Cut Project-Closure Process in Half
Employees in Southeast Colorado Cutting Closure Process In Half: Region's success using "Lean Improvement" to improve Region's Closure Process
By Eli Skaronea, Process Improvement & Change Management Intern
March 2, 2018
It's frustrating to complete a project on time and/or below budget that then sits in the closure process. At the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), this can happen when an administrator contacts a team months after project completion to request documents or other information to officially finalize work. In some cases, project closures have sat in limbo for up to two years, putting funds on hold.
Region 2 Project Closure Update
In CDOT's Southeast Colorado offices, staff members have significantly reduced the closure process by eliminating rework and streamlining efforts. In turn, the team can focus on other projects, and build better relationships with contractors, CDOT staff, and the Federal Highways Administration (FHWA).
Identifying & Tackling the Problem
From 2008 to 2013, it took an average of 369 days to close construction projects in the region—from when a project was accepted to when it was closed in its database. By comparison, it took staff in other regions an average of 256 days within the same time frame. Staff in Pueblo held a three-day rapid improvement event to evaluate the process and determine what was causing delays. To help, employees in CDOT's Southwest region joined the assessment. The evaluation revealed that rework and inefficient processes were the main culprits behind the delay and that they could streamline the overall process by adopting their fellow Southwest Colorado employees' steps.
The Results
The Southeast Colorado team has made major improvements, according to data from 2015 through 2017. The team set the goal of cutting the median amount of days to just 200, and the overall average of days by half. Staff members have since achieved the first goal, and they are close to reaching the second. According to engineer James Caretto, "Being proactive has been the greatest change we have made. Correcting an issue before a project begins allows a lot of unnecessary work to be prevented."
Three people perform this proactive work:
Caretto manages field reviews.
Richard Raebel reviews project materials.
Susan Galvez acts as administrator for Caretto and Raebel while they are in the field.
The last two employees split their work time in half—dedicating 50 percent of their hours to these duties. The result: items are processed at a rate of 100 percent, versus the previous rate of 10 percent. This project also improved the project-closure process statewide. By designing and implementing a finals notebook for all projects statewide, the team is collecting documentation for easy review by administrators. They are communicating it to all CDOT project managers through its Change Agent Network and via training.
Lastly, they started submitting this documentation through CDOT's electronic document management system, centralizing data into one easily accessible place while saving paper. On average, projects are being closed 43 percent faster and are monitored more intently. As a result, remaining funds are released into their respective pools, which allows CDOT to deliver more projects for the traveling public to enjoy.