A compound full of pipe on a finished site
Your drainage on one site is finished. In the compound there are lengths of pipe, a few inspection chambers, bends and junctions, a pallet of kerbs and some gully pots. They are fine, just surplus. Meanwhile, twenty miles away, a ganger on your new site orders the same pipe and chambers from the merchant. A month later the old site's compound is cleared by the main contractor and your materials go in a skip.
Every groundworks firm has materials scattered like this. Nobody knows what is where, so it is quicker to buy new.
Why surplus is lost
Materials are ordered for a job and charged to it. Whatever is left at the end has no owner and no record. Gangers know what is in their compound, but gangers on other sites do not. When the job ends, the surplus is abandoned, moved to the yard without record, or taken by whoever needs it without telling anyone.
- Leftover materials are not recorded when a site winds down.
- Gangers on other sites cannot see what surplus exists.
- Orders are placed with merchants without checking your own stock.
- Transfers between sites are not recorded.
- Surplus in compounds is lost when sites are cleared.
What forgotten surplus costs
Materials bought twice. Surplus lost to skips and theft. Job costs distorted, with the first job carrying materials the second one used. And a yard that fills with materials nobody has catalogued, so they are never used either.
The surplus list we build
- When a site winds down, or at any time, gangers log surplus on a phone: photos, item type from a list, size, quantity and location.
- Items in your own yard are logged the same way.
- The list is visible to all contracts managers and gangers, searchable by item and size.
- When a ganger or contracts manager raises an order, matching surplus is shown first, with where it is.
- Transfers between sites or to the yard are logged, and the cost moves with the materials if you charge them between jobs.
- Surplus on sites about to be cleared is flagged, so it can be moved in time.
- Returns to merchants, where your terms allow, are recorded against the original order.
| Item | Size | Quantity | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plastic pipe | Common diameter | Several lengths | East site compound |
| Inspection chambers | Standard | A few | East site compound |
| Kerbs | Half battered | One pallet | Yard |
| Gully pots | Standard | A few | North site |
Materials used, not abandoned
Gangs use surplus before buying new, because they can see it when they order. Materials are moved before compounds are cleared. Job costs reflect materials actually used on each job. And the yard holds a catalogue, not a heap. It is a small change for gangers: a few photos at the end of a job and a check before ordering.
Merchants may notice a dip in small orders, but your buyers can spend the time on the big packages instead.
The list also helps at the start of a job. When a contracts manager plans the drainage for a new site, they can see what is already sitting in the yard and on other sites, and order only the balance. Small items that are always in short supply on a Monday morning, such as couplers and bends, are found in someone else's compound instead of on a merchant's counter.
Is surplus scattered across your sites?
- Leftover pipes and chambers sit in compounds on finished sites.
- Gangs order new materials that you already own.
- Surplus has gone in a skip when a compound was cleared.
- Your yard has materials nobody has listed.
- Transfers between sites are not recorded.