It is far more cost-effective to discover mistakes while they are on paper than to deal with a mistake in the wrong material. That idea runs through everything in this part: get what your crew needs before the work starts, not after.
This is Part 16 of my walk-through of my book Elevating Construction Foremen. If you are just joining, start with Part 1. This part finishes what crew leaders need to succeed: the right information, safety and quality expectations, materials, layout, equipment and tools, and labor.
Short answer: Don’t let your crew start without the right information and clear safety and quality expectations, because if you start, it becomes your fault. Track materials from the procurement log to the place of work, get accurate layout before you arrive, get the right tools, and recruit, train, and retain your people. Then don’t spread yourself so thin that you waste what you were given.
What Information Does a Crew Need Before Starting?
To build effectively, you must have current plans, specs, shops, submittals, and safety and quality expectations. All of this is collected and reviewed in the quality preconstruction meeting before the work begins. No crew leader and no crew should be asked to begin work without this information, neatly collected, absolutely correct, and packaged in a clear way. If you do begin without it, it’s like touching the ball before it goes out of bounds in basketball. It ends up being your fault.
The preconstruction meeting is your checkpoint, your gate. It is the first time you get to raise your hand and say, “I need the information to do my job properly.” The second is just before mobilization, and the last is just before you arrive on site. It will be a difficult conversation, but you cannot put your company and crew at risk by winging it to do the jobsite team a favor. You should be pulled in with ready information rather than pushed in to have your time and your company’s money wasted. If you stop, you may have to navigate some tough conversations, but you will solve the problem before it flows downstream to the customer.
Why Must Safety and Quality Expectations Come First?
Every project runs differently. Before going to work, crew leaders must know the expectations of the project site and the general contractor. The pre-mobilization instructions, the orientation, and the preconstruction meeting must explain them clearly. If you do not know exactly how to perform your work safely, don’t begin until you do. If you do not know exactly what is expected from a quality standpoint, don’t begin until you do. That is taking ownership of safety and quality. Never compromise either. Know the plan, follow the plan, report all near misses and incidents promptly, and take corrective action as you move forward.
How Do Crew Leaders Get Materials on Time?
Crews must have the materials they need on time, every time. One of the best ways for a project team to do this is to make material procurement the second task of the project. The first is the schedule. The second is the procurement log. Materials should be tracked weekly through the lead time and along the supply chain until they arrive at the place of work just in time. The procurement log, master schedule, six-week make-ready lookahead, weekly work plan, delivery schedule, and day plan are the key tools. Remember, if we can get it here, you can build it.
Take a proactive approach as soon as you are assigned to a project. Ask to see the material procurement on the schedule or procurement log, and lock in delivery dates in the six-week lookahead at the trade partner weekly tacticals. If you’re asked to review shop drawings or submittals, take the time to do a deliberate review, and plan how you will fit a two-hour review in, since the world won’t stop while you do it. Review the shop drawings against the construction drawings and specs. Are they in harmony, or did something slip through the cracks? It’s still cheaper to fix before a crew is assigned. And when ordering materials, think about the hierarchy of controls, like water-based paint instead of oil-based, or a drill with dust collection, to eliminate safety issues up front.
| Need | What the crew leader does |
|---|---|
| Layout | Make sure control lines and grid lines are clear and accurate, and that any additional survey, stakes, or chalk lines are set before your crew arrives. Consider truck routes, emergency exits, fire prevention, safety signs, and gates. If you don’t see layout ahead of your work, ask for it in the weekly tactical or afternoon huddle. |
| Equipment and tools | We don’t lose our money in base tool and equipment costs. We lose it in wasted labor hours. Order the right tools so they arrive on time. Maintain them, train your crew on safe operation and daily inspection, and never make your own tools, modify tools, or remove guards. |
| Labor | Your employer takes the lead, but a great crew leader also actively recruits, trains, and retains people. |
What Does the Right Tool Look Like in Practice?
