Your experiences with construction schedules

Hello everyone,

this is about the construction schedule. Our site manager is very nice and committed and informs us at every step about the next planned step. He is always friendly and regularly visits our property to take photos and monitor the progress. However, we have not received a formal construction schedule so far. Our building expert emailed the site manager three days ago requesting the construction schedule but has not received a response yet, although the site manager usually replies to emails within a day.

Now the question arises: Is it possible that we do not have a construction schedule at all? Is it common for construction companies not to provide a formal construction schedule but to communicate the progress verbally? Or should I continue to insist on receiving a written construction schedule? What experiences have you had in similar situations? Are there any legal aspects I should consider?

Thank you in advance for your help

Or should I continue to insist on receiving a written construction schedule?

What does your contract say about that?
If it is not a contractual service, then you can demand it for an additional fee.

Is it common that construction companies do not submit a formal construction schedule...

I cannot say that about our construction company. We received the construction schedule early. It included every calendar week, indicating when each trade would start and possibly finish. Including the house handover day. That was even brought forward a bit. It worked great for us, despite the construction phase during the "C....." period. All craftsmen worked hand in hand. The site manager placed great importance on that. Especially since many subcontractors from the region were involved in our project.

Is it possible that we don’t have a construction schedule at all?

Of course, that can be the case. It is not mandatory.

Or should I continue to insist on receiving a written construction schedule?

Why? What would you gain from that? Your site manager is open about the house construction, you say. What if, for reasons that no one needs to know, he pours the screed a week earlier or mounts the windows a week later? That only sows "errors that are not errors" and thus trouble in the eyes of the layperson and client who does not know that such a schedule is constantly adjusted, e.g., due to weather or other external influences. There are disappointments and surprises just because one relies on the printed schedule. Your site manager communicates and informs you as he should. That’s good and worth more than a plan.

The site manager will definitely have the plan. Otherwise, how else would he manage his 40 or 50 houses whose construction he is overseeing.

But of course, it’s clever not to give you the plan. That way, he spares himself constant calls asking where this or that craftsman is, after all, they are scheduled that week, and so on. And he also prevents you from calling the craftsmen directly because, without the plan, you don’t even know who is coming to you...

Call the site manager and ask if he received the email regarding the construction schedule. Or alternatively, the next time you meet him. My general contractor didn’t have one, everything was done on short notice by word of mouth. Accordingly, the construction proceeded with little structure ;)