Preparation for Construction Quality Control Plan and Practical Steps to Improve It

As usual and expected, clients are always keen on the project’s progress. Project managers and contractors, as always have been, offered assurance to their clients. Thus, a construction quality control plan is thoroughly and accurately prepared. With this control plan being presented, the client is ultimately assured that they can use the buildings in actuality. On the other note, the use of construction project management software has been proven as a huge help for construction experts in preparing the control plan.

Basically, there is a much more important reason why this type of control plan is essential. An assurance is given that any quality issues won’t ever happen while the project is ongoing and right after it is finished. Anyone who is going to prepare for the quality control plan must have to know the different standards that are specifically used as the main starting point in creating it.

Below is a preparation guide and steps to further improve the construction quality control plan.

Understanding Quality Control in Construction Industry

Quality management is implemented during the construction of projects and quality control is a crucial part of it. For project managers, safety and quality control is representing progressively vital concerns. If any defects and failures occur in the constructed facilities, it can result in tremendous large costs. Even minor defects have a large impact resulting in re-construction and impaired facility operations. Thus, costs and delays are increased and extended.

In construction, quality control typically involves covering compliance with minimal material and workmanship standards to ensure the facility’s performance according to the standard designs. For the sake of its purpose and covering compliance, there are two items used and are considered as the main basis a– statistical methods and random samples. The two mentioned items are used as the main basis of whether accepting or completely rejecting work completed and other batches of materials.

Creation of a Quality Control Plan

Project managers tend to have many responsibilities in a much broader sense. In all construction phases, their presence and participation are vital. They don’t just manage the project, the crew, or the tasks because there is so much of what they do. And also, they are not only focused on deploying software tools, methodical construction strategies, implementation of construction crew management, and other construction management related tasks. Because at one point, they professionally acted as a quality manager as well.

As expected, project managers are also a quality manager. They are in charge of all inspection responsibilities associated with this role. So to start, in compiling a good quality control plan, it requires an in-depth understanding of your client’s specific needs and visions. There are numerous clients in which the focal point of their interest is the quality regardless of the expenses or the time duration. Both parties involved and their specific interests have been properly served by the good control quality method.

1. Organizational Chart and Documenting

Generally speaking, this is the very first part of the construction quality control plan. With this chart, it is easy for the company to specifically determine who is responsible and accountable for what. Preparing a list of pages that entirely shows the detailed flow and process is definitely easier to remember. In case if anyone has forgotten, this chart is also a good reference page for documentation.

If the charts are prepared, it is time to document certifications and other important files the company has obtained. This particular page will be specifying the qualifications of all members showed at the chart. This page is very much helpful when projects tend to be complex or at times when the projects need qualifications since this page will be the certifying basis.

2. Outlining the Work & Setting Responsibilities

Specifying the work is basically the next portion to be outlined in the quality control plan. It is the job of the quality control managers to write all every single defining feature of a project. By then, the contractors will be filling in on how they will fulfill and complete the work. All quality control plans will be discussed as usual. By defining the work, it is also the time to determine all necessary tasks so the responsibilities will be known to all the participating crew. Sometimes, the contractors acted as the quality control manager and they are guaranteeing to have certain direct powers and rights upon the management of the project.

General tasks include the preparation and implementation of a quality control plan, keeping and updating the documents and files, verifying and approving of materials used, and other resources. By using construction management software, the project manager can easily manage all tasks and crew’s activities. Tracking of all tasks and hours of work anywhere and anytime is ultimately easy as well. Tracking of every single project-related task is definitely the most advantage of using such a software tool.

3. Phases of Inspection

A section in the construction control plan has intended for detailing all inspection phases. Many times, a couple of preparatory meetings are necessary to be done before any elements are going to be build complying over specifications and other construction details. Initial inspection for example is implemented. Through this inspection, it verifies testing and can establish workmanship level and verifies it at the same time, re-examination is also done. A follow-up inspection will be saved for the last. In this last inspection, it definitely ensures that the final products have followed certain quality control codes and procedures.

