Lean in Construction

Lean Construction is a way to do more and more with less and less; less effort, less equipment, less time and less space whilst providing customers with exactly what they want. A Lean system, process, and organisation is one that is waste free. Lean is not about size or number of people employed. A reduction in employees may cut costs, and eliminate the waste of those employees, but does not decrease the proportion of waste to value adding within the organisation or process. Most waste is through products waiting to be worked on by succeeding activities. Construction is possibly the last frontier for lean. Although manufacturing's productivity has improved during the last 40 years, the construction industry has experienced a slight decline. Even though the construction world has embraced high-tech tools, we still manage projects the same way we always have, and we are still getting the same poor results. Less than 30 percent of projects come in on time, on budget, and within specification. The answers to improving construction productivity are not in more software or technology.