One of the crucial parts of managing a construction project effectively is construction progress tracking. This article will explore the essential steps in tracking construction progress, providing a roadmap for project managers to keep their projects on schedule and within budget.
How to track construction progress:
- Establish your deliverables
- Define your schedule
- Decide on how you will track your project
- Regularly check progress
- Regularly report progress
- Keep on top of issues
- Centralise your progress data
1. Establish your deliverables
Before diving into tracking progress, it's crucial to establish clear deliverables for your construction project. Clearly define the thousands of activities that will go into making up the final project. This sets the foundation for tracking progress effectively, as you'll have a clear understanding of each and every task that will need to be completed.
With Sablono you can track up to 100k deliverables across your project. Add all of the deliverables that make up your work package or project and for more detailed tracking you should also assign each task to a specific work area. Once you've added your deliverables, you can also attach these to the responsible team so you always know who is responsible for each activity. Try it for free here: Sablono Track Free.
2. Define Your Schedule
A well-defined schedule is the backbone of any construction project. Create a detailed timeline that outlines the start and end dates of each task or phase. Is it due by the end of the day, the end of the week or the end of the week after? Add your key milestones to stay on track. A comprehensive schedule serves as a reference point for evaluating whether the project is on track or if adjustments are necessary.
With Sablono you can easily add your initial baseline dates to establish when you expect the deliverable to be completed. As your project progresses you can add your look-ahead dates based on the current schedule. And once the deliverable is signed off, add your actual date so you can see how you performed against your initial plan. Try Sablono Track Free here (It’s completely free).
3. Decide on How You Will Track Your Project
When it comes to the question of ‘how to track construction progress’ there are various methods you can consider, each with its own advantages.
Some common methods to track construction progress include:
- Gantt Charts
- Work Breakdown Structure (WBS)
- Critical Path Method (CPM)
- Network Diagrams
- Program Evaluation Review Technique (PERT)
These tools provide visual representations of project timelines and dependencies, aiding in effective progress tracking. You'll want to choose the method that aligns with the complexity and specific requirements of your project – but keep in mind that these common approaches also hold some major limitations...
One of the downsides of adopting a traditional approach is that they rely on Excel spreadsheets as the primary medium to track projects. The static nature of Excel makes it notoriously difficult to track construction projects on-site and in the moment as work is being completed. This leads to outdated progress updates.
A better alternative to this is Sablono Track Free. Track Free brings a real-time construction progress tracking software solution that’s connected directly to the construction site – and it’s completely free.
- Save time by reporting on-site from your phone. Record updates once from the Sablono app and watch your desktop tracker automatically sync.
- Replace disjointed spreadsheets with a single tracker that connects all the moving parts of your project in real-time.
- Understand progress data in moments – from a birds-eye project overview, to all the granular details. You can even filter your view by deliverable, and add supporting documents, photos and notes.
- Invite your team to 2X your productivity. Tired of chasing for updates? Collaborate with your subcontractors and project partners seamlessly from a single source of truth.
Whether you’re tracking Piling, Fitout, Facades, Prefab package, Structural work, Firestopping or the entire project – Track Free makes reporting progress simple. Try Track Free.
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4. Regularly Check Progress
Consistent monitoring is essential for successful project management. Regularly check the progress of each task against the established schedule. Identify any deviations from the plan and address them promptly. This proactive approach allows for quick course corrections, preventing minor issues from escalating into major setbacks.
Keep in mind that as your priorities change, you’ll need to adjust your view of your project. Maybe the commercial manager wants to know which deliverables trades have completed so far, or maybe you need to understand what the two-week look ahead plan will look like to report on in your next progress meeting.
With Sablono Track Free you can filter your view by team, work package or date to clearly see what’s done and what’s yet to be completed according to what’s important to you at the time.
5. Regularly Report Progress
Communication is key in construction project management. Establish a routine for reporting progress to stakeholders, team members, and other relevant parties. Provide detailed updates on completed tasks, ongoing activities, and any challenges encountered. Transparent communication fosters collaboration and ensures that everyone involved is on the same page regarding project status.
With Sablono Track Free, you can quickly and easily update the activity status of each of your deliverables right from your phone, which means that you can even report progress from the site. Mark as ‘delivered/confirmed’, ‘started’ or ‘rejected’ to clearly report what’s done and what’s not done. These are colour-coded to help you easily visualise how your work package is progressing. Try Track Free for free here.
6. Keep on Top of Issues
Construction projects are prone to unforeseen challenges. Stay vigilant and address issues as soon as they arise to prevent blockers and delays. Whether it's a supply chain disruption, weather-related delays, or on-site complications, prompt resolution is crucial. Implement a robust issues management system to document, assess, and resolve challenges efficiently.
Track Free allows you to flag issues as soon as they arise anytime, anywhere right from the Track Free app. Because all your progress data sits in one place, it is easy to see the potential impacts of a defect, not just on one aspect of the job but the entire job site.
It also allows you to instantly understand the knock-on effect that defects have on the other parts of your construction project. And you can even add additional notes and photos to provide further context for project stakeholders. Get Track Free.
7. Centralise Your Progress Data
Centralising progress data streamlines the tracking process. Utilise project management software or a centralised platform to consolidate all relevant information. This ensures that stakeholders can access real-time updates, minimizing the risk of miscommunication or outdated information. A centralised system also facilitates providing fast access to insights that can inform decision-making.
Track Free allows you to invite your team members to replace multiple trackers with a single version of the truth. When Track Free is used across your project, there’s no need to update trackers manually or chase after information. All information is connected so any updates made by your team will automatically show in your tracker to give you true clarity.
How to Track Construction Progress: Conclusion
In conclusion, construction progress monitoring is a multifaceted process that requires careful planning and execution. By establishing clear deliverables, defining a comprehensive schedule, selecting suitable tracking methods, and staying vigilant in monitoring and reporting, you can navigate the complexities of construction projects with greater efficiency and success.
Sablono Track Free makes tracking construction progress simple. Try it for free here.