Joel Hamilton shared this one. When he was a connector as an ironworker, he told his crew leader it would be much faster to ratchet the bolts than tighten them with a spud. Yes, a spud is sacred, but use the right tool for the right job. A couple of days later, the crew leader brought out a new ratchet with a six-inch extension to try out. No bolt was safe. When Joel left that job, he returned the ratchet and bought a replacement for himself, and that wrench is still on his belt. Ask your crews for innovations that make access and performance quicker, safer, and more ergonomic. As Anthony T. Hanks said, “It’s no use trying to eat steak with a teaspoon and a straw.”
How Does a Crew Leader Affect Labor?
I am convinced the worker levels on a crew or in a company are set by the mentality of the crew leader. It autoregulates who hires on, who stays, and who excels. If your crew leaders are diminishers, your ranks will diminish. If they are enablers, trainers, and great mentors, your people will stay. Regardless of popular thought, the people coming into the industry are just as capable as older generations. They are just motivated differently.
Get feedback from your followers. In Work Rules!, Laszlo Bock explains how Google reviews its leaders through feedback from employees, which drives learning and forces leaders to get better. More in Mentoring & Training by Foremen.
Why Shouldn’t One Crew Leader Cover Too Many Areas?
Some projects have a layout or size that spreads crews across different locations or functional areas. General crew leaders, crew leaders, and lead persons should be separated by functional area so the GC can run the project through the proper communication channels. If areas have separate huddles, plans, and teams, the project likely needs a person assigned to each. No leader can oversee too many disparate areas. You can have the respect, stability, plan, information, expectations, materials, layout, equipment, tools, and labor and still throw it all away by being spread too thin.
So here is the challenge. Before your next mobilization, ask for the full information package and the procurement log, and confirm your delivery dates in the lookahead. Then ask your crew for one tool or method that would make their work faster or safer, and get it for them.
Bottom line: Get the information, expectations, materials, layout, tools, and people your crew needs before the work starts, and speak up when you don’t have them.
If your project needs superintendent coaching, project support, or leadership development, Elevate Construction can help your field teams stabilize, schedule, and flow.
On we go.
Elevating Construction Foremen series:
Previous: Part 15: What You Need to Be Successful: Respect, Stability, and a Good Plan
Next: Part 17: Guiding Principles: Prepare the Work, the Six Needs, and Training Your Crew
FAQ
Should a crew start work without complete information?
No. If you begin without current plans, specs, shops, submittals, and safety and quality expectations, it’s like touching the ball before it goes out of bounds in basketball. It ends up being your fault.
What is a crew leader’s role in getting materials on time?
Be proactive as soon as you are assigned: ask to see the procurement log, lock in delivery dates in the six-week lookahead at the trade partner weekly tactical, and do a deliberate shop drawing review.
Who sets the labor levels on a crew?
The crew leader’s mentality autoregulates who hires on, who stays, and who excels. Diminishers shrink their ranks. Enablers, trainers, and mentors keep their people.
People Also Read:
Foreman Series: Preparing And Participating In The Pre-Con Meeting
Pre-Con Meetings: The Non-Negotiables You MUST Follow
How To Identify And Remove Roadblocks
Field Quality Checklists
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-Takt Virtual Training: (Takt Virtual Training)
-Check out our YouTube channel for more info: (Elevate Construction on YouTube)
-Listen to the Elevate Construction podcast: (Elevate Construction Podcast)
-Check out our training programs and certifications: (Training Programs and Certifications)
-The Takt Book: (The Takt Book on Amazon)
Discover Jason’s Expertise:
Meet Jason Schroeder, the driving force behind Elevate Construction. As the company’s Founder and COO, he’s dedicated to taking construction to new heights. With a wealth of industry experience, he’s crafted the Field Engineer Boot Camp and Superintendent Boot Camp – intensive training programs engineered to cultivate top-tier leaders capable of steering their teams towards success. Jason’s vision? To expand his training initiatives across the nation, empowering construction firms to soar to unprecedented levels of excellence.