Construction during quarantine: problems and solutions

The self-isolation regime may resume in the near future! Let's look at a real-world example of how builders meet contractual obligations despite restrictions. Don't forget to like and subscribe to the channel!

Andrey Ilyin, performer FORUMHOUSE exchanges, in September finished object - the box of a two-story house. A year earlier, this order would not have caused difficulties for the contractor and did not interest our editorial office, but the work fell out in the midst of self-isolation. Let's look at the difficulties encountered and the solutions that Andrey applied.

Briefly about the order

The customer required a two-storey cottage with a total area of 120 m2 without interior decoration - only a box with a roof. Work budget - from 750 thousand up to 1 million rubles.

Design features:

foundation - insulated Swedish plate;
walls - aerated concrete blocks D500;
interfloor overlap - concrete monolithic;
attic floor - wood;
the roof is hip, the attic is cold, the roof is metal.

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The list of works also included:

laying of external networks - sewerage, water supply, electricity;
production of a concrete monolithic staircase;
laying of partitions.

About the customer

The customer is a responsible and scrupulous person. He put forward strict requirements for adherence to technology during the construction of the facility and timing. It would seem that you can sign a contract and accept work at the appointed time, but the customer is included in the category of "difficult clients". He had additional wishes, which were as follows: “Please indicate the composition of the brigades. It is important that employees understand and know how to speak Russian. I will be present at the construction site on a regular basis and I do not want to have a language barrier with the performers. "

FH comment: Here, in addition to technical requirements, total control by the customer was also added. On the one hand, additional control is good, but on the other, it is clear that adjustments will be constantly made to the course of work. As usual, the controller in the person of the customer will not walk silently, and in the absence of the foreman, he will interfere in the production process, give advice and instructions. This factor will keep the team on their toes, which is fraught with conflict. The client can be understood, he builds once and for himself: a high-quality house is his natural desire.

But Andrey has experience of interacting with both employees and customers, and even before the start of work he solved the emerging problem. He agreed with the client that the latter would not interfere in the affairs of the team, give orders, and make adjustments to work processes. All technological subtleties are discussed before the start of a certain stage of work, as they say - while on the shore.

The final agreements were made at the end of 2019. The start of work was scheduled for March-April 2020 - everything depended on the weather, but it did not disappoint.

Start of work and start of quarantine

At the end of March, a team of four began construction. The task of this four was the laying of communications and the cocking of the USHP. At this stage, everything went without incident, as usual. USHP, UFF, slab foundations, houses made of aerated concrete blocks - this is Andrey's main specialization; trained specialists work for him in this direction. The foundation was completed on time and it was necessary to move to the walls, but here the first problem surfaced.

The fact is that Andrey's staff consists of 50% of guest workers, residents of the Central Asian republics and Ukraine. During the construction season, they are located in Russia, and in the off-season, most of them go home - this is a common practice. The borders were closed in connection with the pandemic and experts from the near abroad could not come. This was an unpleasant surprise - the deadlines were running out, and there was no one to work.

Help FH: In April-May 2020, a difficult situation developed on the construction services market - there was work, but there were not enough craftsmen, the facilities were empty. The labor shortage led to a natural rise in prices. And also the situation with the pandemic, complicated by currency fluctuations, led to the fact that the prices of some building materials rose to 25%, while the delivery times also increased. Contractors who entered into contracts before the introduction of the self-isolation regime lost income due to the situation.

Andrey had to improvise on the spot. The solution was to hire a team from the side to lay the walls. The decision is correct, but not everything is so simple here: there were still workers, but there were no specialists among them. For this reason, the first pancake came out lumpy. The hired team began to lay the block in the wrong way, but as they can. And they know how to score a C, which does not suit both the contractor and the customer. The hired builders failed at the very first checkpoint, laying only a dozen blocks. The customer did not like the seams, in connection with which the blocks were dismantled, and would-be workers were sent home.

Reference FH: The labor of guest workers provides 7-8% of Russia's GDP. The number of legal and illegal labor migrants is about 10% of the country's labor force. In 2019, 3.2 million people were involved in construction sites, of which 1.8 million (data from Rosstat) are foreigners. Up to 70% of them have no higher or secondary specialized education and are engaged in low-skilled labor.

Express training

They also did not grow together with the second brigade - the quality of their work did not meet the requirements, but at least they tried, work was important for them. Andrei did not make another replacement and made a decision - to train people right at the facility. To begin with, he spoke with the foreman, voiced the weaknesses of his team. The foreman listened to criticism and exchanged two people for new workers. Then the educational process began. It is worth noting that guests from Central Asia do not speak good Russian, but I perfectly understand illustrative examples.

With the help of photographs and videos, Andrey taught the team his quality standards, technology and the subtleties of working with aerated concrete. With them I had to pronounce every step in detail, control every movement. Here, oddly enough, the constant presence of the customer helped the business: enhanced control minimizes errors and shortcomings. Employees, in turn, were imbued with the idea of quality, were scrupulous about details, and acquired knowledge. This bore fruit and the construction of the facility continued.

FH comment: The construction business is based on specialists, and their shortage can be compared to the lack of hands. In such a situation, it is necessary either to freeze the construction site, or to quickly prepare personnel. But not everyone can teach. Here you need to have pedagogical skills, patience and, moreover, to spend time resources. Andrey had the only winning way - to train specialists on the spot and he successfully coped with the task.

Interruptions in building materials

Large construction networks were working and delivering everything needed. Concrete and bulk materials were also delivered on call. Little things were bought with a large margin, since some chains take back unprocessed material. But problems still arose, since something was always missing at the construction site.

Downtime happened due to specific materials, for example, there was no vapor barrier for the roof and had to wait for it. But in general, accurate calculation and purchase with a margin allowed the project to be completed on time. The construction budget went a little beyond the limits, but this is not due to the pandemic, but to the increase in prices for building materials and additional work.

Experience paid off

Walls and ceilings have been completed with roofing work ahead. Andrey had already planned to invite outside roofers, but the team expressed a desire to make the roof as well. They already had some experience in roofing work, all that remained was to improve their qualifications and perform the work according to the presented standards, which, by the way, were high. Here everything began to twist according to the already familiar pattern. Then there was the installation of the attic floor and the construction of the roof. The object is finished and ready for delivery!

Customer assessment

And what about the customer, how did he evaluate the result of the work, and what was the result, because the construction process was accompanied by difficulties? His score was 9/10 points. As Andrey says, there is no such thing as an ideal construction site, but this one turned out to be almost perfect.

What did you have to sacrifice?

The crisis does not pass without leaving a trace, and in this case, it caused damage. Andrey donated part of his earnings in order to complete the project on time and fulfill contractual obligations. The fact is that during the pandemic, hired builders themselves increased their salaries, they did this due to the increased demand for services. The contractor covered the difference out of his own pocket.

Conclusion

There are no hopeless situations, and any crisis is just a set of problems to be solved. You can work in any conditions, if you wish. Explore the days of the NEP, when the country was in ruin and rampant crime, and taxes reached 70%. Businessmen of the time would have looked at the COVID-19 pandemic with a smile.

The accumulated experience allowed Andrey to work successfully in conditions of a shortage of good craftsmen. For self-isolation, he trained three teams, which in a short time grew to qualified specialists. In business, the one who quickly solves problems survives!

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