4. Quality Control Testing and Monitoring

Avoiding delays or any unnecessary events that are not anticipated is a part of this phase. Regardless of whether using an automated system or software tool such as construction scheduling software, project managers have to manually check on the work as well as the involved crew. This last section has yet to cover a lot of ground including testing and verification, tracking of weekly logs, and preparing the submittals as well. Third-party agencies are also expected for it will be assigned in another way of testing and inspecting as well including the field and the assumed date and actual date.

There are a few sections that are expected to be identified and layout:

· Procedures for submittals — in this section, involved individuals will be informed of the submittal procedures and it helps them in determining what may happen of the submittal if it wasn’t approved.

· Tracking of issues — this section is necessary for easy identification of issues and other deficiencies. With this, quality control manager can absolutely find easy ways to resolve the issue.

· Weekly log — in this section, sample documents for the weekly log are all listed and identified on which the project manager should necessarily keep. Alongside with the documents are the non-conformance reports, checklists for prep meetings, and weekly punch lists as well.

Improving Your Quality Control Plan — What Must Be Done?

Investing in digital construction processes can be too much overwhelming but it is important also to take note that this has a positive impact on quality control plan. This approach has allows you to identify what needs to be changed or the right amount of change to apply in the almost finish quality control plan. Moving forward, implementing any of the following steps can definitely evolve the control plan for project quality.

1. Correlate Inspections to Future Plans

Often times, inspections are managed in a very reactive manner. Thus, planning this in advance can surely enhance efficiency. Construction reworks can also be reduced. Properly created and detailed QA/QC plans are associated with thorough inspections alongside with schedule milestones. In order to execute this, take enough time during every look-ahead meeting and do the following:

· Identify what work should be inspected

· Create checklists and made it all accessible to all involved and responsible parties

· Determine all items and how each is inspected (level of details, sample size)

· Assigning of responsibilities and tasks for inspections.

2. Having Combined Inspections with Subs and Trades

Generally speaking, a quality control plan for construction is relying all along on the inspections done by the site manager. There are issues made by subs and trades that of course need to be identified and resolved right away. However, in some cases, this particular approach often lacks of accountability on both sides. That is why it is important to implement a strategy that could benefit all parties involved. To be able to achieve increasing collaboration and participation with subs and trades:

· Make sure to have clear communication and share expectations with one another. Include trade and subcontractor inspections and collaboration obligations in the respective contracts.

· Enable trades to execute checklist inspections before the last inspection

· Let the subs and trades to have involvement in the procedure of checklist-building during the meetings. It is also an opportunity to ask these experts to take obligations for the accuracy of the checklists

The above-mentioned approaches ensure both trades and subs in taking ownership for their respective QA implementation programs.

3. Implement a Digital Checklist Inspections

There is so much power in using and implementing a digital checklist. The experts who are responsible for on-site inspections during the tracking process must traditionally list down important notes for only non-conforming issues. This is what it looks like — an inspector will take some notes both for non-conforming items and conforming ones and much even better and with much ease if the working environment is checklist-driven. If there is a swift of change in the environment, it will certainly mark an impactful shift turning to pro-active culture from reactive culture.

In some instances, a lot of project managers used construction schedule software as a way of listing down all found and occurring issues. In some way, the software tool has amazing different features that one can actually do a check listing and inspections. It still a good inspection tool to use if a digital checklist is not available.

Key Takeaways

A successful construction project relies on many aspects in order to achieve a balance of time, costs, and quality and quality control are definitely one of those aspects that shouldn’t be taken for granted. It is by default, known as the particular portion of responsibility in ensuring that facilities and products comply with the established standards. A proper preparation for the control plan must be layout in full detail. Furthermore, for on-site project managers, they should have ideas about the latest technologies and trends in the construction industry in order for them to cope up with the amazing changes and developments that could benefit the project.