Lean Construction implementation

Cultural change is fundamental to the implementation of lean principles in any system. Few people believe that there will come a time when the fastest 1500m has been run or that the existing land speed record will never be broken. However, put human endeavour into a vocational/ systems context and attitudes often reverse. In the Construction Industry, “tried and true” is the common default methodology. “Well proven” and “efficient” are often seen as synonymous.

It is well documented that the built environment is 30% over priced because of built in waste. Removing it requires a paradigm shift in thinking. Lean construction solutions lie as often as not beyond our sector.  

Planning the removal of waste from the process must be seen as the primary imperative with execution following as a natural and trouble free consequence. In this respect, much can be learned from the Japanese ‘dandori’ philosophy.

Constructing Excellence’s consulting team have a broad base of international experience to draw on in being able to train staff and lead lean initiatives ranging from the building of collaborative project teams and structures through to practical ground level initiatives often used as part of project turn-around assignments.

A lean construction tool which is universally applicable to any project and at any stage is Last Planner. This is a great baseline planning tool which is underpinned by collaborative working principles and which can act as a gateway to much broader based lean thinking. It can be introduced at any stage in a project and has produced dramatic programme reversals in the latter stages of projects in difficulty. Constructing Excellence can offer training, implementation and on-going monitoring services around the Last Planner tool and has a dossier of successful project set-ups and interventions to draw on.