When planning a construction project, there are many risks, and you need to ensure that you factor these into your plans and have contingencies in place. Many things can happen in construction, and it is not always to plan for all the risks as they are sometimes out of your control.
You can mitigate much of the risks with careful planning. Having contingency plans can help make the construction run much smoother. Below are some of the risks you will need to factor into your project to prepare yourself no matter what happens.
Health & Safety Problems
You will need to do a UK construction project risk assessment evaluation and identify any health and safety risks there are in your project. It is not always possible to envisage all the risks that may be present on a construction site, but some of the dangers are obvious. You will need to assess the health and safety risks at all stages of your project and ensure you do everything to mitigate the risks as best you can. It is much more cost-effective to invest in training for the construction workers, install systems to control the risks, and provide PPE to prevent accidents than to deal with accidents that may be life-threatening.
Underestimating The Costs Involved
Another common risk for construction projects which seems to happen regularly is that construction costs are underestimated. You only have to look at some government projects that overrun and end up costing much more than initially estimated. It seems common for many government projects to get delayed and cost much more than expected. It can be challenging to predict the cost of a project accurately, and many things can increase the cost of a project. The materials can increase in price, such as steel, and there may also be a shortage of labour which means you need to pay workers more.
The Weather
Another factor out of our control that can significantly affect a construction project is the weather. You cannot do some things in adverse weather when doing construction, such as pouring concrete, which can delay a project. You can also get severe weather that damages the work already done, meaning it needs to be done again and will delay the project from being completed.
Poor Subcontractors
You can also be unfortunate enough to subcontract work to a company that does not perform and does the job much slower than required. Even when you have a contract with them that states the expectations and obligations they must meet, it is common for deadlines to be missed and work not to be completed to a high enough standard. You will need to monitor your subcontractors carefully and ensure they are working to a good standard and at a quick enough pace.
These are a few things that can delay a project and increase its total cost, but there are more than the ones listed here. You will need to plan your project carefully and select the best subcontractors you can for the job, but things can go wrong even then.