Category: Why LEAN Construction Matters

Construction cost certainty can be measurably improved with objective, current, standardized, and granular locally researched construction cost data to enhance Construction Cost […]

Standardized Cost Data, while often overlooked, is critical to the consistent attainment of construction / FM projects on-time, on-budget, and per requirements. […]

Improved construction outcomes don’t happen because of more tools, but because of great teams, robust processes, actionable data, and competent, supportive, and […]

Historical Origins and Evolution of Lean Construction & Manufacturing   (Download PDF) Cholakis, P.             Four BT, LLC – […]

Proactive Preventive maintenance (PM) is widely recognized as one of the most effective strategies for controlling facility operating costs, improving reliability, and […]

Here why Tech Won’t Save FM. Despite decades of technological advancement, facilities management (FM) fundamentally remains inefficient with respect to the lifecycle […]

JOC Risk Management / Job Order Contracting (JOC) Risk Management: The Cornerstone of Program Success

A public sector organization benefits greatly by appropriately preparing an independent government estimate (IGE) for facilities repair, renovation, maintenance, and new build projects.  Their primary value lies in helping public sector organizations validate contractor proposals with respect to  reasonableness and realism.

A collaborative project delivery approach changes the game. Emphasizing the importance of Collaborative Project Delivery ensures all parties are aligned and working towards common goals.

Understanding Construction Cost Data is a foundation for well-informed decisions, budget optimization, and project success.

Any public sector organization can benefit greatly by appropriately preparing an independent government cost estimate (IGE).  The primary value lies in helping public sector organizations validate contractor proposals with respect to  reasonableness and realism.

Owners and builders can use a robust should cost process to negotiate better terms and collaboratively to improve efficiency and reduce costs and improve overall satisfaction.

The Critical Role of Pre-Construction in Success. Pre-construction is the phase of a project where the greatest influence on cost, schedule, and quality outcomes can be achieved. Decisions made during this stage have long-lasting impacts throughout the lifecycle of the facility. Effective pre-construction planning is especially critical for repair, renovation, maintenance, and new construction projects, where cost control and schedule adherence are essential.

Adequate construction cost insight is foundational to improving repair, renovation, maintenance, or new build outcomes for both owners and design/builders.

The historical origins of percent plan complete (PPC) began with the Department of Defense, with later focus by Glenn Ballard and the […]

Construction Value Engineering and Cost Estimating go hand in hand.

Simply put, value engineering is a process intended to balance between function, performance, quality, safety and cost. The appropriate balance in alignment with organizational requirements results in the maximum value for the project.

The ability to access current, objective, and granular labor, material, and equipment costs on a local level represents a significant Construction Cost Estimating Improvement.

Here is the latest Coast Guard Infrastructure Report from the GAO. As has been reported for decades, the gaps between budget requests […]

The Importance of Standardized Cost Information for Construction, Renovation, Repair, and Maintenance Activities

It’s important to validate subcontractor bids and ensure appropriate costing.  

Tracking Bid-Win Rates for Commercial Construction is important for any contractor. Creating winning proposals crucial for survival, however each proposal is also […]

Dependable Cost Estimating Software is needed to develop reliable construction cost estimates. Requirements include:
1. Objective, current, verifiable, and local granular construction tasks inclusive of labor, material, equipment, and productivity components as well as a unit of measure.
2. Cost data organized by a well-defined Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) and standardized data architecture such as expanded CSI Masterformat.
3. The ability to create modified/custom unit price line items by adjusting labor, material, equipment, crew, and productivity data.
4. Cost estimate copy and paste.
5. Collaborative online cost estimate review and/or creation.
6. Automatic cost estimate comparison.
7. Ease-of-use.
8. Scalability.
9. Security.

Construction Target Costing is a method used to shape repair, renovation, maintenance, or new build outcomes and process design to deliver customer value

FM productivity constraints remain a barrier for most public sector areas.
To address rising sustainment (repair, renovation, maintenance) and new build  costs, robust, integrated Planning, Procurement, and Project Deliver Frameworks increasing needed to maximize resource utiization.

Managing change orders for any size of repair, renovation, maintenance, or new build project, whether IPD, alliance job order contracting, DB, DBB, ‘et al’, simply requires a robust preconstruction process in most instances.
A granular, well communciated (among owner and design/builders), well organized (using a standardized data architecture such as expanded CSI MasterFormat) DETAILED SCOPE OF WORK, eliminates of 90% of change orders.
Change orders should not result from errors and omissions, coordination issues, means and methods, or material substitutions as these are all manageable via application of robust, detailed scope of work (SOW) development.

