No Mistakes

Fieldstone Homes Utah, a division of California-based Fieldstone Communities, thought it was doing a pretty good job by finishing one house per working day a year. It had a 91-day working schedule to finish any house it built, from a 1,400-square-foot to a 3,500-square-foot house.

With a goal of finishing two houses a day, it scoured its processes and cut that time by a third, says division manager Bern Wilson, and hit two houses a day by the middle of 2004. Since then, the company has continued to chip away at its cycle time by “introducing better processes, better practices, and managing our human resources better,” Wilson says.

Today, it's building a 3,500-square-foot house in 49 working days, with 38 of those from framing forward. Fieldstone now finishes three houses per working day (the schedule allows for weather delays), halfway to its goal of six per day.

The average consumer wouldn't be faulted for assuming that with a “more house for less money” building model and a virtual race to completion, the trade-off is in the quality of the construction. Far from it. Wilson credits the company's fanatical attention to quality control for its ability to look a customer in the eye and tell him that he'll move into his house in 49 working days.

“When we decided to reduce cycle time, we said we would shorten the duration of each activity,” Wilson says. “We knew it would be impossible to make it stick without a nice, robust quality control process to go alongside of it.”

To make it happen, Fieldstone began what it calls a QC1-8 checkpoint process that runs from foundation through closing. All superintendents are put through a three- to six-month in-house training program that includes an exam and certification before they're allowed in the field, Wilson says. Much of the program is centered on quality control.

Once in the field, superintendents start each day with a “power walk,” going into every house in their subdivision with a list of construction standards to check. It can happen because superintendents at Fieldstone have only two basic responsibilities, Wilson says: holding the customer's hand through the process and administering the quality control (QC) program. The scheduling of trade contractors is centralized, as are jobsite deliveries, lining up new trades, and negotiating contracts.

The process is monitored by Fieldstone's central scheduling department; bonuses are tied to getting all of the QC checkpoints completed on time, with only a certain number of items that are found to be below standard at each checkpoint. “If he goes above that number, he loses everything,” Wilson says.

It all culminates in the QC7 check, when the homeowner is invited to walk the house with the superintendent—and there's money on the line again.

“We have a motto that runs through the company: ‘We get what we inspect, not what we expect,' ” Wilson says. “That drives a lot of our quality control. If we're not inspecting, don't expect too much.”

The key to successful inspections is tying bonuses to the inspection results, he says. “When we put the program in place, we assumed it would be followed,” he says. “That didn't always happen. We had to go back and attach a system to monitor whether it was occurring or not, the number of hits at each QC point, and then attach money to it. Then we knew it was happening.”

Plus, division and area construction managers perform random inspections to put another set of eyes on the jobsite. “[The manager] won't be able to catch everything, but just knowing that guy could turn up at any point places quite a bit of pressure on [the super] to do it with the right amount of integrity.”

In 2006, Wilson also is hiring a dedicated quality assurance manager to audit site cleanliness, safety, and construction standards. The position will be outside the construction department and report directly to him.

“We added that position to avoid the situation of having the fox guarding the chicken house, of having it all within construction, especially when there is money attached,” he says. “We need that level of independence and objectivity to further enhance quality assurance. It's expensive, but it's how much we value it.”

Fieldstone values it because the impact is significant. The company uses evenflow project management, and if quality starts to slip and trades have to be called back, Wilson has to delay the whole division.

“Every time I put in a delay day, that's three closings for the year,” Wilson says. “The cost is high.”

Beyond the savings in cycle time, Fieldstone has seen other significant benefits from its QC program. Trade contractors are anxious to work with the company—and willing to negotiate leaner margins—because they know the builder is well organized.

“They can rely on the fact that if we ask them to be there on Tuesday morning, it will be ready to go,” he says. “They don't have to build any bluff into their bids for dry runs.”

Employee development reviews are easy because jobs are well defined and everything is measured. It's also helped them establish a great rapport with city inspectors, who are willing to come when Fieldstone asks because “they know the site will be clean and ready to sign off on,” he says.

And, of course, it's helped generate happy buyers, who depend on Fieldstone's 49-day promise for everything from locking in a mortgage rate to lining up a moving van.

“We've made this a big deal,” Wilson says. “It's who we are. We couldn't have reduced cycle time without it. It's huge. We compromise on other things, but we don't compromise on this program.”

Fieldstone Homes Utah, Cottonwood Heights, Utah

QC1: Foundation—foundation day 11

ITEMS CHECKED: Foundation, slab, backfill, grade, utility boxes, lot drainage

QC2: Four Way Trades—frame day 10 (prior to insulation)

ITEMS CHECKED: Framing, vents, connections, bearings, windows, HVAC, electrical, plumbing

QC3: Drywall—frame day 18

ITEMS CHECKED: Taping, roofing, tubs, furnace, texture, final electrical

QC4: Interior Trim—frame day 20

ITEMS CHECKED: Doors and reveals, base joints and miters, attic access, exterior stone, porch posts

QC5: Paint—frame day 23

ITEMS CHECKED: House clean, weather strip, dryer vent, floor squeaks, attic insulation

QC6: Finish hardware—frame day 29

ITEMS CHECKED: Cabinets, countertops, vinyl floor, doors, house clean, garage remotes, water on

QC7: Final inspection (meet with buyer, pre-carpet)—frame day 30

ITEMS CHECKED: All options installed, base pickup, hardware complete, flush toilets, operate all faucets, address, clean, appliances

QC8: Orientation with buyer (house complete and clean)—frame day 38

ITEMS CHECKED: Final check for all QC7 punch-list items to complete; object is to deliver the house defect-free