How to Improve Team Collaboration in Construction Projects

With the interconnectedness of various portfolios in construction projects, it is essential to remember that ‘Teamwork makes the dream work!’ In fact, a recent study demonstrated that 91% of contractors of construction projects agree that increasing collaboration lowered the major risks they were facing.

When we have architects, engineers, contractors, and workers all working together on a single project, it becomes imperative to ensure that all cogs run smoothly. This goes on to show how if one team is lagging behind, the whole project may take a serious dip in performance.

It is to be noted that 86% of employees ****blame the lack of effective communication and collaboration as the major reason for workplace failures.

So, let’s consider the reasons why team collaboration in construction projects is so essential:

  1. Collaborating helps boost efficiency as members know exactly what needs to be done.
  2. Good teamwork helps in spotting and eliminating any identified risks.
  3. Transparent communication helps keep clients in the loop as well.
  4. When team members come from different disciplines, they can come up with creative solutions to complex problems.

Challenges In Collaboration Faced by Construction Teams

Communication Barriers

According to a report by Navigant Construction, 52% of rework is attributed to miscommunication. Usually, this communication barrier is evident in multinational construction agencies where people come from all sorts of linguistic backgrounds.

This communication barrier then leads to inadequate task allocation. Since the teams do not collaborate, they are not sure of their tasks causing them to use their time in an ineffective manner. Hence, 70% of people believe that poor communication leads to wasting their time.

Coordination and Scheduling

It is a fact that different teams have their own schedules but when it comes to construction teams, it is necessary for them to collaborate with other teams to ensure the project is a success. Yet, due to different priorities, they are not able to do so.

This is further explained by recent reports: In 2021, 88% of contractors in the construction industry reported being delayed or canceled due to overlapping schedules of various teams.

Technological Integration

With technological advancements dominating every aspect of life, construction companies are also integrating such tools into their projects. While it is known to ensure that your workflow becomes smoother, it seems that sometimes new tools can become inefficient to use.

This is why construction teams need a user-friendly tool like KYRO.ai to make communication and collaboration easier and more accessible. It is reported that 76% of executives were satisfied with using collaboration software in construction industries only if it is easy to use.

Overview of KYRO’s features that facilitate team collaboration

Now that we know how important it is for teams to communicate in construction projects, let’s look into some of KYRO’s top-notch features to help facilitate team collaboration:

Document Management with Redlining

As a hassle-free tool to manage your documents and reports on time, KYRO offers a Redlining feature to all its users. Here, team members can make edits and suggestions directly within the document through version control. With tracking changes, you can also manage your blueprints as well as construction plans using multiple markup tools. These can then serve as the final as-built drawings, giving everyone the knowledge of how things were acutally built when compared to the original drawings.

Now the question emerges: does KYRO allow only one member to work at a time like how things were done on paper before?

With an increased need for collaborative editing in construction projects, this software will allow multiple members, and that too, from different teams to work on a project simultaneously. This ensures synchronized updates in real-time.

About 75% of employees rate teamwork and collaboration as being very important and this is further facilitated by KYRO.

Forms With Photos for Data Collection

KYRO gives you a break from printing pictures and the heavy printing charges as through this software, you can easily go digital.

One of the most prominent features is customizable forms. Specifically, the dynamic form builder implements JavaScript to offer you a drag-and-drop interface. Additionally, KYRO also provides a vast library of pre-built forms that users can choose from for their operations.

Annual reports suggest that the productivity levels within the construction industry have more or less remained stagnant over the course of the last 50 years. Thus, there is no doubt that oftentimes, workers may not be able to generate new ideas. Hence, KYRO offers a range of pre-built, industry-specific templates to allow team members to upload photos and annotate them side-by-side. More than that, forms allow teams to capture any issues on site, prevent safety hazards, and provide regular project updates. And all this is done in a manner that saves time for field crews everyd ay, allowing them to finish sending reports quicker and easier.

Strategies To Improve Collaboration

Without the growing construction industry, it is important that team members with different specializations collaborate to achieve the desired results.

Here are some strategies to improve this collaboration among team members in construction projects:

Utilizing Digital Tools for Real-Time Communication and Document Sharing

First and foremost, choosing the right tool that aligns well with the team's needs and preferences is essential. Here, you should opt for platforms that integrate multiple features such as document sharing and task management so that you don't have to go back and forth between different tools.

These tools like KYRO will help in maximizing construction project effectiveness as it is a user-friendly yet specialized tool for construction projects.

Establishing Clear Communication Channels and Protocols

Considering that construction companies that promote communication at work are known to reduce employee turnover rates by 50%. Thus, it is a good idea for construction team workers to make use of digital platforms that help them communicate inter-teams and intra-teams by checking each other’s progress.

However, with such ease of technology, the team needs to set protocols in order, such as assigning tasks during office hours or establishing community guidelines for safe use of KYRO.

Encouraging Teamwork and Fostering a Collaborative Culture

It is a fact that a collaborative culture leads to higher productivity levels. To encourage your team members, platforms like KYRO help foster this culture through an exchange of ideas.

In some companies, teamwork is a culture. It is practiced by all members and has become an integral part of projects. Similarly, to gain maximum performance, it is important to allow cross-functional collaboration in construction projects.

Wrapping Up

Ultimately, collaboration is a crucial part of any project, team or organization and so it is difficult to achieve a significant level of collaborative spirit without a specialized platform like KYRO. So, if you want a collaborative team effort on your construction project then make the right choice now and visit KYRO.ai.

June 21, 2024

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