It’s gotten to the point that when we mention Lean Construction to a subcontractor, we get an eye roll rather than an enthused response, and that’s troubling. The approach, which applies research and experience to maximize client value, is hugely beneficial when done right. But a deep divide has developed between the concept and its application.

What should be a proactive and collaborative approach has become daunting and frustrating. A big reason is an overemphasis on jargon, as this process excerpt shows:

“You need to create a拉计划which turns into your project schedule and then from your project schedule, you develop your6 week make ready plan。然后从6 week, you populate yourconstraint log。Have your weeklywork planning meetings还基于您的6周计划。不要忘记每日杂乱无章during which you check back to yourweekly work planthat you then use to generatepercent planned complete。使用PPC识别您的categories of varianceand from there you figure out where toallocate resources to fix deficiencies。”

Those tag lines are turnoffs and roadblocks in efforts to introduce clients to Lean practices. So are lack of management support and basic human resistance to change, but incessant buzz words distract everyone from Lean fundamentals.

最近,我们公司参与了一个项目that required installing a new air handling unit on a hospital wing to replace two existing units. Before construction even began, the hospital’s project manager pushed us for the date to schedule the cutover of the existing units. When told it was more than six weeks away and there wasn’t a clue as to the date we would be doing the cutovers, the project manager got angry. I had to tell him why he couldn’t have what he wanted.

我说的任何日期都是不可靠的；我们的分包商必须通知我何时准备好。我还问他，医院需要有多少注意来协调此关闭。他不确定，但他知道这不会超过几周。我让他知道我与所有承包商会面的策略，以制定每个人都会同意的计划。

有意，我从未谈论过拉计划或使用任何精益的流行语单词。一旦我将潜水艇放在一个房间里，我就可以管理对话以参与计划，因此我们开发了一些可靠的东西。我们确定了整个过程中使用的关键细节，而不是根据要求盲目设置日期。

Strong Fundamentals

Ultimately, setting up channels of communication proved to be as important as deciding on an end date. When the weather turned bad and we had to reschedule our first equipment placement, it was clear who needed to be informed and how it would impact everyone. Subtly applying Lean principles to the project, we had identified uncertain weather as a potential risk ahead of time and developed an efficient and effective Plan B.

为了确保整个过程都更加顺畅，请确保强调基本基础。想象两个曲棍球运动员。玩家A花费数千美元用于最先进的设备，并每周一次与Rec League一起滑冰。玩家B捡起生锈的溜冰鞋，撕裂的垫子和二手商店的沉重棍子，每周六天每天三个小时溜冰，包括练习后两个小时练习钻探基础知识。在技​​能比赛中，玩家B脱衣舞，淘汰赛和外部球员A，因为闪亮和最先进的是游戏的意义。

精益是相同的：如果您练习基本基础，您的过程将得到加强。项目复杂性是新规范；该行业需要采用一种过程级别的方法来适应和成功。您可以参加所需的所有抽奖计划，但是如果您不自觉地将其应用于该过程，则不会改善结果。这是永无止境的，交流是第一步。当您让一群专业人士谈论他们要负责的工作时，该计划会融合在一起。如果我们将对话从新工具和行话转移到基于客观的对话中，我们将提高参与精益流程的意愿。

现在去抓住您的团队并开始合作。您可能只是解决问题。

Cade Keyes is a superintendent at Columbia Construction Co., North Reading, Mass. The viewpoint is a collaboration with colleagues Siggy Pfendler, the firm’s improvement and innovation director, and project manager Neal Swain. They can be reached at 978-664-9500.

如果您有观点的想法，请联系观点编辑Richard Kormankormanr@enr.com。