Working in series versus in parallel
Posted on October 2, 2007 - Filed Under Philosophy |
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"All men make mistakes, but only wise men learn from them." - Winston Churchill. |
In reviewing the list of assignments, I never envisioned those items taking 3 months to complete. When whispers of a fourth month surfaced then action had to be taken.
A fatal flaw on my part was not recognized that one or two people could not accomplish the items listed in the time alloted. The original estimate of 6 weeks was based on some data I had collected from the first house. And some guess work based on what others told me.
When there is only one person working a job, most jobs are then completed in series rather than in parallel. During a renovation job, the "series approach" cries out for long work schedules. Every month another mortgage payment is made, eating into any potential profits.
Add to that "pay by the hour" and it’s a perfect recipe for blown schedule, blown budget.
For this project, the two extremes were visible. The first was having one person doing everything. The second was having a crew working. The same amount of money was spent on the crew (6 people) as would have been spent on the previous worker.
Some questions to be asked:
- Is the quantity of work completed higher with a crew than a single person? You bet.
- Does the quality of work higher with one person versus a crew? Before and after.
- Day laborers, hanging around outside Home Depot, are cheap. A licensed contractor and licensed electrician are not "hanging around outside Home Depot".
Based on some simple logic, it’s always better to have a crew working than an individual. Asking one person to do everything is not conducive to having a project completed in a timely fashion. It matters not that the one person may be a good worker or have a strong work ethic.
What matters is keeping the project on time and on budget.
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On a full renovation, you are acting as the general contractor. You need a schedule as well as a budget. That schedule should show when each trade will work on the house and for how long. For example, the schedule might show the interior paint crew will work three days in week 7 and the only other crew that can work while they are there is landscaping. The schedule allows you and your subs to plan your and their time.
Cost and time have to be weighed and balanced. For a complete overhaul, it is usually more efficient to bring in trade subcontractors. It may cost a little more up front, but this approach will save a lot of time. Unfortunately, if you don’t do a lot of these overhauls, it’s hard to find quality people and get their attention for your small (to them) job. Good handypeople are fine for less extensive work.
Trade subcontractors can also help you get through the inspection process. Building inspectors usually pay a lot more attention to the details of your work or the handyperson’s work than the work of a licensed electrician or plumber.