Construction is a serious and expensive business. In Alberta the construction, engineering and architecture sector is made up of over 26,000 businesses that generate annual revenues of more than $50 billion. There are more than 260,000 Albertans employed in this sector and about another 400,000 who are dependent.
Given those kinds of numbers, it might seem hard to break industry activity down to the level of management needed to see real productivity gains, but that’s exactly what Dr. Janaka Ruwanpura has been doing for the past eight years. Currently the only Canada Research Chair in project management, he oversees the project management specialization in the department of civil engineering at the University of Calgary. Originally from Colombo, Sri Lanka, Ruwanpura holds a Ph.D. in Construction Engineering and Management, and prides himself on the fact that his work actually moves the needle in the industry.
“When I hear from people in the [construction] industry that ‘Janaka is doing great research work, very practical and contributing to industry’ that’s the biggest verification for me,” says Ruwanpura.
“A lot of academics do practical research, academic research, but my work has been used by the Canadian Construction Association. I’ve been privileged to speak to the CCA three times in the last five years, rare for an academic.”
Ruwanpura doesn’t come across as your stereotypical tweedy professor, and he backs up the rock-solid data with a hard-nosed practicality.
“People are saying that productivity has declined and then people always blame the labour,” he says. “That is the biggest misconception. Yes, we probably have an issue in getting the right people, but the biggest issue is managing those people and managing the other things that help you get a project done. The workforce is critical — don’t get me wrong — but there is a limited supply of labour. If we only have half the skilled people we need how do we ensure we get the best output from them?”
Project managers from the construction industry who attend Ruwanpura’s frequent talks on the subject are surprised by the voluminous charts and authoritative data he offers his audience on seemingly esoteric subjects like time spent socializing or time spent receiving instructions.
“I wasn’t aware of all the research that had been done over the past couple of years on site. This has actually been really eye-opening, getting to know what people are actually spending their time on.” says Myron Borys, Vice President and General Manager of Synergy Projects.
Borys recently attended a Productivity Alberta workshop in Edmonton featuring Dr. Ruwanpura, that illuminated 10 strategic areas of construction that have the most impact on a business’s bottom line.
“The main thing that people like me and other people in the construction industry are worrying about is the next boom. How are we going to survive? Says Borys. “Part of it is productivity improvements and doing more with the same group of people.”
Giving managers the data they need to evaluate productivity is certainly part of what Ruwanpura does, but it’s not the only thing. He offers up numerous solutions to improving construction productivity, including a highly intriguing onsite tool.
The Information Booth — or i-Booth — is a tool to improve communication between management staff and construction workers. With 45% of interviewed workers (out of 101) mentioning inadequate communication as a main drawback to productivity, the i-Booth allows staff to be clear when it comes to construction details and drawings, and to be far more clear with their instructions, work targets and expectations.
After a pilot study participant implemented an i-Booth on a large construction site, so-called “tool time” went up 9%.
“The main purpose for the i-Booth is for the workers to know and see what they’re building, for the supervisors to tell them ‘these are the expectations and the targets that we want to achieve’,” says Ruwanpura.
Another solution that Ruwanpura champions is the use of a productivity improvement officer.
“This is the future. Every job site has too many players — we have project managers, site superintendents, foremen — and they’re all working in their own courtyard. If I look at who is looking at productivity full time, there isn’t anyone,” says Ruwanpura.
Borys was intrigued by this idea, especially in integrating older, more experienced workers into the role.
“When you think about it you have this aging workforce. You’re going to have people retire, but they’re not going to want to fully stop,” says Borys. “I’ve got one of my most experienced guys, he’s a great worker, he’s run sites and projects worth hundreds of millions of dollars but he doesn’t want to be a safety officer. This is a great idea.”
However, concludes Borys, one of the biggest takeaways from Ruwanpura’s presentation was simplicity itself. “If you can solve productivity on the micro-level the macro numbers will take care of themselves.”
