The attendees of the Plumbing-Heating-Cooling Contractors — National Association (PHCC) Educational Foundation's recent Super Foremen Workshop were surprised to learn just how much time is wasted on a typical construction project.

In the workshop, attendees used a foundation spreadsheet to add up the time impacts of poor planning, missing materials, personal chores done on company time, late arrivals and early departures, unplanned delays (an inspector not showing up, etc.) and more. Multiplying those lost minutes by their labor rates and the number of company employees produced some shocking numbers. The worksheet calculated the lost productivity at one company with 500+ employees to be over $80 million dollars a year.

"That's great news," instructor Kirk Alter told the attendees. "You will never recover all of that time, but just 2 percent — about 10 minutes per person — will save this company $1.5 million each year!"

The sold-out two-day workshop was conducted June 24-25 and hosted by A. O. Smith University (AOSU) from its training facility in Ashland City, Tennessee. Purdue University Professor Emeritus Kirk Alter led the program over Zoom, with the AOSU studio allowing him to move as he would in a physical classroom, teaching from slides or hitting the whiteboard to show the attendees how the numbers add up. 

A. O. Smith University supported the program through use of their studio, and A. O. Smith and Kohler Company also generously sponsored the class, reducing the registration fee for attendees.

"It is our pleasure to host these sessions," said Jason Leonard, marketing technology and training manager at A. O. Smith. "The partnership we have with the PHCC Educational Foundation is one that we hold near and dear, so we are always happy to participate and host these sessions."

The foundation will conduct another online foremen training July 22-23, 2021, from A. O. Smith University, also sponsored by A. O. Smith and Kohler Company. Visit https://phccfoundation.org/essentials for more information and to register. Class size is limited.