Construction Curiosities #57
Do you foster relationships, post-project? Or just let them die?
Hey! Happy Saturday! Matt here.
Welcome to the Construction Curiosities newsletter. This weekly Newsletter explores my Curiosities about the Construction Industry. It's meant to make you think, smile, and become a better, more thoughtful Construction Professional.
Hello to the nearly 1150 subscribers, and a special HELLO to all the new folks joining on the MLB All-Star week.
This week the CM Mentors Podcast hit a little milestone and that called for a meme!
3000 downloads (and 365 youtube video views) !
Thank you for all the support you all have given Kyle and me on this whole podcasting journey and putting up with our amateur ways. Hopefully, that’s part of the experience and the fun.
The most mind-blowing part was this stat. It’s now been downloaded in 58 different countries. 🤯
Summary
This week we will look at:
One Musing: Maintaining Relationships
One Article: What architects want GCs to Know
One Meme:
EscoochunShiny Plate
One Musing
This week my buddy Jesse Hernandez, put out a great little video about maintaining relationships and it got me thinking about all the relationships that have come and gone for me over my career.
Construction has a tendency to have a temporary or transient feel to it. You work side by side with someone for a year or 18 months and build a great relationship. Once the project is done, you all move along to the next one. To start afresh.
This applies to both the project team as a whole (Architect, Engineers, Contractors, Owner, etc.) and even internal project teams. Project managers, project engineers, foremen, and superintendents who built a great relationship over the last year or two are split and sent to different projects to start building new relationships again.
Plumbers, electricians, framers, and general contractors come together to work in the trenches side-by-side. Coordinating, collaborating, and building together. They can spend more time together than they do with their own families. They laugh, cuss, and succeed together. And then they just split and go their merry way.
Granted yes, construction is a very small industry at the end of the day. You will see each other again down the road again. So this temporariness is NOT an excuse to burn bridges or be an asshole.
Don’t give me wrong though, I get bored easily. So one thing I do love about construction is that (generally speaking) whether you love or hate the team, whether the project is great or a nightmare, you get to start fresh every year or 2. Bad projects don’t last forever. But neither do great ones.
I’ve said it before (hack #23) but “It’s not what you know, It’s who you know.” Especially in this industry. You never know where the next opportunity can come from, and you never know when randomly reaching out to an old project buddy could be exactly what that person needed in their moment.
I’ll be the first to admit I have been awful at this. I think I am among the best at building relationships wherever I go. But I’m among the worst at maintaining them. I’m going to make a better effort at it, and I challenge you to do the same.
One Article
What architects want GCs to know
Speaking of relationships built on projects. The relationships created between contractors and architects can absolutely make or break the project. It can make for an enjoyable experience for all or a contentious one.
“It’s best when the client brings on contractors for pre-construction advising and cost estimates, so we can include their input during design development,” said architect Kate Conley, partner at San Jose, California-based Architects FORA. “They can offer ideas getting the same result in a more affordable way.”
👆 I agree wholeheartedly. Especially in today’s economy and supply chain clown show. The earlier the full project team (Architect/ Contractor/ Owner’s Rep) can be brought in the better. Straight Design-Bid-Build projects aren’t cutting right now on many programs.
While architects expect substitutions, they feel some contractors go overboard, possibly without considering ramifications. More than half of the architects in the AIA/AGC study felt contractors weren’t always considering client interests when proposing substitutions. Kasdan told Construction Dive that chasing savings through multiple substitutions without understanding the big picture can erode a building’s quality and value for the client or future residents.
👆 As an owner’s rep, this is one of my biggest pet peeves. Contractors provide a “cost-saving” proposal to the owner, Pass 1/2 the savings to the owner, & Leave the owner with an inferior product. But I digress.
One Meme
IFKYK
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