Who asks the builders also gets an answer

Through Tapatalk I can't see your profession - I assume that your work is limited to making phone calls and coordinating through that?!

Actually, nothing works professionally for me without phone and email :) Thank you for your perspective.

As you demand, to be called, a craftsman would have to call you at every step (tool meets building component) to ask whether there might be something that could cause surprises.

That is exaggerated... it's more about situations where a process doesn't go according to plan, instead of calling, people improvise. In our case, the craftsmen often improvised, unfortunately in most cases negatively, which ultimately leads to extra effort or trouble.

without a site manager, only with the client, who then also had to be a kind of client.

That's also how it is for us, thank you for your input, it sounds like everything went well.

Interestingly... when we were on the construction site, we were bombarded with questions from the craftsmen..

yes :)

and when there was a question, I was within sight and shouting distance. That worked great.

I would also like to be nearby often, but unfortunately our jobs (both full-time) do not allow that.

That is exaggerated... it's more about situations where a process doesn't go as planned, and instead of calling, people improvise. Our craftsmen often improvised, unfortunately more often negatively, which ultimately led to extra work or trouble.

The situation is not exaggerated. Try to put yourself in the craftsman's shoes: there is no reason to call you. He drills. He drills into a cable. Why should he call you during or after that? Why should a craftsman call a client, i.e. a layperson, if something doesn't go according to plan? I don't even call my boss when something doesn't work out for me. I have to muster all my expertise to improvise so that I still deliver good work. A layperson can't help me with that. Should I call and ask for advice?? Just because you happen to know how the cables or whatever are laid out. You seem to expect that you should have been called beforehand. Please just try to put yourself in this situation. I am always amazed at how clients feel capable of telling experienced craftsmen how it works.

I am always amazed at how clients see themselves as able to tell experienced craftsmen how it works.

And with the inexperienced laborer, the client then wonders why he would rather roll dice or flip a coin than at least have it explained by a layman. The client at least knows how he wants it. That sometimes one could simply ask standards (e.g., how far from something one can drill at the earliest) is unknown to many construction workers. They just muddle through.

I am always amazed at how clients feel the need to tell experienced craftsmen how things work.

I could write a novel about what would have gone wrong in the house construction if we hadn’t intervened. Construction workers tend to take the easiest path, especially where the work won’t be visible later.

From what we have experienced and seen at other construction sites in the area (general contractors, prefab house companies, architects...), mistakes happen everywhere, but the clients don’t notice because they rely on the architect, general contractor, and craftsmen, and much of what goes wrong in the finished house is hidden behind plaster, screed, or the foundation slab. Sewage pipes lying in gravel, insulation boards fixed with only two dowels per board, plaster base forgotten, etc.

Where they chased through the wall, on the other side is the kitchen, where you could see two sockets at chest height through the plaster above that spot — they could have at least asked how the cables run; we know every cable. But that’s just one example among several cases.

Addendum: Exceptions surely confirm the rule here, but I couldn’t say that the architect or general contractor makes sure that every craftsman does their job correctly (including two houses by a well-known architect). The main thing is that the house looks good in the end.

Of course, mistakes are made on construction sites. Why not? I say: what counts is the product, not the process of becoming.

Anyway. But then, in your opinion, the builder should be left on the construction site for 10 hours so that he can watch the craftsmen's hands and, if necessary, explain to them that what they are doing is rubbish, and they should please consider blah blah blah.
Or not, but simply grab the "company phone" (everyone has one anyway) and say: "Good day, this is the plasterer of your house speaking. I am now starting the plastering work. Could it be that you want to give me a few warning notices so that I can work better and more thoughtfully in your eyes?"

I can very well understand that some developers ban the builder from the construction site: a house build will never be carried out without errors. Mistakes are allowed to happen. What is important is that in the end everything is done correctly.

I'm out. I believe no builder has to play construction site police. That totally misses the point of house building.
I'm curious to see how you will deal with your child later in kindergarten or school. The educators should then call you every time they have a problem with your child, because you know your child better ;)

ypg, funny how you always take everything to the extreme and unrealistic :-) Thanks to you anyway for your perspective.

We designed the construction plans, are clients of the trades, and construction managers as builders, with a so far very good result, only unfortunately we always have to get involved ourselves because otherwise we are not contacted. Well, as a result, some work steps had to be redone,

Maybe this is a constellation that the craftsmen are not used to.