The benefits of circular construction and a consistently applied programmatic approach to all repair, renovation, maintenance, and new build projects include a […]

The Guide to Construction Cost Optimization provides a road map for applying best management practices to drive financial visibility and transparency.

Better CONSTRUCTION COST ESTIMATION workflows can be used by owners and design-builders to better navigate the journey to improved cost visibility and cost management.  

Engage in data driven cost estimating with objective, verifiable, and current local market labor, material, and equipment price books from 4BT (Four BT, LLC).

Target Value Delivery (TVD) is “a management practice that drives the (design and construction) to deliver customer values within project constraints”

Validating an “optimized” TAKT plan is challenging, if not impossible, without access to an objective and granular local market database of construction tasks.

From preconstruction through procurement and project delivery, actionable construction cost data is required for cost control.

Master Builder Concept

“Accurate construction cost estimates” is a misnomer, however, and estimate can and should be Objective, Current, Granular, and reflect LOCAL Market Labor, Material, and Equipment costs.   

Facilities sustainment – The maintenance and repair activities necessary to keep an inventory of facilities in good working order. It includes regularly scheduled adjustments and inspections, preventive maintenance tasks, and emergency response and service calls for minor repairs.

Construction Aggregates The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) defines the construction aggregates industry as those companies that mine and process crushed stone and […]

GSA PBS JOC Program Management Audit shows continues issues with cost control and accountability.

Public sector facilities management has not measurably improved for decades. The reason is simple.  Lack of organizational development readiness. Despite the availability […]

Improving Job Order Contracting outcomes requires transformational change. We have yet to reach a point where JOC is valued for more than simply speeding procurement times.

Looking for a better Job Order Contracting application?  The 4BT OpenJOCTM  Solution is just that!

If you are looking for a better job order contracting solution, it’s time we talked.

Introducing LEED V5, the next version of the globally recognized comprehensive framework for green building practices. Embracing market demands for greater accountability, v5 will champion solutions to aligning the built environment with critical imperatives including decarbonization, ecosystem conservation and restoration, equity, health, and resilience. LEED v5 will drive real-world impact and positive change worldwide.

While the concept of providing a standardized security approach may have been sound, FedRAMP limits Construction Productivity and Innovation,

Beware of Using Assemblies for Job Order Contracting. Some suppliers of Job Order Contracting software and cost data use “Assemblies” within what is supposed to be a unit price book (UPB). Line item estimating provides a detailed and transparent breakdown of costs, making it easier to track expenses and communicate with stakeholders. 

AECOO Engagement, Alignment, and Sharing of Objective, Current, Veriable Information = Efficient Construction Delivery Strategy

Sustainability and Efficient Facilities Lifecycle Management go hand in hand.

Objective, reliable, and veriable Construction Cost Estimates for repair, renovation, maintenance, new build activities.

Integrated Project Construction Delivery Solution thar provides a standardized approach to construction data collection that collates and shares data on all public sector projects across all locations in a common format across public and private sector audiences to leverage the latest methods and tools supporting optimal project planning, costing, procurement, delivery, and management,

For over 30 years, the Department of Defense (DOD) has spent billions of dollars each year to acquire and modernize financial management, […]

Alliance Contracting / Alliance Partnering in ConstructionWhen properly designed, implemented, and managed, drives innovation, collaboration, and best value outcomes for all parties.

A credible cost estimate is one that has been derived using local market granular information. A unit cost is assigned to each of the facility components or construction tasks as represented by the bill of quantities.

Sustainability and Facilities Management in the Public Sector are critical issues from both environmental and economic perspectives. Due to increasing concern about […]

Entropy, Facilities Mangement, and the AECOO sector have more in common than they should.  

Characteristics of Best Value JOB ORDER CONTRACTING… Real proper owner capability, leadership, commitment, and accountability Integrated internal and external planning, procurement, and […]

What’s involved in creating detailed line item construction cost estimate contains a complete and accurate descriptions aof a granular construction task to credibility support analysis.   Unit prices and quantities include individual LOCAL MARKET labor, material, and equipment information and cost breakdowns as well as crew and productivity information.

Controlling construction costs is not rocket science, nor does it involve time travel. Facilities repair, renovation, maintenance, and new build projects can be delivered on time and on budget.

Relationship-based Job Order Contracting – Enabling commitment based upon a  mutual set of  expectations and an understanding of  acceptable behaviors of  each […]

Construction Cost Data Integrity is one of the most overlooked items in preparing a detailed Scope of Work.

