Two Tips for Staying on Budget During Your Construction Project

If you want to ensure that you stay on budget during your construction project, you might want to bear the advice below in mind.

Don't try to scrimp and save when hiring equipment

If you are planning to hire equipment, you might, in an effort to stay within your allotted budget, be tempted to order only the bare minimum that you require. However, doing this could actually make it harder for you to avoid incurring excess expenses.

If, for example, your construction crew will consist of 50 members and you decide to try to save money by only hiring two portaloos, the crew may end up wasting a lot of their workdays queuing up to use the facilities, instead of focusing on completing the construction work.

This may result in you having to extend the project by several days or weeks, which would, in turn, increase your labour costs.

Similarly, if you only hire one crane when you really need two, it will take much longer for the operator of this equipment to transport the building materials around the site. This could also lead to expensive delays.

Furthermore, overusing a single crane could increase the chances of this machinery breaking down. In addition to causing delays, this would also result in you having to pay a mechanic to repair this equipment.

In short, although it may appear to be counterintuitive, investing in plenty of high-quality equipment could actually make it easier for you to avoid spending too much money during the course of the construction project.

Take care of your power tools

Power tools such as chainsaws, concrete grinders, drills, sanders and angle grinders are often used when carrying out construction work. These tools tend to be very expensive. As such, if you will be using this type of equipment during your construction project, it's important to take good care of it, as failing to do so could lead to you having to replace it, which could then result in you being unable to stay on budget.

For example, these power tools should never be left outdoors for extended periods of time, as this could lead to them getting wet during bouts of heavy rain. Due to the fact that these tools are electrically powered, even small amounts of water could render them useless.

Additionally, you should tell your crew not to leave these tools on the floorboards of the scaffolding, as these items could easily be knocked over the railings and onto the ground if a worker accidentally kicks them whilst walking from one part of the scaffold to the other. The impact caused by being dropped from a height could leave these tools damaged beyond repair.