Chapter 6

Production Planning
 Chapter 6
Production Planning
 6.1
Introduction
• Project planning of the highway bridge
consisted of dividing the project into
activities and establishing the logical
relationships between them.
• Production planning, however, is
concerned with how these activities are
going to be accomplished.
• Production planning establishes the
methods to be used, the assignment of
personnel, the movement of material to the
workface, and the process of assembling
the pieces. The effort required to plan for
production is equivalent to that required for
project planning in Chapter 4.
• Planning team and Reengineering the
project
 6.2
Planning Team
• Yet studies show conclusively that complete,
thorough, and detailed planning at the
beginning of a project is the key to a
successful completion.
• . Getting the team together in a planning
session gives the members an opportunity to
work together in an unstructured
environment in which every idea is welcome
and where an individual’s expertise can
identify future problems and solutions.
• Many constructors find planning to be the hardest part
of the construction process
• Working with computers lends structure to the
development of ideas, but computers are only
marginally applicable to the planning process. As
discussed previously, the outliner in scheduling software
or in word processing software can be used to break a
project down into successive layers of finer detail. Using
a computer, video projector, and outlining software, the
project team quickly begins to contribute, improve, and
agree on how the project is to be organized.
• There are a number of important elements in
successful planning. First and foremost, the
team must understand the project
thoroughly. Everyone must be familiar with
the type of work being planned and must fully
understand the contract documents. They
must bring appropriate skills and experience
to the team, and their abilities must
complement each other. Sufficient time must
be allotted for the planning process.
• If field work must be started immediately, a temporary or
mobilization team can be assigned to do the immediate tasks
while the permanent team completes the planning function.
As the project plan develops, the team should bring others
into the process. Vital suppliers and subcontractors should be
included in meetings.
• Before the plan is finalized, an analysis of possible risks should
be made. This involves an evaluation of parts of the plan
where things are most likely to go wrong. Questions such as
‘‘Where are we most vulnerable to weather damage?’’ or
‘‘Which material is most apt to have delivery or approval
problems?’’ are used to identify problem areas. Once the
areas of risk have been identified, plans need to be made to
mitigate and manage these risks.
 6.3
Reengineering the Project
• Re engineering is the process of examining a project
and its component parts in an effort to find improved
or alternate ways to accomplish an operation.
• Using the highway bridge as an example, many of the
major reengineering processes are beyond the
responsibility of the contractor. For instance, a
culvert might have been proposed in place of the
bridge with considerable cost savings. The location of
the road may have been rerouted so that a bridge
was unnecessary, but these changes were the
responsibility of the owner.
-Brainstorming, or conceptual blockbusting
techniques, involves a free format meeting
of the project team where any idea is
acceptable.
-The leader of the meeting should
encourage unconventional solutions, ask
people to question the boundary
conditions between operations and
processes, and look at solutions used in
other industries
 6.4
Planning for Production
Planning for Production
• Production planning involves site
layout, arrangement of utilities, and
preparation of storage and
prefabrication areas. It includes
establishing traffic patterns for
vehicles and material flow patterns
from storage to prefabrication to final
installation.
 6.5
Support Planning
Support Planning
• One of the first things to consider is how
equipment and materials will get to the site.
Typically, the route will involve public roads
and bridges, both of which must be
examined for alignment and capacity. Weight
and dimension limits of roads and bridges
are extremely important. Heavy or oversize
loads may have to be routed far out of the
way in order to get them to the site.
• The need for water, sewer, gas, high-voltage
electricity, and three-phase electricity must
be identified and sources found before
starting work. Newer utility requirements
may also include hazardous waste disposal
facilities, groundwater testing facilities, silt
retention basins, and wideband
communication platforms for voice, video,
and data transmissions.
• flammable materials. A traffic pattern for
vehicles needs to be established. Parking
must be provided for employees,
subcontractors, and visitors. Heavy trucks
must have clear access to the storage and
work areas. Specific provisions must be
planned for equipment maintenance and
fueling, material laydown, material
storage, and prefabrication. Fuel storage
and waste storage also are important
considerations.
 6.6
Technical Problems
Technical Problems
• Many projects involve technical problems
requiring significant advance planning.
Problems on the highway bridge include
dewatering of the foundation and placement
of the crane for setting the deck girders. Most
projects involve lifting of heavy materials, so
crane capacities and coverage must be
checked.
