PearleVision Huntsville
ROLE
Site Supervisor/Manager
DESCRIPTION
PearleVision is a glasses store, similar to Sunglass Hut or Lenscrafters. As a site supervisor, I was on site from the beginning to the end of the project, from an empty shell to the finished working store. I was tasked with scheduling trades and keeping site conditions safe/clean. Scroll down to see the importance of behind-the-scenes content of a project.
YEAR
October 2022 - January 2023
Project
Construction Build
Location
Huntsville, Ontario, Canada
Start to Finish
GANTT CHART
Every project should have a schedule. When it comes to construction is essential to know when objectives are completed by the hour. Teams work with each other and often need other members to finish their tasks before they can start their own. My job is to make sure everyone understands the time frame of the project. Using a Gantt chart I can communicate information to all the trades at once, giving clear deadlines. It was important to have 1 on 1s with each trade after showing them the initial chart. If anything needed to be changed, its always better to know sooner rather than later.
Reviewing Drawings
There are two main types of drawings, architectural and elevations. Directly below are your stander on-site architectural drawings, which show exactly where things need to be put/built. On the right are elevations which show an example of how things should look. As a project manager, I needed to be able to read both types of drawings and communicate with team members on site.
Daily Forms/Planner
Being site supervisor meant that I was on site every day of the project. I would need to keep track of anyone who entered the site. Any deliveries that arrived and who sign for them. Most importantly I would need to keep track of site progress. Tracking the percentage of different trade completion (e.g framing 50% done). This was needed because not all team members involved could be on site. Managers that speak to the brand directly and others like the general contractor would want these daily reports. Having this information meant we could diagnose problems which would eventually arise. Lastly, we could use the reports as the bases of our weekly meetings. Being on site I would show video walkthroughs and point out significant information on the reports.
Understanding Trades
Working in construction as a project manager comes down to understanding your trades. All trades would have to work together to get the project done properly and I had to be the glue that holds everyone together. Understanding, Scheduling and Planning are 3 important steps for completing any project. As a project manager, I was tasked to learn and follow each step.
First is knowing what each trade is, their tasks and what they need to get it done. This requires asking direct questions and reading drawings. The next step is scheduling. By properly communicating with trades and figuring out a schedule that is reasonable for the team. Lastly, problems will always occur, things happen. Making sure you have a backup plan is critical. Working on this Huntsville project showed me the power of a backup plan. Problems were quickly solved as efficiently as possible. With Huntsville being more than 2 hours north of Toronto and constructing the project during winter. I had to think on my feet and make quick/reasonable solutions with the trades. I also made sure to plan as much as I could before they arrived on site. To avoid problems before they happened.
Site Progression
Front
Back Hallway
Back Rooms
