Every organization, in one form or another, is on a quest for continuous improvement. Organizations are being challenged to do more with less. Resources are finite and the ability to sustain operational excellence as costs continue to rise is a constant struggle. Choosing not to embark on some form of improvement journey guarantees, in the… Read More

As construction project managers, we spend every day juggling multiple priorities for delivering our projects successfully. We must prioritize site safety while also maintaining budget, schedule, quality, security, operational continuity, and countless other elements of the project and, of course, cooperate, collaborate, and communicate effectively at every turn. That is a tall order, and those… Read More

“Jenny…Jenny, yes, you are still muted!!” “Donny, let’s let someone else talk now!!” These oft-repeated occurrences frustrate today’s remote work environment. But the important part is that the work continues, despite Jenny and Donny’s computer skills and personalities. At MBP, our Optimization Strategies Group conducts facilitated workshops, both for project and process improvements. The project… Read More

The last four to five months have been disruptive to almost every organization in one form or another. Some obstacles, like moving an operation from a traditional office setting to a virtual setting, have been overcome. Others, such as budget shortfalls, are still being felt and managed. These unplanned budget impacts have taken a negative… Read More

Let’s be honest. Right now, none of us have all the answers. Uncertainty surrounding the duration and severity of the COVID-19 crisis makes it hard to anticipate its true impact or when we will fully resume normal project operations. While in many areas, construction is currently considered essential, all projects are subject to unpredictable impacts…. Read More

The last month has certainly been disruptive if you build, manage, or maintain facilities. Buildings are made to operate steadily over their life cycle and those who operate and maintain facilities manage these buildings accordingly based on building use and purpose, occupant needs, and equipment requirements. Under normal circumstances, O&M staff plan and execute scheduled… Read More

It’s now March, and according to a December 2018 Business Insider article, by this time 80% of people have failed to keep their New Year’s resolutions and they become just a distant memory. We at MBP wanted to make resolutions we could keep, but how do you cement real change? According to Yale University’s Professor… Read More

In the last post in this blog series, we identified reasons that loss of efficiency claims, which are becoming more prevalent due to chronic labor shortages in the industry, are difficult to present and prove. The reasons included bad data, unclear causes of disruption, and limited tools. However, in an era of inexpensive technology and… Read More

re·sil·ience the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness the ability of a substance or object to spring back into shape; elasticity Resilience is an important priority today and will become even more important in the years ahead as climate change continues to intensify. Until recently, the Earth had been very resilient, adjusting and balancing… Read More

Facility departments are faced with an overwhelming amount of data regarding the condition of their buildings. Typical building automation systems (BAS) produce more data points and generate more automated alarms than a facilities department can realistically view and manage, which often results in information overload. Simply having access to facility data does not easily translate… Read More