Details

Weekly Pull-Planning Sessions | DPR engaged trade partners to collaboratively develop a schedule which met both trade partners’ and Interxion’s needs. This approach led us to come within days of our original deadline for substantial completion, despite the impact from COVID-19 and a tight schedule. Weekly pull-planning sessions got all members of the project team to work towards the same timeline and sequencing. By participating in pull-planning sessions, trade partners actively developed the plan with the DPR team for full in buy-in and accountability. This integrated planning also developed trust between the DPR team and the trade partners, which continued to build throughout project execution.

VDC tools like BIM360 and Navisworks further helped to frame discussions, since trade partners were able to visualise how the project would be built.

Sharing Knowledge | DPR had the advantage of having built FRA12, the previous data centre on this campus for Digital Realty. Transferring knowledge of the expectations, trade partners’ practices and local conditions from FRA 12 to FRA13 were critical to delivering a successful project. Core members of the project team and trade partner teams who were closing out FRA12 were pulled into the planning for FRA13 to share lessons learned and their insights at an early stage. This made the project more predictable for the project team, since they were able to avoid re-work and issues. As a result of our collective, shared knowledge, we were able to improve quality, planning and trade partner efficiency.

On FRA29, the final project on the Sossenheim campus, we continue to make sure knowledge from FRA12 and FRA13 is shared so that our service to the customer continues to grow exponentially.

Transparency | Keeping owners informed about project status with a full set of facts helps build trust. We viewed Interxion’s commitments to their customers, such as suite readiness dates, as if they were our own. When an issue arose, Interxion was kept up to date and informed at the earliest moment. When the impact of an issue wasn’t yet known, Interxion was informed about what steps the team would take, receiving regular updates throughout.

On critical items like Owner Furnished Contractor Installed (OFCI) equipment, weekly meetings got all parties synced. Even if equipment was arriving and installed according to plan or there were no changes, both DPR and Interxion knew the status.

Evolving our EHS Practices | With many of the same trade partners from FRA12 continuing onto FRA13, the project began with safety as a common value. On FRA12, many trade partners were accustomed to striving for safety compliance. DPR worked with these trade partners to go beyond the minimum and work towards an injury-free environment, so that by the start of FRA13 these trade partners had already gone through the growing pains of a new way of working and were ready to kick off aligned with DPR’s safety approach. This set the stage for more targeted safety campaigns to reduce incidents working at height and to reduce ladder use — areas which showed room for improvement.

By the end of the project, craft team members told us they felt safer on our jobsites compared to other general contractors and wanted to continue working on our projects!

Laydown and Deliveries | Making the most effective use of the limited space on FRA13 was another area of improvement from FRA12. Through regular communication with trade partners, the DPR team divided up space within the building. Detailed sequencing allowed laydown areas and space requirements for materials to be planned two-to-three weeks ahead. This eliminated any surprise last-minute changes, keeping the site organized and the teams working efficiently.