In the construction industry there is little difference in the equipment, material, tools used by all contractors. I believe the real competitive advantage comes from empowered employees applying Lean principles to improve how companies deliver the project and eliminate waste. This e-newsletter is written by Dennis Sowards to share ideas on the 5S’s and Lean practices, especially as they are applied in construction.

Leadership & Lean

An article published in McKinsey Quarterly in November of last year claims companies may be losing half their potential savings from lean initiatives when they fail to have leaders who are capable of implementing and driving continuous-improvement plans.

In the report, entitled "From lean to lasting: Making operational improvements stick," authors David Fine, Maia Hansen and Stefan Roggenhofer found that many companies do not have leaders who can "link and align the boardroom with the shop floor."

According to the report, there are "six habits of lean leaders" that are necessary to gain employee’s buy-in and achieve success. These are:

A focus on operating processes: Senior managers need to show the importance of the key processes. For an example, upper managers should do a muda (waste) walk in the shop and at projects, weekly if not daily.

Root cause problem solving: Managers should not try to solve every problem themselves but expect employees to find the root cause and implement countermeasures. These are great teaching opportunities. Many seniors managers are not well skilled in root cause analysis themselves so they fail to ask questions to steer employees in doing root cause analysis and cause removal verification.

Clear performance expectations: This starts with open and clear performance dialogue at all management levels. Employees need to know the relevant performance measures. They need to see current performance compared to the project targets. They should see the scoreboard. Measures that do not translate into behaviors that improve performance should be open to challenge.

Aligned leadership: Incentives need to match performance expectations. One cannot reward a maverick PM while encouraging teamwork.

A sense of purpose: Leaders need to help employees see how their work helps the company achieve its vision and mission. Of course this assumes the company has a meaningful vision and mission. Being no worse than the other contractors is not very motivating.

Support for people: Workers become engaged when they feel trusted and valued. Trust comes from being involved in making improvements and being allowed to make important decisions. Senior managers need to coach employees to make correct decisions and make sure middle management doesn’t rob them of the opportunity. When employees see their role of delivering the project to the customer and are involved in making improvements they are more engaged.

Source 'Soft Side' of Lean, by Jonathan Katz, IndustryWeek, Jan. 2009

Read more about Lean Leadership in the March issue of SNIPS magazine

CURT Supports Lean

On April 8th, the Construction User Roundtable – CURT will hold a workshop called “Practical Advice for Turbulent Changes in Owner Organizations & Work Processes.” If you are not familiar with CURT – they are our customers! One of the major topics of this workshop reads:

Process Transformation
In 2007 and early 2008, many owners and contractors were adopting new approaches including BIM, Integrated Project Delivery and Lean.
How have these programs been impacted?
What should we be doing to continue improvement during this time?
Integrated project Delivery is a broader term including the Last Planner System.

Our customers are becoming more aware and involved in seeing that we are applying Lean in construction to help them obtain lower costs by eliminating waste. We can add value by leading the way to Lean.

For more details on this workshop contact Greg Sizemore at CURT at 513-563-4131

The Last Planner System * and BIM

“The key in Building Information Management (BIM) is that an interference free model is developed before field work is done on the project. The trades know exactly what is to be installed and where it is to go. When subcontractors commit to completing work in an area they know they can do it without interference from the other trades. Without BIM, when an interference occurred, there was always a resolution meeting to work it out. Work stopped and may times the workers have to go to another area until the interference was resolved. Contractors had to have additional materials on the site so that they would be available in case the crew had to leave the primary work area. This interruption caused wasted time and extended the job completion date.

With BIM all subcontractors work together to develop the model and sign off on it. When an interference occurs one trade must be in the wrong place. No need to involve outside parties such as the CM, owner, AE to resolve the issue. They immediately go to the model that each signed off on and the answer in black and white.”

Richard J. Cramer, Sr.

Last Planner System is a trademark of the Lean Construction Institute.

Learning Opportunities

You may be interested in attending one of these training seminars:

• April 16 & 23, 2009 - Making Meetings Work for You (must attend both session), – Phoenix, AZ – Sponsor: PIPE & 469 JAC, contact Cathy
• May 14, 2009 - Problem Solving Lite (No Carbs) - Getting to the Root Cause, – Phoenix, AZ – Sponsor: PIPE & 469 JAC, contact Cathy
• Sept. 17, 2009 - Customer Loyalty by Design, – Phoenix, AZ – Sponsor: PIPE & 469 JAC, contact Cathy
• Oct. 6, 2009 - Lean Works in Construction – Milwaukee, WI – Sponsor: Plumbing Mechanical Sheet Metal Contractors Alliance, Contact: Dajen Bohacek at 414/543-7622 Must be a SMACNA member company, associate or sponsored by one to participate.
• Oct. 15. 2009 - Introduction to Lean in Service, – Phoenix, AZ – Sponsor: PIPE & 469 JAC, contact Cathy
• Contact Dennis Sowards if you want a customized workshop exclusively for your company

Other Lean Events

• March 25, 2009 – Public Sector Capital Projects: Is there a better way to buy them than Low-Bid? Seattle LCI Chapter, 5 to 9 PM
• March 26 – 27 – Lean in Public Sector Construction - UC Berkeley - Lipman Room in Barrows Hall, sponsor: P2SL
• April 2, 2009 - San Diego Community College District will present their Green and Lean efforts (LEEDS). – Sponsor: LCI So Cal Chapter - San Diego. Contact - Sandra LeDrew
• April 8, 2009 - Nor Cal Lean Construction Institute Chapter, Rancho Solano Clubhouse, Fairfield, CA - 6:00 PM-9:00 PM - Pacific Time, Contact: Theresa Robinson 916.554.7944
• April 9, 2009 - LCI Presentation – “A Primer on Lean Project Delivery” - Roger Williams University, Bristol, RI, sponsor: RWU’s Construction Management Club. Contact: Cynthia.

A Quick Thought

Congestion on site does two things: Generates hazards and reduces worker output - So why allow it to happen?
- Peter Court, “Transforming traditional construction into a modern process of assembly”
LCI Congress, Oct. 2008

For more information about Lean applications to construction and especially the 5S’s contact Dennis Sowards at his office at 480-835-1185 or his cell at 602-740-7271 or at his web site: www.YourQSS.com

If you find this newsletter helpful, please forward it to anyone you know who will benefit from this information. You may help them improve their company.