Introduction to the Last Planner System

Master planning takes place at the very start of a project. The master schedule dictates the flow and pace of the project. Lead contractors and subcontractors work together to determine the project's key milestones. These milestones are usually the completion dates of the major project phases (a portion of a project that can be considered as a discrete unit) and the dates for releasing the purchase of major resources that have a long lead time. The master schedule outlines the entire project in detail, broken down into a number of discrete phases, with every single task considered.

Phase planning typically takes place two to three months before the beginning of each project phase. The phase schedule assigns responsibility for each task to an individual, contractor or subcontractor. During the creation of the phase schedule, the workflow of the project phase is determined and the last planners work together to determine how long it will take for them to complete their parts of this phase of the project. Once each last planner has determined how long each task will take, a more definite schedule for the project can be created. Last planners can use 'pull planning' during this phase, in which they work backwards from the end-phase milestone and ensure that they can complete their tasks in time for the next phase to begin. Phase planning is an opportunity for the planners to determine how to pace the work so that it progresses as steadily as possible.

This phase ensures that every person involved in the project has the resources they require to complete their portions of the project. At each 'make work ready planning' meeting, those tasks that are to be completed within four to six weeks of the date of the meeting (or sometimes later) are considered. At the meeting, any constraints that could inhibit progress should be identified. Examples of constraints are materials not arriving on time, resources not having access to the appropriate tools, or construction documents and permits not being available on time. Each constraint should be logged, and assigned to an individual who assumes responsibility for dealing with the issue - and removing the constraint - by a certain date. These meetings help to avoid unforeseen issues that can make projects go over time and over budget. At these meetings, any tasks that were not broken down sufficiently during phase planning to enable weekly and daily planning can be broken down into suitably detailed tasks.

Check-ins happen once a week during the project. The check-ins are to ensure that everyone is aware of their upcoming tasks for the coming week. During these weekly work planning meetings, everyone who has been assigned a task must confirm that their job will be completed on time and a weekly work plan is prepared. This is to ensure that the previously-determined planned completion dates for tasks do not slip. If completion dates do slip, the entire project could be delayed, incurring wasted materials, time and money. An element of peer pressure incentivises people to complete the work that they have promised to deliver at these face-to-face meetings.

These meetings happen at the end of each working day. Before leaving the site, the last planners meet to confirm that their tasks were completed as planned. If any issues have occurred, the last planners can tackle the issues together and work to set the project back on track. Even the smallest of scheduling errors need to be addressed as soon as possible, as if left unchecked, these could cause major delays. The daily 'learning meetings' are an opportunity to perform some statistical analyses (KPIs) to ensure that the project is on time and within budget, for example:

• Percent Plan Complete (PPC). This determines what percentage of the weekly tasks have been completed. This can help planners to identify any problems that have occurred during the week so that they can make adjustments for the following week.
• Tasks Made Ready (TMR). This helps to show whether the phase scheduling process worked and whether the schedule is being followed. If fewer tasks than planned were made ready, last planners should carry out a root-cause analysis to find out what has gone wrong and how a repeat of this can be avoided.
• Tasks Anticipated (TA). This measures how many tasks were identified for the following week. This enables last planners to identify how much work is expected each week, and allows them to understand what may have contributed towards higher productivity in some weeks, and lower productivity in other weeks.