General Information

Is your company in balance?

11kbyrnes by Kurt Byrne,
Executive Vice President, Northern Electric, Inc.

In construction, there are three basic challenges that we face on every project: cost, schedule and quality. All successful contractors keep a close eye on each of these categories to assure they are successfully managed and that no one area is overlooked. The danger exists when the balance among these three areas is disturbed and one area is sacrificed to meet another. The results of any imbalance will have a variety of impacts, but trust me when I say none of them are good!

The first area, cost, must be maintained in order to protect the company’s margin. Without margin a company cannot grow, and in more severe cases, can even cease to exist. The best way to manage costs is to have detailed cost controls that are closely monitored against a well developed and detailed budget. Unfortunately, this practice will not protect you from ‘budget busts’, but it will help you to quickly identify where extra dollars are being spent or even wasted. After all, knowing there is a problem is the first step to correcting it. It’s wise to have monthly or even bi-weekly reviews of costs with project management and field operations in order to ensure projects stay within budget.

The second area is schedule. Today’s construction schedules put heavy demands on companies to keep pace as owners and general contractors continue to add pressure by compressing durations. Proper planning, staffing and maximizing efficiency will guard against tight schedules. One key to properly managing the schedule is to be continuously looking ahead by doing ‘look aheads’ and lay‐outs to assure that manpower, tools and equipment are pre‐arranged to eliminate down time and lost efficiency. The result of poor planning leads to longer durations and increased costs.

The final area is quality. Owners and general contractors expect quality on every project. In most companies, this area is the first to be sacrificed in order to protect cost and schedule; however, damaging a company’s reputation due to poor quality will always cost more in the long run. Another byproduct of poor quality is rework which is the enemy of both cost and schedule. Quality can and should be maintained with frequent site tours by a company’s management staff to not only inspect their own team’s work, but to also make sure their work isn’t being negatively impacted by others. This proactive vigilance will help to ensure that the client is receiving a high quality project.

Experts have written books on each of these categories so the goal here is not to oversimplify the solutions; however, the basic principles of understanding the need to satisfy all of these requirements are the basics of being a successful contractor. This, of course, is much easier said than done as the tug of war between areas can sometimes seem impossible to solve.

For a company that is willing to identify where their cost, schedule and quality may be out of balance on a project, and take the steps necessary to correct things, even the most challenging project can reach a successful outcome. The key is to have a team made-up of professionals who can view their work with a critical eye and invest the time needed to find the necessary solutions.

Healthcare “Special Systems Installation” needs “Special Attention”

11afisher-1 by Al Fisher, President
Northern Electric, Inc.

Remember the times when an electrical contractor walked into a supply house and bought an off-the-shelf fire alarm and intercom system to install, along with his lighting and power portion of his building contract? In those days it was common practice, and the control aspects of those systems were easy enough for a good electrician to understand and install. The systems packages always made up a small portion of his subcontract.

Wow, have things changed!

Things began getting more complicated in the 1980’s when various institutions (including healthcare facilities), with multiple special systems, started to see the need for automation and single point control. Architects realized that integration of these special systems was imperative and turned to the manufacturer – opposed to the electrical contractor -- that had the engineering to design compatible equipment and software to integrate these systems into a single control panel source. The manufactures seized the opportunity and the project specification Division 17 Integrator was conceived.

Unfortunately for the integrator, the architects expected the integrator to also take on the installation and construction management of these special systems. It wasn’t long before the integrator found out that the success and profitability that they enjoyed from the fabrication and deign side of the business was quickly consumed (by loses due to their inexperience in the field installation and construction management aspects of the industry). Due to these losses, they quickly turned back to the electrical contractor with for help. A handful of electrical contractors recognized the opportunity and responded to the call.

Today, the special systems portion of healthcare facilities has become so technically advanced and integrated that it is overshadowing the electrical power side of the business. New buildings are evolving more and more toward (Internet Protocol) based systems. Existing commercial, healthcare and industrial facilities are upgrading to IP systems management systems that can be controlled from any location or even a smart device. Architects, engineers and contractors are realizing that the special system sections of the specifications are getting most of the attention and the overall integrated operation of the special systems are crucial to the opening and operation of the facility. Institutions like healthcare facilities have as many as seventeen low voltage special systems that all need to be integrated into multiple control rooms.

