Quality and safety
What can be checked, not what can be claimed
Quality is not a promise in a quote. It is a set of specific things that happen on site, and the owner can ask for proof of any of them at any time.
Commitments
Four commitments written into the contract
The programme is a contract item
The programme is part of the contract, with stages and dates, not a verbal estimate. Delay is reported with its cause and length when it happens, not at handover.
Specification and source are fixed
Every principal material has a specification and a source in the quote. Substitution needs the owner’s written approval before delivery.
One accountable supervisor
One supervisor accountable for the site and one point of contact for the owner, instead of chasing several trades to get a single answer.
Recorded before it is covered
Every item that later gets covered — reinforcement, waterproofing, services — is photographed first and kept in the project file.
Materials
Material is checked on delivery, not after installation
The cheapest moment to reject non-conforming material is the moment it comes off the truck. After installation, the cost of rejecting it is the cost of removing and redoing the work — which is when everyone starts finding reasons to accept it.
So deliveries are checked on arrival against the approved specification, and anything non-conforming is rejected then. Ready-mix is ordered to a specified strength, and cube samples are taken from the principal pours.
- Material checked against the approved specification on delivery
- Owner-approved sample before any bulk order
- Ready-mix strength and cube sampling
- Formwork and alignment checked before the pour
- Photographic record of every item before it is covered
Safety
Safety is something done on site, not a sign posted on it
Most construction site injuries are falls from height or through unprotected openings, and both are prevented by something simple done before work starts rather than after an incident.
A safe site is also an orderly one, and an orderly site is a faster one. This is not an added cost on the programme; it is part of the reason the programme holds.