Insulation Jobsite Efficiency Series: Assigning a Tool Kit Saves Time on the Job
One of the most frustrating aspects of any job in any industry is not having tools you need when you need them. Not having the right tool or not even having the tool at all can waste valuable time. The insulation industry is no different.
Whether you are removing insulation from an attic or putting insulation in, there are a few tools that need to be accessed quickly and often. We have found that even the best equipped trailer or truck can be far more efficient if allocating tools to each employee is part of the equation.
We have visited many companies with large tool boxes, organized shelves, and the best arrangement of tools. YET, even in those cases, we found some issues when on site. One worker had a drill to assemble the hoses while other workers are standing around waiting for that worker to connect 6 sections of hose. In other situations, an employee was searching for headlights for everyone. It took him 5 minutes to find all of them when it should have taken ZERO minutes.
A separation of responsibilities is certainly a great start to workplace efficiency, but it can quickly be hampered if your workers are waiting on others for a tool. Here is our recommendation: Assign a tool kit, even if there is a redundancy in tools, to everyone on your crew.
Make each employee responsible for their own kit. They do this by…
- Maintaining and keeping inventory of their kit
- Maintaining their power tools. This involves charging batteries, keeping the tools in working condition, and not sharing their tools. This eliminates the “I am waiting for a drill” excuse when a worker is unproductive.
- Restock the kit BEFORE heading for the next job. It is too late to charge batteries when jumping into the truck. How about the amount of duct tape? These are little things that can spoil an efficient job.
We recommend that you provide each employee the following:
- Drill with 5/16” bit driver to connect and disconnect hoses
- Utility knife
- 2 Rolls of duct tape (cheap tape for hose connections that will be separated and very strong tape for repairing hoses).
- An action camera, like a GoPro. Encourage your workers to document the job. The video can become valuable for showing future customers, documenting what was done on this particular job, and using for social media. Don’t expect your employees to use their $1,000 cellphone cameras in the attic.
- Hammer tacker with staples
- A tool bag to carry all their tools.
These are our suggestions. We are sure you have some of your own! If you are not following us on social media, please do so! We look forward to your comments and input.