on-site in accordance with a final inspection after the contractor has confirmed that the work specified in the contract is finished. The process of construction site handover can be divided into three steps:
- Before handover
- During handover
- After handover
Each step has specific requirements that you need to fulfill before proceeding to the next. The tasks you need to prioritize at each step are mentioned below.
Before Handover
Make a checklist of your transitional components and break the handover procedure into digestible chunks. Explain everyone’s responsibilities during the project handover process, including those who will participate on the receiver side.
Set a completion date for the handover and let everyone know when it will be finished. Make a communication plan that determines the flow of information. The plan will also inform all the stakeholders about the handover process.
Convene on the deliverables needed at handover and create the documentation at the conclusion of the job. Set up user training for everyone, and prepare the handover paperwork.
During Handover
Schedule the handover meeting to discuss what the handover is about and talk about any essential information and updates. Invite the right users and team members to the handover meeting to answer their questions and clarify their confusion.
Debrief consultants and contractors as necessary and provide them access to all necessary information, including accounts, credentials, requirements, and tools and services from third parties.
Deliver all project-related paperwork, system, and record updates according to the construction site handover template.
After you have transferred the ownership, get signatures on the paperwork being handed over to finalize the handover officially.
After Handover
Following up or providing support after handover ensures that the final user has received all deliverables. Snagging is most certainly the most crucial task after handover.
It includes any minor actions that the new operational owners must perform to finish the deliverables. Gather opinions from key players and organize this information well after the handover.
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How To Organize A Handover?
According to Precordia – Social And Behavioral Sciences study, there are several challenges in the handover of commercial buildings. Poor handover results in unpleasant and expensive arguments.
It’s vital to ensure that everything on and off the project is handed over properly and recorded properly because things can quickly get lost or misplaced throughout the handover process.
Several problems arise during a handover, most of which you can avoid with planned execution. You can organize a perfect construction site handover by acting upon the following instructions.
Efficient Handover Planning
Poor planning and a lack of resources hinder your ability to address construction problems and adhere to demanding deadlines.
Cloud-based handover software offers “real-time” systems that may keep you connected to employees on the job site and in the office to assist you in managing workflows.
Prioritizing will be a straightforward procedure for you and your team, thanks to features like customizable review processes and notifications. This connectivity keeps projects on schedule, ensuring that there is always time to address issues before handover.
Create Pre-Handover Notes
Each project is unique, and as the project manager, you have the right understanding of the project’s particulars, prior communications, client preferences, and comments.
To ensure that your handover documents are helpful and simple to understand, your project handover notes must include these details.
Your pre-handover notes should contain the following:
- Project deliverables and milestones.
- Project schedule.
- Budget and expenses.
- Responsibilities of team members.
Adapt To Change
Unexpected problems will always come up on any building project. In order to guarantee that these issues are not left unattended to, you must be willing to change.
Detailed sharable specs in cloud-based handover software enable you to stop issues in their tracks. The finest software for handover will offer customized folder structures that reflect your project design. This keeps everything structured so that you and your team can check for issues and address them immediately.
Use A Data Software System
Poor data can harm a project in countless different ways. Data inaccuracy, inefficiency, and omission are all readily caused by outdated data management techniques. When this occurs, project issues quickly get worse.
Throughout a project, a cloud-based data-software system will enable easy access to and sharing of data systems. Powerful data visualizations can be offered as well, illuminating data gaps and discrepancies so you can address them as they arise and bringing your data to life.
Digital Documentation
Reliance on paper documentation is among the handovers’ most frequent roadblocks. There are significant dangers associated with paper damage, loss, or destruction throughout a project. When copies of important documents are kept in one place but are urgently required in another, it is inefficient as well.
As soon as the paperwork is sent to subcontractors, the principal contractor loses control because visibility is lowered, and the subcontractor has the authority to conceal or postpone information.
According to the Engineering Project Organizational Journal, it is crucial to enhance the transfer of digital data from the project to operations for owners and operators to manage construction more effectively.
Handover procedures being digitized considerably decreases these dangers. The dangers of data loss or destruction are eliminated by gathering all required papers in one cloud-based place.
The main contractor regains control by having the option to provide and regulate access to all data, allowing them to monitor progress at every stage.
Communicate With The Client And Your Team Members
A successful construction site handover depends on effective communication. A communication plan can be used by external teams as well.
Customer satisfaction is the main objective of any project, so be sure to communicate with the client and your team members about how to meet customer demands.
Final Thoughts
A project transfer requires time and meticulous attention to detail, with numerous stakeholders reviewing the completed work. You cannot simply hand over the keys to a project and let others take care of the rest.
Your handover strategy should be properly planned out in advance because rushing things up makes it more likely that important information will be missed. The project’s successor should be in the best position to carry on the work or utilize the findings.
Using PlanRadar, you can design a comprehensive handover protocol that lets you digitally gather all required data and add notes or issues during the final inspection using your mobile device. You can also create the final handover reports in a matter of seconds.
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