Spring 2009

Quality Control Speaks For Your Business

The construction business is a tight-knit industry where word-of-mouth is a common way that contractors learn about the best sub-contractors available. In an informal poll, contractors say quality and dependability are the most important considerations when choosing a sub-contractor and not the lowest bid.

Every business should have quality control measures in place, from customer service, to equipment maintenance, to reporting, safety, bidding and estimating and site work. Contractors want to know that their subs’ quality standards are high. They want to know that there are written policies in place and that those standards have been communicated and are understood by all employees and crew members.

These quality standards not only improve job performance, they increase your opportunities for more business, your reputation in the industry and your bottom line. Your quality management program is also a marketing tool. It makes you more competitive against those businesses that do not have active, detailed polices in place.

As the business owner, you should establish your quality control program based on your own high standards for your business. It begins with the way you present your business and is followed through the completion of the project and your final walk through. Continuous monitoring of quality is the ultimate responsibility of the owner and project manager, but every member of your team should take responsibility for quality.

To assure that you are monitoring the quality standards you have established, you must adhere to daily responsibilities that may include, but are not limited to:

• Maintaining communication with the Project Manager/Superintendent following the site work, your crews, the work in progress, any delays or impediments, any questions or issues as they arise

• Following up with any questions or problems as soon as possible – aim to resolve the issue(s) quickly and to the best of your capabilities – face all problems head on and with honesty – this is appreciated and remembered most of all

• Recording all communication with the contractor, any suppliers, etc. including office correspondence for future reference, so that job history, resolved issues, pending issues and areas requiring resolution are clearly identified

Change Orders

Change orders have become the worst news for all concerned on a construction project. If you must initiate a change order, be sure to do so as soon as you have all the information about the issue, and respond to any additional request for information promptly. Information about a requested change order must be initiated with the client before any work begins. The client must be in agreement of the need for the revision and its potential costs in dollars and schedule.

Carefully prepare changes in the scope of work for the changes needed and the pricing proposal for the work and be prepared to defend that proposal; as it will be negotiated all the way up the chain to the owner of the project.

It is important to maintain your relationship during the process of managing the change order process. These issues often slow down the work and cause a chain reaction of problems, but with effort and teamwork, you can show that your business maintains a level of quality that remains present at all times.

Every job is a self-portrait of the person who did it. Autograph your work with quality.