What if the job of a construction foreman is nothing like what you expected? Being in this role is one of the most rewarding jobs around.

However, the field has changed a lot over the years and is continuing to evolve. New construction-designed technological innovations have made yesterday’s role into today’s digital foreman. This is mostly good news because it makes the job that much easier!

Keep reading to learn more about what a construction foreman does and how digital technology can be a real game-changer!

What Is a Construction Foreman?

The basic way of thinking about a foreman is to imagine them as the manager of a construction site. Unlike some managers, though, foreman are typically promoted entirely on merit.

In many jobs, someone becomes a manager based simply on having the right degree or having completed a special training program. However, this role requires is someone with years of hands-on job experience and is eventually promoted based on past successes.

The role is very important, too. Such a person usually serves as an intermediary between the upper management of a project and the actual construction labor personnel.

Now that you know what a foreman is, it’s important to know just what they do.

Supervising Construction Teams

Arguably, the primary responsibility of the position is to supervise a construction project. In order to do that, he or she must communicate with and supervise a variety of different groups.

The foreman, for instance, must have an ongoing dialogue with project architects to ensure that construction is true to the original architectural vision. He must also guide any outside contractors into working as a unified whole.

When it comes to the workers, the supervision comes in two parts. First, the jobsite leader must ensure workers start and end on time and do not end up working overtime.

Second, he must inspect the quality of work they produce while ensuring that it is a safe work environment.

Foreman are Regulations Experts

So far, you might think the job sounds pretty easy. After all, it involves a lot of watching other people work, right?

However, role requires a lot of work, and sometimes in unexpected ways. This includes studying a small mountain of regulations.

There are many different sources of such regulations. There are state and local regulations, federal regulations, and regulations imposed by upper management.

Many safety regulations exist for insurance purposes. This helps ensure the safety of the entire construction crew and also protect management from any unnecessary lawsuits.

If you’re ready for construction management, don’t be surprised if the job includes constantly learning about new rules and regulations!

Bringing Work Home

So far, we have mostly focused on things that a construction boss does while onsite. However, the job has a number of offsite responsibilities as well.

At a bare minimum, the jobsite leader must create a work schedule that maximizes coverage while making sure no one is overworked or underworked. It gets trickier when a project starts falling behind.

When this happens, the foreman must make adjustments to individual schedules and project priorities to ensure that everything stays on time.

Finally, the role requires meeting with a variety of project stakeholders offsite. This includes architects, engineers, and project managers.

Digital Paperwork

We’ve been describing what the average construction foreman is like. How, then, are things different with a digital foreman?

Basically, the digital foreman has embraced the idea of “work smarter, not harder.” To this end, they have invested in certain construction technology and apps to make their job a lot easier.

For instance, a foreman’s job involves a whole lot of paperwork. The best apps offer features such as digital timekeeping, which lets the foreman track his workers’ hours by simply taking out his phone.

Similarly, the app allows the foreman to track the production progress of the entire project. This makes the process of tracking whether a project has fallen behind much easier than it was before.

Organized Photos

Construction is a highly visual job. In all those offsite meetings, a foreman is expected to present detailed photos of construction progress whenever he is asked.

This is difficult for some individuals because they must lug around cameras, develop photos, and so on. In short, it slows down progress on the job.

However, a digital foreman knows that the old saying is true: there’s an app for that! Such apps allow them to take, edit, and organize construction photos using only their phone.

They can still present high-quality photos to the architects and engineers. However, the app helps keep everything in one place and makes the job that much easier.

Up the Food Chain

Earlier, we discussed how closely a construction foreman must work with other groups such as project managers. Interestingly, going digital is a great opportunity for the entire project and its stakeholders to benefit.

The same great apps that help the construction foreman complete paperwork and document progress in minutes also offer features for project managers to improve performance. This includes real-time insight into the project budget against daily costs.

And both the construction supervisor and the project managers would be interested in the digital operations features. These allow insights into things such as the productivity of workers, which is crucial in both keeping projects on time and getting the most out of all of the labor.

Construction Foreman Plus

You came here to read about what a digital construction foreman is. The truth? He’s just a regular foreman who has given himself an edge.

The digital foreman still has all of the same responsibilities as the foremen of yesteryear. However, he is hip to the 21st-century and embraced technology which makes his life easier while maintaining the quality of any construction projects!

The Bottom Line

You know now how the right apps can make things better for a construction foreman. But do you know where to find the construction apps you need?

At Rhumbix, we specialize in the kinds of apps that are used by construction managers around the world. To see how we can make your next project easier, request a demo today!

 

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