Setting and maintaining high quality standards on construction projects can be challenging – there are so many moving parts from day-to-day that it can be difficult to oversee and monitor every activity and/or worker. This challenge grows exponentially on projects with fast-track schedules and unyielding deadlines. The project team – Project Manager and Field Superintendent in particular – must determine how to demand top quality work from subcontractors without sacrificing the schedule. The only effective way to do this is to set clear goals and measurements for success via a formal quality program, communicate those expectations to all team members, secure buy-in from all individuals, and then diligently enforce the execution of the program throughout the life of the project.

Case Study in Quality – Avid Technology

A short project timeline is not a built-in excuse for poor execution and sloppy work. Quality does not have to be forfeited to meet a demanding schedule. In late 2009, Erland was awarded a major renovation for Avid Technology, the world-renowned digital audio and video solutions firm. Avid was moving its corporate headquarters from Tewksbury, Massachusetts to Network Drive in Burlington, Massachusetts – leasing 203,000 square feet in three buildings from the Nordblom Company.

Erland committed multiple construction crews to simultaneously manage the

various components of the project because Avid needed its new corporate headquarters to be move-in ready in just six months.

The entire building at 75 Network Drive, as well as two floors of 65 Network Drive were gutted and fully built out to feature a high-tech lobby with holographic displays; conference, demonstration and training areas; as well as executive offices and technical lab space. Erland also constructed a 143-foot long enclosed pedestrian bridge to provide all-weather access between 65 and 75 Network Drive.

The final portion of this project included renovations and a new loading dock addition to 10 North Avenue in the neighboring Northwest Park to house Avid’s stockroom and distribution functions. Erland also constructed a new connecting road between North Avenue and the Network Drive ring road.

Both Northwest Park and the Network Drive campus are large corporate office parks that house many operating businesses. 65 Network Drive was partially occupied with other tenants during construction and the tenants in 75 Network Drive did not move out until construction was well underway, so we had to be especially mindful to maintain a safe construction environment while ensuring daily operations were not impeded.

With so many project elements, it was inevitable that the team would be large and diverse. There were two clients – Nordblom Company, the building owner and a leading private development firm in Boston, and Avid, the tenant – each with its own interests and priorities. There were three architects – one to design the renovations for 65 and 75 Network Drive, one for the connector bridge, and a third to design the renovations to 10 North

Maintaining Quality on a Fast Track Schedule

By Bruce Kelly

As seen in Development magazine

Avenue. Several engineering firms, a relocation firm, and hundreds of workers from subcontractor firms rounded out the team. Erland had to coordinate the overall construction effort by collaborating with each of these firms on individual portions of the project, while also ensuring there was cohesion to the entire project and both owners were happy and satisfied with the final outcome.

Managing Quality on a Fast-Track Schedule

Every construction project is unique and the approach to setting quality standards must reflect that. It’s important for the Construction Manager to have a quality control plan – a formal program that encompasses the base-line quality standards for every project. In addition, it’s essential for the project team to develop a project-specific plan that identifies potential performance or aesthetic challenges particular to that project.

At Erland, we have developed a Pre-Plan Checklist – a proactive assessment tool that identifies every potential quality related issue that might be encountered on each job. For the Avid project, we convened a Quality Team consisting of representatives from Erland, the architect, developer, owner, engineers, and major subcontractors early in preconstruction to complete this checklist. Because of the compressed timeline and the many complex project components, the team decided to build mock-ups for almost everything – from fire safety details and glass office fronts to acoustical panels and all window systems. These mock-ups set the absolute quality standard for aesthetics and functionality and eliminate errors due to subjective interpretation.

While many Quality Teams on Erland projects typically meet quarterly, the Avid team met monthly to ensure the plan was strictly followed. This decision

proved to be vital, as critical reviews and updates were performed more frequently, allowing for timely approvals by the design team, which ensured the six-month schedule remained intact.

Since the fast-track schedule required working two shifts – with very little procurement time – the team decided to utilize “rolling mock-ups,” which are built in place within the building, rather than remotely. They were then tested and approved. Once the mock-up was tested and approved during the day, work could continue seamlessly through to the night shift with the visual standard ensuring that quality expectations were maintained from one shift to another without compromise to the final product.

Communication and Leadership Drive Quality

Preaching the importance of quality is good, but it’s only effective if the project team puts the words into action.

Representatives from the owner, architect, construction manager, and engineering firms must support the quality control plan and maintain the high standards of work throughout the entire project. When the schedule is extremely tight, communication becomes that much more important because any lapse in execution could result in a loss of time. The Avid team understood the importance of clearly delegating critical responsibilities to individual team members so there would be no misunderstandings or assumptions when it came to approvals and accountability. Everyone knew what their individual responsibilities were and the Owner was always kept in the loop – avoiding tiresome finger pointing.

Prior to work onsite, Erland’s team scheduled one-on-one pre-installation meetings with each subcontractor to review the responsibilities allocated to that firm and discuss the quality standards set for the project. The subcontractor’s project manager attended

this meeting and Erland also mandated that the lead field personnel – the individuals that would actually oversee construction in the field – were there as well. During these meetings, Erland’s representatives discussed each mock-up in detail, expressing potential concerns and reviewing means and methods for building the mock-up. This forum also gave the subcontractors an opportunity to offer suggestions to improve the mock-up, express their own concerns for quality, and clarify any confusion they might have.

To ensure that everyone was clear on assignments, we created a list of all the mock-ups we were going to build and identified the subcontractors responsible for performing each component of the work. This list was then posted in the construction trailer and copies were distributed to each subcontractor.

Since responsibility for executing the quality control plan falls almost exclusively on the Field Superintendent, it’s important for him to be involved. Once the mock-up is approved, the Superintendent can’t assume that each subsequent system will be installed correctly. Human error is always a concern in construction, so the Super must continually spot check the work.

Erland’s lead superintendent on this project, Ken Tessitore, managed the overall effort in the field and oversaw the three simultaneous projects. He said, “Because there was so much going on day-to-day –three buildings, each with its own crew working double shifts, and so many project team members to interface with – it was critical that we were organized and diligent. We couldn’t afford to lose any time on this project debating the benefits of a quality program, so we all needed to be on the same page. The entire project team bought in early and, because of the team effort we put forth, we were able to turn over a superior product to our customer on time

– without any sacrifice to quality work. I couldn’t be prouder of the work we did there.”

Quality Starts Early and Continues Through the Life of the Project

Having a formal quality program is important, but when pressed by strict time constraints, the project team has to find ways to adhere to the protocol without taking short cuts. That takes discipline and integrity. Ultimately, quality construction comes down to the details. If your Project Team is organized, thorough, consistent, and persistent, they should deliver a quality finished project, even with an incredibly aggressive schedule.

Project success can be best measured by client satisfaction. In order to determine if the Avid project was a success, we turned to the owner for his impression of the final product. In a letter to Erland, Avid’s Senior Manager, Real Estate, Neal Foley, said, “While this was a team effort from the very beginning,

the uncompromising integrity and professionalism that Erland brought to the job every day quickly became the standard by which all were measured…what stands out in my mind was Erland’s unflagging commitment to fulfill Avid’s ‘vision,’ even though the details of that vision were changing all the way to completion. From the early value engineering to the post-occupancy changes, your entire staff conducted themselves like Avid’s success was their prime objective. That ‘old fashioned’ commitment to the customer is unforgettable.”

About the Author

Bruce Kelly has over 35 years of construction industry experience, including more than 25 years as Project Manager. He joined Erland in 2008 and served as Project Manager on the Avid Technology renovation project.