Create a Resource Management Plan for Your Construction Company
Table of Contents
Create a Resource Management Plan for Your Construction Company
A resource management plan provides a comprehensive outline of all the resources needed for a particular project, as well as the cost of those resources and any potential risks. This plan adapts and changes over the course of a project as resource needs and project requirements change. To better deal with these changes, a resource management plan needs to be in place.
As former U.S. president Ronald Reagan once said, “lack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on my part.” This quote speaks to the core foundation of resource planning and being prepared to maximize opportunities and limit risks for any construction project and its stakeholders.
Resources include both workers and equipment. An effective resource management plan will identify how many workers and how much equipment is needed so that project objectives are met. When it comes to workers, you need to ensure their availability. If you have the equipment, but no workers to work the equipment, work won’t get done. The same is true for equipment. If you have workers, but no machinery for them to use, you’re out of luck.
Creating an effective resource management plan can be a tricky process. With limited resources available on most construction projects, it is essential that you optimize on them as best you can. Let’s take a look at a few tips that can help you create a successful resource management plan that will deliver amazing results.
Tips for Resource Management
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Identify the milestones and deadlines for your project that have been agreed upon by all parties. There is no point in creating a resource management plan if you don’t have a set project plan.
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Use your experience and judgment from past projects to calculate how many resources you will need. There will likely be a list of already identified resources, but it’s always a good idea to go over the possibility of a need for more resources.
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Always ensure approval of resource allocation before a project starts.
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Take into account any special limitations or issues that may arise, such as vehicle access.
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Optimize your resources by having workers work on succession tasks. In other words, get rid of any downtime!
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Respond to potential conflicts right away. The faster you respond, the more likely you are to avoid them.
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If you do run into a conflict that you can’t avoid, such as resource competition between two projects, deal with it quickly. This way, you can obtain additional resources before it becomes a bigger issue.
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Detail and precision are everything! The more detailed and clear your resource management plan is, the more you’ll be able to maximize your resources.
As you can see, resource management and planning is crucial to the success of construction projects. By investing in the development of a quality resource management plan and technology, you can better utilize all your resources and achieve amazing end results.
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