What is the Challenge WFP is Addressing?
The Construction Owners Association of Alberta (COAA) has identified that current planning approaches contribute to cost overruns and labour inefficiency.
In short, large projects frequently overrun budgets and there is no single cause for these overruns.
The problem with current planning approaches...
Projects today are typically planned to result in Construction Work Packages (CWPs), but it is not possible to build the items outlined in a CWP without breaking those items down into smaller tasks. Field supervision is responsible for converting a CWP into lists of assigned tasks for work crews and ensuring that all required resources and information are in place prior to work starting.
The CWP approach can work well on smaller projects, but due to the complexity and size of large oil & gas construction projects, planning errors are more common and they frequently result in productivity losses. Interdependency and integration issues are difficult for foremen to address.
Typical labour productivity looks like this:
Productivity on large oil & gas construction projects is typically quite low (about 35 to 40%). This number is largely due to resource-related issues.We estimate that "tool time" can be increased by 25% (from 37 to 46%).
From a Foreman's Perspective...
Foremen want to be able to supervise their crews and are frustrated with the competing demands that use up their day. Foremen interviewed in Fort McMurray indicated that they would be in favor of dedicated planners provided the planners had field experience and that the foremen had input to the plans that were developed.
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Foreman Frustrations...
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A Foreman's Day...
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- Too much paperwork
- Invisibility of decision makers
- Confusion about the decision-making chain
- Duplication of responsibilities at multiple levels
- Inconsistency in application of rules and procedures
- Too much bureaucracy in general
- Overload of safety tasks and management
- Chasing equipment, materials & information
- Lack of communication devices (e.g., radios)
- Equipment & materials shortages
- Starting & stopping tasks due to shifting priorities
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30% On-site Travel
20% Planning and Scheduling
15% Direct Supervision
10% Safety Tasks
9% Paperwork & Reporting
5% Quality Assurance and Control
3% Meetings (other than safety)
2% Productivity Monitoring
2% Productivity Improvement
2% Work Process Review
2% Other
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100% Total
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The Construction Industry Institute has identified many reasons for cost overruns, including (but not limited to): front-end planning, design, procurement, start-up & operations, human resources, organization and project processes & controls issues.
COAA Initiatives
The Construction Owners' Association of Alberta is currently investigating several initiatives including: Benchmarking, Field Rework, Supervisory Skills and WorkFace Planning to improve construction performance and productivity.
Construction performance technique development is a big job. WorkFace Planning is just one of a few improvement concepts. It won't solve all construction performance issues, but it's a good start!
The WorkFace Planning Approach
The following outlines the basic idea of WorkFace Planning as a technique to improve construction performance.
Click here to view the Productivity Library and refer to the WFP Project Integration Flowcharts
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Engineering breaks the Design Areas into a series of Engineering Work Packages (EWP) that are based on and support the path of construction and the Construction Work Packages (CWP) developed by construction.
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Dedicated planners break CWPs Field Installation Work Packages (FIWP)
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Responsible parties (always including foremen) review completeness / accuracy of FIWPs
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Resource Coordinators assign resources to FIWPs
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Construction Management makes integration decisions and final decisions on FIWP release
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Foremen execute FIWPs
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Project controls monitor FIWPs
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Quality assurance audits FIWPs
WorkFace Planning FAQ
Click here to download the WFP FAQ.