We know from experience that bathroom reservations represent 40 to 50% of all reservations recorded for a project, i.e. bathrooms are one of the main batches where quality must be improved to avoid wasting time towards the end of a project.
The critical phase of accepting the construction site and clearing reservations
Works are accepted at the completion of a project, just before occupying the site, or opening the facility. On this occasion, the customer will carefully check the facility to ensure conformity. Reservations may be recorded when inspecting the site, and list the defects or faults detected, which must be corrected or repaired prior to the final acceptance of the works in order to deliver a conform structure.
This phase is essential, but often the prime contractor is faced with a certain degree of inertia when clearing reservations, a slowness in proportion to the number of reservations recorded. Delays incurred in the process of clearing reservations are critical as they defer the opening of the facility by the same period. Each day of operations lost represents a significant amount of earnings, therefore the financial implications are substantial over and above the quality of the building.
Boosting the quality of the final bathroom
Several factors are at play in reducing the list of reservations for the bathroom batch :
- The unfailing and constant quality of bathroom pods
- Stylish and reproducible final touches
- Systematic factory acceptance testing is the main guard against reservations at the end of the project.
The level of quality of the final product is the main factor in reducing reservations for works.
Key points : Opting for an industrial bathroom solution guarantees good quality and reduces the number of reservations recorded upon completion of the project.
Let us consider the example of the construction of a hotel combining traditional bathrooms and a prefabricated solution
This hotel is on the Mediterranean Coast and opened in 2020. The owner opted for prefabricated bathrooms for 75% of the rooms. Traditional construction techniques were used for 25% of the bathrooms for configuration reasons as a streamlined production system was not feasible. It is worth noting that the finishing touches and equipment are identical in all hotel bedrooms regardless of the selected construction method (tiling, taps, other bathroom equipment).
This project highlights the differences between the industrial solution and the traditional solution when accepting bathroom batch structures.
If this project had opted for equal numbers of traditional and prefabricated bathrooms, 164 reservations would have been recorded for the traditional bathrooms versus 5 for the industrial solutions. Observations, comments, repairs and acceptance would have been required for over 30 times more reservations!
It appears obvious that the “ready-to-install” bathroom solution will drastically reduce the number of reservations for the bathroom batch, avoiding the need for corrections in a tight space, which is frequently a source of dread for prime contractors.
Less complex adjustments required in case of reservations
While the number of reservations is one comparable parameter, a second key point is the type of reservations remaining. Some reservations are structural, while others relate to bathrooms trims.
Reservations relating to prefabricated bathrooms mainly involve minor adjustments. It may be necessary to replace or add missing equipment or items damaged during works. These operations will be quick and will not affect the schedule and acceptance of the works.
On the other hand, a wide range of different reservations are recorded for traditional bathrooms and some operations can take more time, e.g. if a tile must be replaced or paint must be touched up, with drying time also a consideration.
Key points: If a prefabricated bathroom solution is selected, all of the remaining reservations are minor and can be more quickly cleared compared with a traditional bathroom set-up.
Rapid adjustments for all residual reservations
It can be complex to coordinate all trades during this reservations phase. Make sure that each contractor for a batch performs the assigned works at the appropriate time and without disturbing other contractors in a confined space such as a bathroom.
One third benefit, in addition to the smaller number of reservations and the minor adjustments required, is the reduction in the number of workers required to clear reservations.
Thanks to the prefabricated solution, the industrial firm (its installation team in the field) can adjust the product independently within a short period, for the purposes of clearing the remaining reservations. Just maintaining one single contact person for the entire bathroom batch for your project brings this benefit.
Key points: If the same products and services are selected for the same building, a prefabricated bathroom solution offers undeniable strengths during the acceptance phase of a project. This solution saves time, investment and energy for every single party involved.
