For construction companies, ensuring a bright future involves impressing their clients, from the start of a project to its end. It means a well-thought-out plan and accurate quote during the bidding process can catch a client’s interest. These are some of the keys to successful construction. While the construction project is underway, some ways to earn the client’s trust are through the efforts of your construction crew, an organized operation, regular reports, and staying within budget and schedule. In short, a construction company’s success depends on meeting clients’ expectations.
The client’s expectation from you is a fully functional and complete building with all the necessary components and systems fully-installed, balanced, controlled, and tested. They have standards that you need to meet, and as someone in charge of the operation, it is within your power to influence clients’ opinions. To help you complete and deliver a building to your clients’ expectations, here are some key elements that you should always keep in mind.
1. Know What Your Client Wants
Before starting on any project, the first key element is to know the client. This is one of the keys to successful construction. It is essential to understand the client’s preferences regarding materials, tools, equipment, etc. Remember that there are different kinds of clients– some would say yes to everything you suggest regardless of the cost, and some prefer negotiations until you reach an agreement. You have to know what kind of client you have and see what their preference is. Stay as transparent as you can during the planning phase and prepare different options that the client can choose from. Moreover, never forget to get their insights so you can agree at specific points.
2. Thorough Review of the Project
Another of the keys to successful construction is knowing the requirements. In making a plan for the project, you have to be thorough in reviewing the project requirements. You have to set your goals based on the client’s objectives, and from there, you can develop a complete plan. During the drafting stage, always ensure that the project covers a successful project’s four essential elements– budget, schedule, safety, and quality. Also, don’t forget to plan for unforeseen contingencies. It is necessary to list down constraints that may affect the construction process. Always have a contingency plan, especially when it comes to uncontrollable events such as weather or sudden change orders.
3. Benchmark Progress
When the construction process is ongoing, you should see that you diligently track the project progress. Check on daily accomplishments and ensure that they meet the daily schedule. Doing so will help measure productivity and estimate the completion of each set milestone and the whole project. Furthermore, it would be best if your crew members regularly send in their reports for tracking progress.
4. Post-project Evaluation
You also have to take note that the project isn’t over when the construction process wraps up. The entire process ends with a post-project evaluation. Post-project evaluation is one of the crucial keys to successful construction. During this stage, you go over the project to review everything– issues encountered, solutions, etc. You also have to verify that the building is able to meet the client’s expectations. Here are some of the things that you need to check are present in the complete structure:
- Strength and Stability of the Building – Any kind of building should be stable. It means that the structure should be capable of transferring expected loads safely to the ground. The overall structural components, such as slabs, beams, columns, walls, and footing, should be capable of ensuring safety. These components should not buckle or collapse under normal or extreme circumstances.
- Building Should be Dimensionally Stable – When there is an excessive deformation of structural components, instability may result in wall or floor cracks. This is why it’s crucial to ensure that all structural components function properly, so deflections do not exceed the allowable values specified in building codes.
- Complete Building Services – An entire building should already include comprehensive building services that include water supply, drainage works, electrical works, sanitation, and HVAC services. Most clients want a full-package building so ensure that the building offers everything from water storage to easy access to building services through HVAC access doors or hatches.
- Damp-Resistant and Fire-Resistant Building – No client wants their building to be moist and damp at the slightest of rains. Aside from being a nuisance, building dampness also reduces the life of a building. Avoiding dampness means that great care should have been taken during the planning stage and at completion. Furthermore, codes prescribe fire-resistance as an essential requirement for buildings. During the post-project evaluation, be sure that all the necessary fire-safety equipment and systems are at critical parts of the building.
Conclusion
Satisfying clients always requires hard work. As someone in the construction industry, safe and complete buildings must always be the end-product if you want to stay in business. Delivering client expectations is part of achieving a finished building. Please keep in mind to never hesitate in asking your client the necessary questions. It is also a must to identify the objectives of your client. Although it is challenging to ensure a client’s satisfaction, it is also rewarding to impress at least one client. Being able to impress means that you can earn the client’s trust, which can then turn to more referrals and more future projects.
Never skip on the chance to deliver your clients’ expectations! Ensure that you plan smartly and efficiently construct at the onset of the project. Find reliable partners such as Best Access Doors, especially when it comes to supplies and materials.
We hope you found this blog post on Key Elements in Completing and Delivering a Building to Expectations useful. Be sure to check out our post on How the Construction Industry Will Change in the Post-COVID World for more great tips!
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