What if construction planning didn’t stay in the office, but actually reached the construction site? At AGC, we’re making that happen by implementing Lean Construction methodology—specifically, the Last Planner System.
What is Lean and why do we use it?
Lean Construction is a way of working that aims to do more with less: less waste, fewer delays, fewer surprises—and in return, greater efficiency, more value, and stronger commitment from every team.
Inspired by Toyota’s production system, this approach focuses on creating real value for the client, optimizing resources, and improving every process step by step. At AGC, we apply Lean because we believe building well starts with planning better.
What is the Last Planner System?
The ‘last planner’ isn’t someone at the end of the chain—they’re the people who truly know what’s happening on-site: site managers, foremen, subcontractors. They’re directly involved in planning, committing to specific tasks they know they can deliver. It’s not about top-down orders—it’s about bottom-up agreements.
This system works on multiple levels—from a Master Plan that outlines the global vision, to weekly commitments reviewed together. In this way, planning becomes more realistic, more flexible, and more reliable.
The Big Room: where everything connects
In August 2025, we launched our own Big Room at AGC. What is it? A physical space where all teams meet, plan together, identify blockers, and make decisions. It’s face-to-face collaboration, with visual tools like planning boards, layouts, and performance panels.
In the Big Room, we review mid-term plans (Look-Ahead), organize weekly work, and catch potential constraints early. It turns planning into a collaborative exercise.
What do we achieve with Lean?
More realistic commitments, better coordination, and fewer surprises. All of it measured through indicators like the Percent Plan Complete (PPC), which tracks whether the team delivered as promised, and constraint tracking to anticipate obstacles.
We also use tools like the Pareto diagram to analyze the root causes of delays and prevent them from happening again. Because it’s not just about following a plan—it’s about learning to improve, week after week.
Kaizen: continuous improvement as a culture
Kaizen means continuous improvement. But more than a Japanese word, it’s a philosophy we follow at AGC: small improvements every day that lead to big results over time. From project managers to on-site teams, we all contribute to building smarter, more efficient, and more human processes.
Building with meaning, building with vision
At AGC, we’re not just constructing a building—we’re building a different way of working: more collaborative, more transparent, and more aligned with our values of innovation, sustainability, and excellence.
Lean Construction and the Last Planner System are part of that vision. So is every person involved in the process. Because when we build with purpose and method, the results go far beyond the structure itself.
