Anssi Koskenvesa, a long-time expert in lean construction, has seen the everyday life of Finnish construction on construction sites, at design tables and in disputes. According to him, the real schedule problems and quality challenges of a construction project arise even before the construction site. There is much to improve.
Plans are never complete.
Koskenvesa says what few dare to say out loud: “Plans are never finished.” He has seen this in dozens of disputes where plans are claimed to be finished, but a different reality is revealed on the construction site.
When a project is started in a hurry, shortcomings inevitably become apparent as the work progresses. Work phases have to be coordinated illogically, decision-making is delayed, and the schedule is eventually hastily tightened at the end. According to Koskenvesa, the greatest opportunity to shorten the lead time is found in the phase that is not yet called the construction site: It is the careful preparation and planning before construction begins.
"What happens before construction determines the project's turnaround time.”
What if agreements are not followed?
Over the years, Koskenvesa has written a large number of expert opinions on construction disputes. Based on these, the same problem is constantly recurring: Contracts, especially YSE terms, are not followed in practical work. Change requests are left unprocessed, plans are changed late and schedules are not approved. Strong contractors are in practice able to dictate their terms at the expense of others.
"Many projects live behind the scenes. One thing is agreed upon in a meeting, but another is agreed upon between the two of you. It undermines the entire shared plan."
The schedule is not controlled – it is created to be true
One of Anssi Koskenvesa's key messages is related to schedule management. The traditional model is based on control, monitoring and late reaction, but in Lean thinking, the schedule is created in a completely different way: by creating the conditions for doing the work, removing obstacles and supporting the workers.
He sums up this idea in the phrase: “A red carpet for creators.”
This does not mean pampering contractors, but ensuring that materials are available on time, work areas are ready, plans are feasible, work phases are coordinated, and the workers know exactly what is expected of them.
Presence matters
Nowadays, site management is too dependent on emails. Small obstacles easily grow into big problems when they are not addressed face to face. In Last Planner sessions, you can immediately see what presence can do: people start talking to each other, things are resolved in a few minutes, and responsibilities become clearer. Promises made turn into real commitments.
As he describes it: “When a person has to look their colleague in the eye and tell them why they are in the red for the second week in a row, it changes behavior.”
Who leads the planning?
Everyone knows who runs the construction site. But when asked who runs the design, there is silence.
"The biggest problem in construction is management.”
Design management does not seem to have a clear owner. Responsibility shifts from the project manager to the site manager, site engineer, supervisor or contractor.
""It is unrealistic to assume that a young construction site engineer could lead experienced designers and architects," Anssi Koskenvesa reflects.
“When planning is not managed, plans are not completed on time. The consequences are reflected on the construction site.”
Contract work is productive, but the benefits are wasted
According to research, contract work often appears to be better than hourly work in terms of both lead time and productivity. However, there is a contradiction in the agreement between the main contractor and the special contractor, which means that the key benefits of contract work disappear: The agreement between the main contractor and the special contractor is a contract agreement, but the workers themselves still work for an hourly wage. The time rhythm becomes blurred, performance-based motivation is missing and efficiency decreases.
“Timetables cannot be shortened if the creators are not given the same incentives as the project,” Koskenvesa summarizes.
Pace production is the tortoise, not the hare
It is easy to mistake batch production for speeding up work. Koskenvesa corrects this perception: “It is not about rushing, but about rhythm. Batch production is based on smaller batch sizes, smoother progress and minimizing disruptions.
When work is divided into smaller parts, the worker can have even more time for a single work step than before, but the overall throughput is still significantly reduced. According to Koskenvesa, it is precisely the reduction in batch sizes and a steady rhythm that makes batch production truly efficient.
Specialist contractors can only be brought together through trust.
According to Koskenvesa, coordinating specialist contractors is not about methods or tools, but about people. Collaboration only happens when people get to know each other, trust is built, and schedules are drawn up together. When everyone understands their role in the whole, the number of conflicts decreases and the direction of the project becomes clearer.
He considers the multi-tasking team to be the best example of effective collaboration. In this case, the same group does most of the work and plans their own work. The foreman's job is not to dictate what is to be done, but to enable the working group to function smoothly and support their own planning.
What should leadership be?
Koskenvesa summarizes leadership in four basic pillars: respect, trust, commitment and transparency. According to him, good leadership starts with treating people as equals and valuing their expertise.
Without trust, no agreement or collaboration will hold together. Commitment only arises when everyone understands their own role and importance to the entire project. Transparency completes the whole: “When the situation and schedules are visible to everyone, there is less need for explanations and responsibility becomes concrete.”
Prefabrication and synchronous production. That's the future of construction.
Koskenvesa believes that prefabrication and synchronous production form the common language of the future of construction. He sees great opportunities in, for example, bathroom elements, pre-wired electrical panels and other solutions that can significantly shorten lead times.
However, prefabrication will not become widespread simply because it is technically possible. It requires productive factories, consistent implementation, and a genuine understanding of how prefabrication can be utilized as part of the rhythm of synchronous production by project management. In addition, the market must be large enough for factory manufacturing to be economically competitive.
“When these prerequisites come together, prefabrication and synchronous production can together change the way construction works and bring real efficiency to projects,” says Koskenvesa.
Finally
Anssi Koskenvesa's thoughts on construction can be summed up in one sentence: "In construction, you don't manage things, you manage people," he emphasizes.
“The first person you need to lead is yourself.”
Text: Heikki Luukkonen