Setting Yourself Apart in The New Normal: Executing the Project
May 14, 2020
As state and county governments slowly begin reopening businesses in the coming weeks, business owners are working hard to get back to work safely and efficiently. That includes roofing contractors, who are working on executing the project while adhering to social distancing requirements.
"The number one priority for all contractors is to install a quality finished product in a timely manner while keeping everyone involved safe," says John Tierney, Beacon's Vice President of Commercial Sales. "Given the new safety recommendations from the CDC, contractors have a more challenging environment than ever before to accomplish this priority. The contractors that can identify, train, implement and be consistent in these safety procedures will have an advantage in winning work and accomplishing their goals."
Staging the Roofing Project
The first important step will be getting the project staged with material. Having the material on the ground well before the job start, where possible, will take many variables out of the equation for potential delays in the job start date.
Tierney recommends that contractors purchase the most commonly used items in pallet quantities to help keep their employees safe and maximize labor hours on the project.
Beacon Pro+ is a solution that helps roofing contractors order and track material shipments remotely. This unique digital platform enables contractors to place orders for Beacon products online from the jobsite, the office or their own home. In addition, contractors can schedule deliveries to go directly to the jobsite, and track their progress through text, email or the online portal.
Viewing Project Protection in a New Light
Traditionally, roofing crews might meet up each day at company headquarters and ride to the jobsite together. That could change with social distancing requirements, Tierney says. "The best policy moving forward is to have all of your workers drive directly to the jobsites from their home instead."
No one is certain what the "new normal" will look like, but greater social distancing could be a part of our near future. Right now, workers should be spaced six feet apart on every project.
Monitoring workers' body temperatures could also be part of the daily job start procedure, either onsite with an infrared thermometer or at home with regular drugstore thermometers. If you record body temperatures, keep an internal, confidential daily record to protect your workers, but also to have as evidence if it is ever needed, Tierney suggests. Send home any workers who are running a temperature or experiencing signs of the virus.
Effective and thorough cleaning procedures will also be a big focus, especially for any non-porous surfaces workers have touched and any equipment that might be left overnight for use the next day.
Communicating With the Client Every Step of the Way
A big part of executing the project involves communicating with clients, but communication must be more specific and cover different concerns than in the past. For example, the client and contractor need to agree upfront on what areas will be accessible to workers, how progress will be shared and reported and how the client will relay any concerns while minimizing direct contact.
Contractors should look into new ways to communicate with their clients while on the jobsite, including investing in software that allows texts from the client to go to the entire roofing team, or using live video so that people inside the building can follow the project's progress without having to interact directly. A crew lead could also take pictures and put them in a shared cloud-based project folder that the client can access.
By following these steps, roofing contractors will ensure they're able to work with limited customer interaction, keep their teams safe and communicate new protocols to the client while executing the project.