The advantages of the use of GRC technology in making commercial grade planters for large construction projects is well known. Nevertheless, getting them made properly for the intended purpose and delivered to suit a large project’s specific site circumstances efficiently requires a certain amount of experience, planning and management. From a generic perspective, this is no great revelation. However, the project management element that relates to the supplier’s side of a project is often underestimated and sometimes overlooked completely.

All large construction projects have project managers to manage the different segments of the project and one of them will be assigned the responsibility for the landscaping and/or the sourcing and installation of the GRC planters. However, the project manager will need more than a contact person at the GRC planter supplier end to nominate the timing of delivery and do the invoicing. It just makes sense on large GRC supply projects, particularly if there are multiple custom-made planters involved, that the supplier should be expected to provide a project manager for the same types of reasons that a project manager is required at the customer end.

A good supplier-end project manager will provide assistance and improved communication on the following issues: -

At the product engineering stage
- Confirmation on sizing options - standard sizes, custom-made sizes and tolerances
- Confirmation on finishing options – availability of colour processes and textures
- Confirmation on waterproofing options - internal, external and integrated

At the manufacturing stage
- Communication - on progress
- Staging – to ensure adjoining products match before they leave the factory
- Product packing - to suit the site installation logistics with lifting equipment

At the delivery stage
- Coordination - to ensure deliveries align with the project installation plan

At the post installation stage
- Defect management – nobody wants to admit it, but it does happen and must be managed

Sales, customer support, or business development staff can be great value in facilitating an order. We have very good ones in our business and so do a lot of our competitors. However, their focus is generally on the development of new opportunities not necessarily the management of current projects. Therefore, from a practical perspective, having a delineation on the supplier side that clearly identifies a post-order project manager for your project can provide better communication, a more controlled GRC planter installation and a lot less stress.

Conclusion

If you are sourcing GRC planters for a large project, it may be a good idea to ask who the “project manager” is going to be at the supplier end and what responsibilities are assigned to that role. And if there is not going to be one or he/she is going to be the same person that completed the sale in the first place, it may be worth reconsidering the supplier you have selected.