The line of segregation between Division 26 (Electrical) and 27, 28 (Special Systems) is apparent and it is quickly becoming normal procedure to separate bid packages in this natural line of demarcation, especially in larger multi-phased and multi-building projects.

What does this mean for the owners in the health care industry?

For the owner’s, it is great news! Faster access to information, more building services control, higher security standards all resulting in more efficiency in operations and quicker reaction time to life critical and emergency situations. But with this advancement in integrated technology come specialized personnel, training and maintenance issues. It’s like getting comfortable with having that new one remote control replacing the five remote controllers your home video equipment. Someone needs to rewire the system, program the controller, train you and then be available to fix it when it gets messed up. A good deal of this responsibility gets placed on the shoulders of the architect, engineers and general contractor hired to build your facility. They need to be aware of the owner’s needs in this area and make sure that they solicit and procure the right integrator that can provide the best equipment, but to also find a specialized electrical subcontractor that is experienced and familiar with the integrators system and can install these systems correctly.

Owner’s like architects, engineers and general contractors are quickly learning that the special systems installation is a new area of construction that needs attention starting with a very complicated conduit system. Unlike the power side of the business, the conduit systems design is almost never engineered and normally left up to the contractor to design, layout and route. Finding and qualifying an electrical contractor that has the experience and knowledge of designing and installing this conduit system are not easily indentified. It is very common for inexperienced electrical contractors breaking into this marketplace to substantially underestimate the amount of requirements and conduit that is required to make these systems functional. As many general contractors have discovered, this can spell disaster in many areas from expense construction delays and redesign to a special system that either doesn’t work as specified or in operating in “Troubled” mode for its existence. Here are some things to note that normally is not recognized by the owner until troubles occur.

In major institutional facilities the branch conduit required for the special systems is almost three times the branch conduit required for the power and lighting. The conduit installation layout requires much experience in space allocation and delivery into the multitude of control rooms that are very often right next to the electrical rooms. The race for space in the slab is always an issue between the electrical and special systems installation contractor. The winner is normally the contractor is most prepared and proactive with his layout. A good special system project manager and superintendent are worth his weight in gold in these situations. Another item that is often overlooked and under-estimated, is the amount pre-planning that is required in determining what systems conduit should be placed in the slab and what should go in the ceiling. This is crucial in the delivery of this conduit to the related equipment in the limited space allocated for the special systems room. Architects are finally realizing that more square feet are needed for equipment rooms. The equipment layout is usually left up to the creativity of the special system installer to figure out. These rooms are generally packed and space is a real premium. When IP systems come into the formula the length of a conduit to a device is limited to 100 meters. In facilities where conduit needs to be totally concealed and routed to the device via slab, ceiling and pre-cast walls meeting this requirement is challenging. Add the complexity of early delivery of pre-cast conduit layout so the pre-cast panel manufacturer can install the required conduit and devices boxes in the walls of pre-cast panels with the requirement of minimal surface raceway and you have challenge that can test even the best of experienced electrical contractor.

Owner’s along with integrators, architects, engineers and GCs are now beginning to realize how critical the selection of the correct integrator and electrical contractor is for the special systems portion of the work. If the special systems conduit is installed incorrectly or untimely there are huge schedule and cost impacts to the projects. Many systems engineers are now pre-qualifying electrical contractors for this portion of the work and noted in the specifications. The following list is some criteria they are looking for in their pre-qualification process;

•    Minimum of 10 years experience in special systems installations
•    Minimum of 5 major projects completed as the special systems installation contractor
•    Minimum of 3 references (each) from GC, integrator and systems engineer.
•    Experience in working with the selected integrator and special systems engineer.
•    Management and field experience
•    Design capabilities
•    Financial stability and bonding capability

There are numerous integrated low voltage systems in modern healthcare facilities -- such as, Card access, CCTV, CATV, asset tracking, fiber backbone, distributive antenna, lighting controls, energy management, Wi-Fi, microwave, intercom, paging, duress, door locking, nurse call, telephone/data, perimeter detection, fire alarm, smoke evacuation and mass notification, and more – that demand a special systems contractor who can expertly design and install the physical aspects of these systems. It’s a complex matter, but when done correctly, the outcomes are healthcare facilities that provide patients, doctors, nurses, visitors and staff with spaces that are comfortable, safe, highly automated and exceptionally efficient.