CIOB publishes time management guide for builders

The ‘Guide to Good Practice in the Management of Time in Complex Projects’ is written by an international team of experts and led by CIOB past president Keith Pickavance.

Pickavance said: “Time Management in construction projects is critical. Delayed completion affects IT, process plant, oil and gas, civil engineering, and in fact it affects all industries, in all countries, and the bigger the project, the more damage delayed completion causes to costs, and reputation. Complex projects in particular require an analytical approach if they are to succeed. Until now there has been no guidance produced on how to manage time pro-actively, and effectively on complex projects.”

The 176-page guide comes after CIOB research in 2007/08 found that 67% of complex buildings are finished late. Of those late, 18% more than six months late and a further 13% were more than three months late. In two-thirds of the cases, the contractor was held primarily responsible.

Following this research, the CIOB embarked upon a five year strategy to provide standard education, training, and accreditation in time management. This guide is the first phase of that plan. It sets down the process and standards to be achieved in preparing and managing the time model in complex projects.

The handbook uses a step by step approach to show how an effective time model can be used to manage the risk of delay to completion on construction projects. It demonstrates procedures and examples from inception and risk appraisal, through design and construction, to testing and commissioning that show practitioners the logical procedures to use.

The CIOB also plans to develop training opportunities around time management and a process to assess individuals’ competence and the value they add to project delivery. The accreditation programme will be administered by the Institute, through a mix a formal assessments, industry experience and interviews by a panel of peers.

Priced at £44.99 (including free UK postage and packing) the book is available from the CIOB’s official bookshop, Construction Books Direct.