In the process of going from design to construction, all kinds of things can get lost in translation. From plan revisions to material specifications to unexpected obstacles, the best way to stay on track and finish with a great result is to make sure the lines of communication are open, and that everyone involved is using them.
Bob Healey of Irrigation Management and Services in Natick, Mass., works directly with the foreman on site to make sure everything is going according to plan, and no question goes unanswered.
“You develop a communication with the foreman and basically the more lines of communication you can have open at that level, the better the project will go,” says Healey, a member of the American Society of Irrigation Consultants. “They have my cell number. Any time you have a question or you’re not sure 100 percent, call me and I’ll say yes or no or do it this way or that’s ok, what you’re doing is alright.”
Contractors can have their own ways of doing things, which can cause problems if the specifications don’t get into the right hands. “Part of the problem oftentimes is the foreman doesn’t read the specifications,” Healey says. “It’s the person above him who’s bidding the job or the irrigation guru for the company that’s going out and getting all the jobs. He’s reading it and he’s doing the submittals and oftentimes the foreman is simply handed the drawings and say go to it. So he starts doing it the way he’s always been told to do it.”
Ken Merboth, president of Water Scape in Lincoln, Neb., and ASIC member, has run into the same problem. “One of the things that contractors don’t like to do is meet those details as I have specified and they like to do it the way they always do,” he says. “I guess that’s about the best way you can say it.” Detailing each part of the installation before the plan goes out to bid helps him manage problems. If something is installed incorrectly, he can refer to the irrigation details and specifications, and show the contractor what was installed incorrectly.
Keeping the landscape architect and the irrigation contractor in touch also helps to make sure that the system fits the plantings as they may change. “Once you get in there and you establish a line of communication you solve a lot of the problems,” Healey says. And once he’s worked with a contractor a few times, they know what to expect from him and know how to make the project go smoothly.
To get everyone off on the right foot, Healey sets the parameters in the pre-construction meeting. Once submittals start coming in, he’s very meticulous about what he accepts. “Almost doesn’t count,” he says.
James Eddy, principal and founder of James D. Eddy Associates in Danville, Cali., says smartphones have been a game-changer when it comes to communication. While he’s always available by phone, email, PDFs and photos keep things efficient. “Phone calls take a lot of time and email gets right to the point. Plus, people can now take pictures in the field with their iPhones,” says Eddy, a professional member of the ASIC. “A lot of contractors will take pictures of conditions on their iPhone and email that picture to me and a picture is worth a million words. It’s perfect.” With a photo, he can clearly see things like slopes or retaining walls and plan around it.
Merboth uses a checklist when he’s inspecting a site with the contractors. The irrigation contractor, the general contractor and he all sign the sheet and send it to the landscape architect or engineer to keep them up to date on the progress.
Eddy is also working on a check sheet for his clients where they can answer his questions and check off boxes right on the PDF. He says the questions will help his clients think about special plantings or other challenges on the property like rose bushes or heritage trees that need special irrigation.
He recently worked on a project with a steep slope and a 10-foot tall retaining wall. Since he didn’t receive a cutaway of the structure, he had tried to run most of the line around the wall, but planned to cut through in a couple of places.
“Luckily the builder called me and asked me if he could discuss the main line going through the wall with me and I said, ‘Why certainly,’ so I went to his office and he had a cutaway of the wall and I was shocked,” he says. “That’s a really huge wall.”
Since the wall was 8 feet deep in the ground, the contractor didn’t want to run pipe under it. If the line were to break, they’d have to shore up all of that soil, so Eddy decided to put metal pipe along the outside of the wall and paint it to match. The contractor loved the idea.
“So sometimes it’s very important that special things are told to me, and other irrigation consultants for that matter, so that we can do things that will be safe for the project and safe for the people that are maintaining it, or even installing it,” he says.