Kieran McCarthy: Reducing stress when building

Project management is critical when planning to build a home extension, writes Kieran McCarthy

"Certainly, the end result of the additional space will support family home life but the journey to that end is where the difficulty may lie"

Hi Kieran, 

I have a question on construction times. We are planning an extension to the rear of our three-bed property. However, we have a small child with another on the way. We would really like to keep the construction timelines to the shortest period possible. 

Can you run through the issues that cause delays to projects and are there things homeowners can do to help builders shorten construction periods?

Thank you, 

Peter, Ennis, Co Clare.

Hi Peter, Happy New Year to you and thank you for this ‘timely’ question.

Isn’t it amazing that family construction projects always seem to take place at a time when your family is otherwise extremely busy and stress levels are already a little elevated? Well, it’s not like construction is stressful or anything! I guess the extension itself is usually a response to an expanding family so it all happens at once. Certainly the end result of the additional space will support family home life but the journey to that end is where the difficulty may lie and there’s nothing like a good delay to raise the temperature at home... so let’s see what’s involved in a project like this and what can go wrong.

"Project management involves listing out all the key tasks in a project, assigning personnel to each task, ordering the tasks, and estimating how long each task will take place and which tasks can be overlapped."

For me the most important elements missing in many construction projects are project management, communication, and personnel. Indeed, these elements are intertwined and depend on each other. Project management involves listing out all the key tasks in a project, assigning personnel to each task, ordering the tasks, and estimating how long each task will take place and which tasks can be overlapped. I always use a diagram called a Gantt chart for this (example images of this are available online). 

If you are carrying out this project with a small building company they may not actually formally draw up this chart but when appointed, you can certainly draw one up with your builder by hand or with one of the many free tools available. I always find that even the act of drawing up the chart gives you a great feeling of control and visibility over the project, and it will show you which tasks depend on which and where the busy periods of the project will be (where several tasks overlap). These are the times you need to be on site to deal with the management and sequencing of trades. You can of course use this chart to monitor and review your project as it progresses.

The other thing your Gantt chart can show you is when key elements like your kitchen, tiles, and windows will be fitted. Products like these all have lead in times as they need to be either fabricated off-site or sourced from another country. I would highlight all products such as this on your chart and contact these suppliers and assess the lead-in time. It may in fact be the case that some lead-in times (eg, your kitchen) may be longer than the project itself. It may take three to four months to design and order a kitchen whereas your extension project may only take eight to 10 weeks to complete on site. In this instance you will need to have your kitchen on order even before you commence on site.

"It may take three to four months to design and order a kitchen whereas your extension project may only take eight to 10 weeks to complete on site."

Another important document I would draw up is an information required schedule. This will relate to your Gantt chart and you can draw this up in conjunction with your builder. Essentially, you are asking your builder what information they require and when. Long lead items come into play here too for example window sizes, kitchen layout (including plumbing and electrical schematics), and indeed an electrical layout for the rest of the kitchen. Floor finishes chosen, internal joinery (doors, skirting, architrave) detailed, and final paint colours will also feature on this list.

When it comes to communication, I would agree with your builder when you are available to be contacted (and when not available, eg evenings and weekends) and how you are best reached. You may find email or Whatsapp particularly effective when at work but be sure to impart what decisions you wish to be involved in and what decisions you are happy to pass over to the builder.

You also need to be clear that you wish to have adequate time to make key decisions so the builder needs to have their homework done in advance and not to be door-stepping you on a Tuesday morning looking for the tiling pattern for the whole ground floor of the house.

Kieran McCarthy, KMC Homes, engineer and builder. Picture: Denis Minihane.

Finally, and probably the most important element of a successful team, is of course the team itself. Have you the right builder? In my experience, you definitely get what you pay for here. There are certainly builders who are excellent at extensions and renovations but they tend to cost more as they are in huge demand. On the flip side there are cheaper builders who can be disorganised and disinterested in the project and, in a situation where you are extending and renovating your house, where you may need to move out for a spell, this can cause significant problems and mounting stress: buyer beware.

All the project management tools in the world will fall short if you don’t have the right team on site. The success of your entire project and your stress levels depend on it.

• Kieran McCarthy is a building engineer and director of KMC Homes bespoke A-Rated new home builder, serving Cork and Limerick. 
• He is also co-presenter of the RTÉ property show Cheap Irish Homes Follow Kieran on instagram @kierankmc for building information, tips and Q&A advice.
• You can also follow Kieran on the Built Around You Youtube channel and Tik Tok @kierankmc