Planning successful construction projects during the new normal

With delivery delays, quarantine regulations and insolvencies, the coronavirus pandemic has had a noticeable impact on the construction industry. Building projects are in danger of remaining unfinished and many constructors have unanswered questions: Can I finish my construction project on time without enormous additional costs? Is there any point in building new office buildings if working from home will win out in the long term? What safety measures will need to be observed on the construction site? There's no avoiding it: the coronavirus is impacting the way in which building projects are planned and managed.

Article from the dossier " TheWorkplace Reloaded" by Dierk Mutschler, Member of the Executive Board, Drees & Sommer SE

Space is the new quality

Today, if you built an office building with enough room for 500 desks in pre-coronavirus times, that number would have to be revised due to the current measures being taken – such as new social distancing rules and hygiene regulations that apply to desk-sharing arrangements. At the same time, some plans for conference rooms in office buildings will have to be redesigned to incorporate new audio-visual equipment.

As the above examples show, new and ongoing construction projects no longer have the right specifications. Constructors would be well advised to rethink any decisions made prior to the coronavirus and re-evaluate every project. The main question that needs to be answered is: is my building equipped for the new normal and will it be pandemic-ready in future? Another positive aspect of this period of downtime is that the coronavirus has put a new spotlight on digitization and sustainability. It forces us to ask: what is my digitization strategy? How can I implement sustainability initiatives under these new circumstances?

Business and work tasks are moving into the digital space, a fact that needs to be taken into account when planning office buildings. Future workers will expect digital services, which means that companies who don't ask themselves what digital infrastructure and processes are needed well before construction kicks off – or fail to integrate them into plans or roll them out properly – risk getting themselves into expensive and time-consuming extra rounds of work. And the same goes for areas like health and safety. The employees of the future will assign more importance to things like having a sustainable and healthy working and living environment. In other words, digitization and sustainability will be key for any future-proof construction.

Now it's time for a break

That's right. If you're currently planning or doing a construction project, you should take a moment to apply the "Soulware Software Hardware Programming" principle. At its core, it asks constructors to look at their building project through the lens of a holistic business strategy.

'Soulware' means: in what specific ways will core business processes change in the new normal? How can the construction industry adapt to implement this in the best way? For example, the coronavirus has fundamentally changed people's habits, mindset and priorities.

'Software' means: people are practising social distancing, working from home – and increasingly using digital tools – and using more video conferencing. So, a constructor building a new office might need to provide more video conferencing capability as well as installing fewer desks. Once these issues have been thought through, the next step is to establish what software is needed to meet requirements.

'Hardware' means: do our network connections need to be more powerful? Or do we need a new ventilation system because of the reduced number of desks? Once these issues have been properly assessed, the hardware and technology should be adapted accordingly.

'Programming' means: if it turns out that 40 per cent of workers work from home – or express a preference for working from home – will workstations need less technical equipment? Conversely, employers will need to ensure that employees can do their work just as well from home. It's therefore crucial to set aside time before each project begins to work through these scenarios. Doing so will ensure that the building specifications and layout are suitable for the new normal, setting you up for a successful project.

Rely on tried-and-tested knowledge

Whether you're working on an ongoing project or a brand new one, some things are just as relevant as they were before the coronavirus. For example: if possible, you should invite tenders as early as possible, avoid awarding short-term contracts and allow enough time for the trades in between awarding the contract and the start of work. The more detailed the planning during the tendering process, the more certainty you have over costs. It's also helpful to publish the key requirements during the tendering process so that the firms and service providers doing the work will at least have them on their radar from the start. Another useful thing to do at this point is to start strategic procurement. The instrument that Drees & Sommer has developed for large-scale construction projects combines market knowledge about building prices, building processes, company capacity or bidding behaviour with procurement knowledge from experts in large companies in the sector. That includes assessing clients of upcoming projects on their ability to adapt to the way that the coronavirus has changed the workplace and the economy as flexibly as possible.

Like an engine where the cogs fit together seamlessly

If you want to successfully manage a building project in the 'new normal', it's more important than ever to have basic risk management in place to help identify what the project-specific coronavirus risks are.

Taking concrete preventative measures can reduce the risk of the disease entering the site and spreading. These include on-site precautions such as maintaining social distancing rules, mandatory mask-wearing, doing digital meetings and hygiene regulations for construction or sanitary containers. Outlining what the specific risk scenarios are in advance and providing instructions on what to do will ensure that everyone on the site will be confident in handling the risk.

If a case of the coronavirus does occur despite the precautionary measures, there needs to be a clear system for reporting and passing information on. Everyone working on the project has to be clear about what tasks they need to cover and what system is in place regarding replacement workers and compensation. There also has to be a plan B in case borders are closed again, foreign workers can't travel to the site and deliveries of materials can't be made. In this situation, it's important to be able to adapt quickly because the different trades working on a building site operate in close collaboration like interlocking cogs in an engine. Otherwise, there's a risk of bottlenecks disrupting the entire project.

Using BIM to simulate meetings, construction and assembly processes

Before a single stone has been laid on a construction site, BIM enables a digital model of the future building to be created – at incredible detail if need be. The model doesn't just include geometric data but also keeps track of a whole range of specifications, such as materials and fire protection. In an ideal world, all parties involved in the construction will have round-the-clock access and can log their progress. Or, to put it another way, the building being worked on will have a twin that lives in the digital world. This is especially useful during the coronavirus, as it removes the need for constant person-to-person interactions by enabling all the trades to reach agreements in a smooth, natural way.

For example, if a planner using the model needs to change a building component – which might be down to delivery problems caused by the coronavirus – then it is automatically applied across all components of the same type. If the plans no longer fit each other, any discrepancies are picked up before the construction phase, where they could lead to expensive delays. The testing results of the models will display planning errors, which makes the planning process as watertight as possible.

However, the bottom line is: even the smartest construction project won't go anywhere if there are countless software interfaces, tedious procedures for reaching agreements and acquiring approval, and opaque communications processes.

In a nutshell: it's all about finding the right mix. The keys to successful construction projects in this brave new world of coronavirus working will be solid specialist knowledge and knowing how to combine analog with digital methods and tools.

After completing a civil engineering degree at the University of Stuttgart, Dierk Mutschler joined Drees & Sommer as a project manager in 1991. Using his expertise in cost planning and control, he worked over a long period to develop Drees & Sommer's advanced systems in that area. Since joining the board in 2008, Dierk has been responsible for the global project management and consulting business and for the operational business of the Drees & Sommer group. In his position as Member of the Executive Board, he is responsible for the areas of building performance, infrastructure and strategic acquisition and is working intensively to grow Drees & Sommer's business into other sectors.

Dierk Mutschler
Partner and Member of the Executive Board, Drees & Sommer SE

Dossier „The Workplace reloaded“

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated many developments that were bound to impact the real estate industry sooner or later—particularly in terms of digitalization and sustainability. One thing is certain: offices will continue to exist and remain essential. In our dossier "Workplace Reloaded," we explore what defines these spaces, which aspects will be crucial for future workplaces, and how they will impact everyone connected to them through numerous articles and interviews.

Learn more