(Transcribed by TurboScribe.ai. Go Unlimited to remove this message.)

Welcome everybody out to podcast number 1208. In this podcast, I'm going to answer a question from a YouTube commenter about TACT, so stay with us. Welcome everyone. 

I hope you're doing well. I'm sorry for being a little bit behind. I have been out and about recording videos. 

I just did eight videos on site that will go on the Jason Schroeder YouTube channel. And also did a poll plan and a site visit, which was quite remarkable in Canada. And now I'm headed to Atlanta. 

And I'm just a little bit sick from all the travels. So I'm trying to get caught up here. So thank you for being patient with me.

Let me first go ahead and read some feedback from our listeners here. Then I'll go ahead and head scroll down to the bottom. I would like Oh, no, no, let me skip the phone.

Hi, Jason. I've been checking out your videos on the mirror board you just shared. They're brilliant to say the least. 

I wanted to drop you a note to simply say thank you. And if there's anything I can do to help you in the future, you need only ask. I thought that was really nice. 

He's talking about, I believe, the videos that we put together for TACT planning on our free mirror board. I was hoping that would be a nice hit. And I believe it is.

We also put on the Lean TACT YouTube channel the full simulation recorded with complete instruction and everything. And it also links you to a candle file for how to actually run the simulation. So it's quite remarkable. 

So I'm really, really excited. So I'm going to do a couple of podcast episodes to get caught up a bit. This was a question I got today. 

And it was, sorry about my sniffling. And it was in response to a video about TACT planning. And it said, Jason, but isn't saying four days or three days. 

By the way, the video mainly talked about not sticking to a five day TACT time. And he had this in response. But isn't saying four days or three days is analogous to driving the same speed everywhere? Anyway, what does make sense is not all wagons would optimize at the same duration.

But isn't TACT planning supposed to create a rhythm by leveling based on either resource allocation, utilization, or selecting an optimum TACT time? I also agree that using the weekends is problematic since it introduces all sorts of negative impacts in the mix. So sticking to a four day TACT time allows for a one day buffer in the five day work week. But it still equates to a five day TACT time, four days of work, and one day of buffer. 

With that, with all that said, I still think that this is the best way to model a project since it gives the max visibility to the project than all the other systems in existence. Which is why I'm determined to master it and implement it in my region. Thanks again for all the work you do and your team are putting in and I look forward to your next content and even maybe being with you in the future.

All right. So my original point was that you would never stay with a five day TACT time by sheer force or by rule. If you chose to do a five day TACT time because that was what was best for the project, I have nothing against that.

But in a macro level TACT plan, you would start with a five day TACT time and optimize from there. And what I was saying in the analogy that he's responding to was that sticking with a five day TACT time is saying that you can only drive one speed in your car. And what he's saying is, but isn't saying four days or three days is analogous to driving the same speed everywhere. 

Actually, it's not because you can adjust your TACT time. So let's say that you decided four days was your ideal. Hopefully you've designed to the work package enough to where you could then go down to a three or two and adjust and that you're prepared that way.

But also you might not have all of the trains and meaning the train of trades going the same speed. You can have multiple TACT times in a TACT phase. So you do have some adjustment there and you and my point is don't fix it and that you can adjust it.

So if you're going at a five day TACT time, then you can speed up and go faster and go to four day TACT time. Then you could speed up and go faster in a three day TACT time, which means that your zone sizes are smaller as well. So then he says, anyway, what does it make sense? What does make sense is that not all wagons would optimize at the same duration.

But isn't TACT planning supposed to create a rhythm by leveling based on either resource allocation or utilization or selecting an optimum TACT time? The answer is yes. But again, the phase doesn't have just one TACT time. You can have a multi train TACT plan, a multi train TACT phase and have multiple trains going at different speeds.

So the purpose of putting it on a TACT time by putting your activities into the TACT time framework, it shows you what you would have to do to get it to flow. So like, let's say, for instance, you have a two day activity, four day activity, two day, two day, two day, two day, right? This is pretty dramatic, but let me go ahead and explain it. You'll probably want to plan for a two day TACT time as your ideal and split that second activity into two different crews working in succession, meaning behind each other.

And getting everybody to flow the same speed, the same distance apart is the ideal. Now, if you can't, you can either pull that four day duration wagon out, have it be its own phase, have it be its own train. You can have it interrupt the overall TACT time or you can slow everything else down.

The TACT time framework is the visibility to get trades going the same speed, the same distance apart as much as possible. And he also goes on to say, I also agree that using the weekends is problematic since it introduces all sorts of negative dynamics. Those negative dynamics are when you have a delay, you're still stuck in the in the week.

And so you have to recover on the weekend, which isn't good for resources. And so what this individual has wrong right now, which is not a detriment. And so I give this person a compliment because I had to learn it the same way.

He says, so sticking to a four day TACT time allows for a one day buffer in a five day workweek, but it still equates to a five day TACT time. That is not correct. Because literally what you would do on Thursday, end of business is indicate the TACT time and all trades would move to their forward zone.

And the first day of their next TACT time would be that Friday. So I'm not talking about I think we're still mentally in a five day TACT time. That's not what I'm talking about.

I do not believe the weekends should be the indicator. I don't care about weeks at all other than from a resource standpoint. So can trade switch zones on a Thursday or Wednesday? Absolutely.

So it would not be a five day TACT time. So this individual says four days of work plus one day of buffer. No, it would be four days.

It would be three and a half days of work with a couple hours or a half day of buffer. And then you start your new wagon on a Friday. And then he closes out to say, with all that said, I still think that this is the best way to model a project since it gives the max visibility to the project than all other systems in existence, which is why I'm determined to master it and implement it in my region.

And if you want to do that, I highly recommend reading the books TACT planning and TACT steering and control. And I wish this person the best of luck. I wanted to read this in case anybody had similar questions, but I hope you've enjoyed this podcast and on we go.

Please join us next time in elevating the entire construction experience for workers, leaders and companies coast to coast. If you're enjoying the show, please feel free to share with your construction colleagues and help us spread the word by rating, subscribing and leaving a review on your preferred podcast listening platform. We really appreciate it.

We'll catch you next time on the Elevate Construction Podcast. Thank you.

(Transcribed by TurboScribe.ai. Go Unlimited to remove this message.)