 6.7
PERSONNEL PLANNING
PERSONNEL PLANNING
■ The success of a project is largely dependent
on the quality and morale of its craftspeople.
■ Good planning at the beginning of the job
helps assure success in several ways.
PERSONNEL PLANNING
■ Consistent wage rates and benefit
packages are essential.
■ Training programs have to be
implemented.
■ Projects in remote locations require
camp facilities.
 6.8
SAFETY PLANNING
SAFETY PLANNING
■Good planning and the implementation of a
comprehensive safety program are necessary for
a safe project.
■The safety committee is mandated to
implement and monitor the safety program.
■The foreman inspects the project daily,
correcting any safety problems observed and
posting violations on the bulletin board.
■Safety planning includes specific consideration
regarding what to do in case of an accident.
SAFETY PLANNING
■Safety planning should consider a fire and an
evacuation plan.
■Work in high places and activities involving heavy
lifts need to be identified in advance and safety
plans made. 
■Concrete forms need to be designed for safety,
including safe work surfaces, railings, and ladders
SAFETY PLANNING
■Planning should include a process
for handling hazardous materials.
Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDSs)
need to be requested with all material
orders. These sheets are to be placed
in a notebook and made available to
employees.
■Workers are entitled to know when they are
handling hazardous materials and to be aware
of the dangers involved and the suggested
handling procedures. 
■Safety equipment needs to be stored in
convenient locations where it is quickly
accessible when operations call for its use.
■Drug-testing programs should always be
planned well in advance of construction and
incorporated into company or project hiring
and employment policy. 
 6.9
PLANNING FOR QUALITY
PLANNING FOR QUALITY
■ Every project needs to have a formalized quality control
system in order to be competitive.
■ The most important part of quality control program is the
creation of a job-site culture where quality is asked for and
expected.
■ It must be remembered that quality occurs at the workface.
Only workers have the power to produce quality.
■ Workers must be empowered through programs such as Total
Quality Management (TQM) and quality circles to search out
better ways to get a quality job done.
■ The project team needs to determine the required tests and
standards for the job.
 6.10
Material Ordering and
Expediting
• Major materials usually are ordered within days of
signing a construction contract.
• The material delivery lead time determines the order
in which purchase orders are prepared. Therefore,
special attention must be given to determining which
materials will require the longest lead time.
• Preparation of purchase orders must be coordinated
with the project schedule such that timely delivery
dates are specified on the order.
 6.11
Material Handling, Storage, and
Protection
Why is material Handling is important ?
• Material handling is an essential
component of any successful warehouse.
The reason being, a proper material
handling protocol will be prevent accidents
and improve efficiency of your facility.
 Material Handling, Storage, and Protection
• The arrival of material at the job site should
never be a surprise,the exact time of a
delivery should be established in advance.
• Unexpected deliveries are a disruption to
work at the site, and often the only person
available at the time to accept the delivery is
unqualified for the job. At the job site,
• A specific worker should be assigned to
accept the delivery and to oversee unloading.
 6.12
Equipment Planning
 Equipment Planning
• On some projects, construction equipment constitutes
a major portion of project cost. For that reason,
planning the spread of construction equipment, the
haul roads where the equipment will operate, and the
maintenance facilities that will keep the equipment
running are of utmost importance.
• Selection of the most appropriate equipment often
must be modified according to the equipment available.
• A cost analysis must be made of the impact of less
appropriate equipment. Where additional equipment is
required, a buy, lease, or rent analysis is necessary.
 6.13
PRODUCTION METHODS
PRODUCTION METHODS
Although construction projects are
typically one of a kind, it is important to
plan efficient assembly processes. Often
subassemblies can be prefabricated.
Many construction operations lend
themselves to assembly-line
techniques.
• Fundamental to planning production methods is
simplifying each step of the process. This starts
with simplifying the drawings. Construction
plans often tend to be terse and diagrammatic.
• High rates of production require that the details
be spelled out for each step of the work. Rather
than have craftspeople search through the plans
for the location of inserts, weld plates, and
dimensions, this information should be shown
on a shop drawing.
• Instructions should be simplified to
minimize misunderstandings. Instructions
to foremen should be clear, concise, and
complete. Where appropriate, the
instructions should be in writing.
