When I ask most general contractors about their systems for quality control, the answers vary but they do have one thing in common; the role of the superintendent (or quality manager.) In all of these cases, contractors rely on the experience and the judgment of this “super” individual to detect defects and manage their correction . This, of course, explains why a good superintendent is worth his weight in gold.
However, placing this responsibility on the shoulders of one person has its risks:
- A person’s performance can vary from project to project.
- The strengths of an individual do not extend beyond the domain of the project he is assigned to.
- A single Super cannot be an expert in every single construction division, leaving many subcontractors to police themselves.
- Finally, people can only make incremental gains in their experience and will eventually reach some upper limit.
How then can a General Contractor extend the proficiency of their quality systems beyond the expertise of their superintendents? Stay tuned for Geedra…
