Construction Superintendent

A construction superintendent is the contractor’s point man on a construction site for both residential and commercial projects. Though the job description may vary slightly depending on the construction superintendent employment terms, the construction superintendent is usually responsible for the overall operation at the site. This includes a number of important functions related both to budget and quality.

A construction superintendent’s most difficult task may be to take care of scheduling and timing. Many construction projects may have tight deadlines and need done in a certain order. Making sure the subcontractors arrive when they are supposed to be there, and get the job done within their allotted time frame, is one of the key duties of the position.

In order for this to take place, a construction superintendent, sometimes also known as a construction manager, must have good multitasking and scheduling skills. He or she is responsible for overseeing multiple facets of the project, many of which may occur simultaneously. To aid in this task, the construction superintendent may require daily progress reports from the the foreman on duty for each subcontractor.

It is also the job of the construction superintendent to make sure the project stays on budget and to justify any change orders resulting in additional expenses. To accomplish this, the construction superintendent may require a written explanation of the problem, the proposed solution and the cost. Additionally, the construction manager may also make a personal inspection of the issue to assure that the proposed solution will work and that it is the most cost-effective solution available.

The construction superintendent will also be responsible for reporting to the owners of the project. In some cases, this may be an individual, such as a developer, but it can also be a board of directors or governmental board, such as a city council. These individuals have a personal interest in the project and will likely have a number of questions about the progress and any issues that arise. Therefore, the construction superintendent’s job is to be as prepared as possible by anticipating questions and finding the answers beforehand. If the answers are not available immediately, the construction superintendent should research the answers and provide those to the questioner.

In many cases, a construction superintendent may have no college degree, though it could be quite helpful. Rather, this is a position that rewards experience more than a formal education. Those who move into such roles usually have many years of experience in general construction work, and may have a specialty in more than one area, such as electrical or plumbing.