Leaning on Efficient Project Delivery

Lean construction is by no means a new philosophy. With roots in the manufacturing industry and years of staying power in the construction industry, lean is an approach to project delivery through a set of strategies and techniques designed to help cut down on waste. In today’s economic times more contractors are latching onto lean construction as a way to remain competitive.

According to the Lean Construction Institute, www.leanconstruction.org, Brookline Village, Mass., the process is structured to maximize value and reduce waste at the project delivery level. However, the efforts to manage and improve performance are aimed at improving total project performance, instead of reducing cost or increasing the speed of any activity.



While lean construction is not a technology, applications can be applied to help with the overall approach. In many cases, implementing technologies associated with BIM (building information modeling) can help flush out waste in an organization. More specifically, lean construction can be impacted through 4D scheduling software, among others.

Dawn Naney, program management director, BJC Healthcare, www.bjc.org, St. Louis, Mo., says overall, the construction industry is beginning to see change, as it is maturing technically and requiring new strategies, delivery methodologies, and software tools to provide value and improve collaboration. She says this includes things such as BIM, IPD (integrated project delivery), and lean.

In recent news, Skanska, www.skanska.com, Stockholm, Sweden, announced it will begin construction on a hospital in California this summer. According to the contractor, the building will meet LEED (leadership in energy and environmental design) requirements and the implementation and planning of the project will use lean construction practices and technology to enable the BIM process.