Communication on a building site is key if progress is to be made efficiently and costly delays and mistakes avoided. The consequences of poor communication are all too evident on project sites. It is not uncommon to find workers sitting idly by because they were not informed that there was a delay in the delivery of fittings they were to install. No one bothered to pass on the information. On another site fitting progresses well on a wall that was to be relocated and again no one passed on the information on time leading to waste of both manpower and materials.
Site delays like this are costly to the sub-contractors and main contractor alike if a proper communication system has not been setup. So what do you need to do?
The first thing you need is a communication plan that caters for emergencies or unforeseen events with clear details on who is in-charge of what. This is especially true given the need to have an action plan in case of accidents. It could actually save lives.
The other thing to consider is regular meetings as the need dictates. No one likes pointless meetings so schedule this as key milestones are reached at the very least. This could be weekly or fortnightly
We all know that the smart phone is here to stay so use it. Simple apps like whatsup or even sms’s can be used to pass on critical time conscious messages by simply creating a group. Its amazing what kids can teach us about efficiency and effectiveness when it comes to communication.
Its amazing what can be saved by simply improving communication channels. Faster project completion and elimination of costing delays that can be translated to actual monetary benefits.
