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Self-Help Builder News March 2013 Volume 6, Issue #1 >
Focus on group dynamics cuts construction time nearly in half for Utah group
By Angela Sisco, RCAC rural development specialist and Josh Walker, Self-Help Homes construction manager
With spring on the horizon, many Mutual Self-Help Housing program organizations are gearing up for construction season, and looking for ways to improve their processes. One way many organizations are doing this is by reducing construction time. Self-Help Homes (SHH) has taken this approach to heart with a very original spin on managing group dynamics.
SHH in Provo, Utah has completed 276 self-help homes since its program began in 2000, and is currently completing its seventh 523 grant of 70 homes. SHH accredits much of its production and program success to its timely builds, some as short as 4 ½ months. Despite the short construction time, SHH still incorporates energy efficiency, building to Energy Star Version 3 and implements many Utah Green Checklist components. Recently, SHH homes reached HERS ratings of 55.
Josh Walker, SHH’s construction manager is frequently asked how SHH moves groups through such short production timeframes. Below, Walker summarizes what he sees as most significant:
Our improvement has been really a combination of many factors. I'm not sure we would have the same results without all the pieces of the puzzle coming together to work as one. Our groups used to average 1,700 hours of labor per home and take average 10 – 12 months to complete construction. More recent groups have now been able to average 1,200 hours and typically finish anywhere from 4 ½ to 7 ½ months after construction begins. This improvement has been made without reducing the total labor percentage that the group participants perform on their homes.
By having the group participants take personality profile tests during pre-construction meetings, and gathering other data about their skills, preferences and resources we have been able to organize the group participants into smaller specialized work teams who work well together and maximize productivity. By splitting the group participants into specialized teams we estimate that we save more than nine weeks in building time and have noticed significant improvement in group morale.
When you know up front that two individuals have personalities that do not typically work well together, you can make sure they are not assigned to the same task specific team. If you know up front who the detail oriented people are, you can assign them to the painting team or finish carpentry team. If you know up front which individuals are good with math, you can assign them to the stair team or wall layout team. This method really plays on the strengths of each group member and really helps everyone in the group have a better experience and reduces construction time.
The most important factor for our overall improvement has been having excellent construction supervisors who are our motivators, innovators and the leaders of their groups. Without them I know we would not have the same results. They truly are the biggest piece of the puzzle and key to our improvement.