Many in the public sector are unaware of the construction cost estimating issues caused by the use of national average cost data and locatio factoring.

MOST Construction Cost Data is Useless as is it not researched properly and objectively for local market conditions. 

JOC contractor evaluation is an ongoing process, begining with their response to a Job Order Contract Request for Propsals for design-builders and continuing throughout the life-cycle of the JOC Program.

Developing an efficient JOC Program Framework requires a commitment to collaborative and integrated Planning, Procurement, and Project Delivery teams. Unfortunately most JOC […]

Here’s an example of a JOC Program workflow and associated best management practices for public sector owners and design-builders.

National Average Cost Data inaccurately estimates project costs and the use of location factoring or economic factoring are insufficient to rectify the issue.

The ONLY cost estimating solutions with CURRENT, LOCAL MARKET, LINE ITEM construction cost data! $1500/Year.   Estimate FASTER and with CONFIDENCE!   […]

Work Scope Visibility in the form of a detailed, well communicated Scope of Work enables teams to acheive best value outcomes.

Systems thinking and Job Order Contracting can be integrated to achieved significant improvement is repair, renovation, maintenance, and new construction outcomes. 

Reinforce detail unit line-item construction cost estimating today with CURRENT LOCAL MARKET DATA

Robust process integrating multi-stakeholder engagement enables consistent delivery of quality repair, renovation, maintenance, and new build projects on time and on budge. […]

Creating a detailed scoped of work is critical to achieving consistent best value outcomes for all repair, renovation, maintenance, and new construction activities.

Leveraging JOC as a SYSTEM not simply a Procurement Tool provides significantly greater benefits while also reducing costs.

Construction: Integrating People with Robust Process with Standardized LOCAL MARKET Construction Task Data

4BT (Four BT, LLC) is the sole source for current, objective, verifiable, and granular local market cost data that does not rely […]

The are two primary root causes of poor construction cost estimates:

Lack of early and ongoing communication between all relevant parties.
Failure to use granular, current, and well organized construction cost data specific to the local market.

Objectively VALIDATE Contractor and Subcontractor Construction Cost Estimates Construction cost management capabilities are critical to the success of any repair, renovation, maintenance, […]

Better construction cost estimates – Verifiable. current local market labor, material, and equipment costs – updated quarterly.

SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVE your JOB ORDER CONTRACT #1 Put People First: Center your JOC Program around integrating your Planning, Procurement, and Project Delivery […]

Public Sector Facilities Professionals – Reduce inefficiency, Streamline processes, Improve Quality, Manage Costs

Embrace the next generation of Construction and Sustainable Lifecycle Facilities Management! Move all repair, renovation, maintenance, and new build projects forward with proactive, informed decisions.

Sustainable facilities management is the allocation of financial, environmental, and other organizational resources in the most efficient way possible. Attainment of sustainable […]

A robust Construction Productivity Solution must include the ability to provide support for dealing with the conflicting interests of multiple stakeholders is CRITICAL to consistent achievement of best value construction outcomes.

Systems Enablers for Sustainable Facilities Management are critical considerations for any real property portfolio owner. In fact, they dictate how efficiently or how poorly an organization manages facilities stewardship requirements. 

Army Job Order Contracts fail to meet critical AFARS requirements most of the time. The JOCPB (JOC Price Book: reflects the current […]

The value of time and motion study is clear.  The process enables the accurate definition of labor, material, and equipment requirements to […]

Sustainable Public Sector Facilities Management is Unattainable if current practices are not fundamentally changed.

Even though tools and services are readily available to consistently deliver quality, on time and on budget repair, renovation, maintenance, and new build outcomes, real property owners and facilities management professionals have yet to adopt system thinking. Until this occurs, sustainable facilities management solutions will remain on the shelf.

LEAN Job Order Contracting integrates system thinking within organizations to drive best value outcomes.

Construction Costs – Market Update 2022-2023

In today’s economic environment it may be time to rethink Preventive Maintenance, lower costs 30%-40%, and extend system life up to 10x.

January 2023 two climate requirements for new construction entered into force in the Building Regulations. If you are going to build a […]

Facilities Management and the full AECOO community have a fundamental flaw that is solely responsible for rampant economic and environmental waste; the lack of body of knowledge (BOK or BoK), the complete set of concepts, terms and activities that make up a professional domain.

Facilities STAKEHOLDER CONTINUOUS PARTICIPATION AND INVOLVEMENT are required to assure quality, on time, on budget outcomes.

Uncertainty –  The inability to foretell consequences or outcomes because of a lack knowledge or basis on which to make any predictions […]