First and foremost I should ask you this question. “Which two letters in the alphabet may be the most important to your company?” A clue – They are located right in the middle of the alphabet and are side by side. They are the N and the O. There are many times when saying “No” to a project is more important for your company than simply saying; “yes, sure we can.”

The damage comes when saying “yes” to the client will disrupt your previous commitments. Ask yourself will the dollar compensation allow for the required overtime costs? Will you, as the sales person, receive the agreement (from production) to be able to meet the schedule that has been requested by the client?

It is important to understand that your honesty and integrity will not interfere with future work with this client. Let your client know immediately if you can or cannot help them out. If your schedule will not allow a fast track project (no matter the size) because you are too busy, that is okay (actually that is great, given the present economy). Explain the schedule conflict to your client in order to continue bidding with them for future projects. They will appreciate the immediate and honest answer much more than being late on a project because you said yes without thinking.

“Poor planning on your clients part does not does constitute an emergency on your part”

– Author Unknown

You will at times, however, find yourself jumping through hoops to make things happen on behalf of your regular client. Do not, however, keep a client hanging on for a decision. Get the answer “yes we can” or “no we cannot” immediately back to them, so they can go to their Plan “B” and honor their commitments.

A few things you should consider when requested to do a fast track project…

Verify with your production team that both the engineering department and production itself can accept additional work at this time, based on the present workload. That is a judgment call for the Production Manager. If the go ahead is given by production to proceed with the bidding process, your company has made a commitment, and if awarded the project you must precede in a timely manner.

As far as the office functions, a “Fast Track” project is no different from any other. Enter the job into your system and immediately set up the job book. Let the staff know that this particular job is a fast track project. The salesman should make sure the job is immediately placed on the schedule. He should make every effort to turn over the plans and information quickly to project management.

This project will take some precedence over one or more of your present projects. The turnover should be scheduled with production and the project manager. This places the work in front of the key players so they will be prepared rather than blind-sided at the last minute.

The initial task must be requesting information for any special conditions, equipment, finishes and secondly receiving approvals to order the materials. RFI’s must be sent out, acknowledged, answered and approved ASAP. Early approval for ordering materials is typically a must. When necessary, get the materials approved even if the details are lacking or still being worked on. You should be prepared to go to the saw and start cutting when the approvals and plans are returned. Fast track projects require thinking ahead and moving the materials before the plans themselves may have been approved.

The project manager must make the phone call to the superintendent to ask the following question “when can I measure” or,“ when can I measure the majority of the project?” You can ask for it, but not many superintendents will commit to “guaranteed dimensions” these days. It is a fact that time is saved in drafting when drawing with actual measurements.

The project manager must control the client by phone and in writing. Tell the Client, G.C. or the project manager what is required of them for the turn-around of the approved shop drawings. They are just as responsible to the success of the project as you are.

Everyone needs to be in the loop earlier rather than later when working on a fast track project. The draftsman can begin preparing the shop drawings as areas are approved, measured and the colors are known. While it’s not the best situation to be in, having the work started before the last piece of information is received will help you get ahead of the curve. Note that this is not ideal, but rather the nature of FAST TRACK PROJECTS!

Take a minute to think about your sub-contractor(s) – it may be your wood finisher or a lighting guy for instance – chances are you talked to them for pricing and the fast track nature was discussed at bid time. Immediately after you receive notice to start, communicate the schedule with your subs. They will want to know if they have the job. More importantly, you need to know nothing has changed on their end with their schedule. Get the dates, and issue a purchase order.

A common question; “What if they all of a sudden are too busy and cannot meet my schedule?” This is a good problem for them but potentially a REAL problem for you?

Answer: GO TO PLAN “B”. You should never have just one source for any product or service

The art of the fast track is easy if you begin the work on day one. The most immediate and important start of the task is communication between the client and your departments. Experience gives me a simple equation to live by: for every one day of delay by the client for information or by you in-house, there will be a minimum of three days lost on the schedule. This formula has unfortunately been proven by far too many professionals, far many too many times.

Remember if you cannot do a given task yourself, then ask for help. It is really that simple… do not make a fast track project any more difficult than it needs to be. Most importantly, remember that your typical process for the plans, production review, and fabrication through quality control should be maintained. There are no short cuts.