• Processes should be simplified. Break a
process down into individual steps.
Examine each step to see if it can be
simplified.
• Planning the construction method will identify
processes where assemblyline techniques can be
applied. This planning will include the use of jigs, layout
devices, power fastening systems, and mechanical
methods for moving materials.It will determine how
materials will flow through the assembly area.
• On-site and off-site prefabrication can simplify the work
in several ways. Prefabrication lends itself to assembly
line techniques. With prefabricated assemblies,
installation goes faster and the work site is less
cluttered. Prefabrication speeds up the process and
facilitates quality control.
 6.14
ACTIVITY PLANNING
ACTIVITY PLANNING
• In order to assure timely completion of
scheduled project activities, a foreman should
be assigned the responsibility of planning for
that activity’s success. Approximately a week
before an activity is scheduled, a number of
details have to be checked.
• If the activity requires any special tools or
equipment, now is the time to see that they
will be available.
 Tasks to be done in Activity Planning:
• Inspect the work space.
• Check on access for equipment and materials.
• Check that the area is uncluttered. If other work will
be occurring concurrently, work out a plan to share
the space.
• Check to see that the layout is correct and that
support utilities, such as compressed air, electric
power, and ventilation, are available.
• Make sure there is sufficient light to assure quality
work. Check for safety hazards and provide for waste
disposal.
 6.15
PRODUCTION CHECKLIST
PRODUCTION CHECKLIST
Each construction operation involves a large
number of important details. With the attendant
confusion, noise, and interruptions of a typical
project, it is easy to overlook important details.
These omissions lead to rework for which there is
neither time nor money in the budget. Well-thought-
out checklists can provide an excellent way to keep
track of the myriad of details that accompany each
construction operation.
Checklists are valuable for many phases of
construction work. Some examples are:
• Permitting process
• Preconstruction site inspection
• Layout and excavation
• Utility location
• Concrete form work
• Concrete flat work
• Piping
• It is easy to rationalize that construction
supervisors do the same jobs over and over and
therefore have no need for a written checklist.
• Mistakes on a construction project can endanger
many lives. For the inexperienced foreman, the
checklist provides the insight, skill, knowledge,
judgment, and background that would otherwise
be provided by more experienced people.
• Well-thought-out checklists help prevent mistakes
and omissions. They are also a valuable and time-
saving aid to the quality control person checking
the work.
 6.16
Look–Ahead Schedule
What is Look–Ahead Schedule?
• A “look ahead” is a concept that can be
applied to a level one, two, three, or four
schedule. The more detailed the schedule,
the narrower the duration of the look ahead.
Lookahead schedules are typically prepared
by the contractor to coordinate work in the
near term. Depending on the size and
complexity of the project the “near term”
can range from two weeks to several months.
There are two types of look-ahead schedules
• First, from a project scheduling perspective,
the schedule is detailed in a four- to six-week
rolling schedule. This type of short-term
schedule is needed to focus detailed
attention on the specific activities scheduled
over the coming weeks. Frequently this type
of schedule concentrates on the next four to
six weeks of the project
• Second, production short-term or look-ahead
schedules are created by foremen, and show
exactly how the work will be accomplished.
Each foreman is assigned a specific task from
the project schedule.
 6.17
Planning the Paperwork
 Planning the Paperwork
• Construction project planning is the specific
process a construction manager uses to lay out
how they will manage and execute a construction
project, from building design to completion. It
lists the activities and schedule for each part of
the construction process.
• A Construction project plan defines the scope of
work, sets timelines, allocates resources, and
establishes communication protocols. In short, it’s
the master plan that ensures a construction
project runs smoothly and meets all its deadlines,
budget constraints, and quality standards.
5 Steps to perfect the construction
planning process

Initiate the project

Create the project plan
Execute the plan
Track your progress
Close out and evaluate the project
 6.18
Putting the Plans on Paper
 Putting the Plans on Paper
• Just as project planning results in a documented
project network, complete with resources and job
costs, production planning has to be reduced to
paper as well. Sketches, lists, and narratives
record the production plans. This information
needs to be organized in such a way that the plans
can be found at the proper time. When a delivery
of transformers is due, the sketch showing where
they are to be stored must be readily available. If
you cannot find the record of a carefully
formulated plan when it is needed, all of the
planning effort spent in developing it is wasted.
THANK YOU!