Marc is a planning coordinator at ZÜBLIN.

What professional background do you bring to the role?

I studied architecture and, before joining ZÜBLIN, worked as a project manager at an architectural practice. To do the job successfully, it is important to have a broad range of specialist knowledge across all trades, so that building sites can be thoroughly thought through and planned, even in theory.

What sort of duties does the job title ‘Planning Co-ordinator’ entail?

My responsibilities are very varied. Broadly speaking, I coordinate all the designers involved in the construction project. But there is so much more to it than that. On the one hand, my day-to-day work consists of various meetings, including with clients and designers, as well as dealing with the authorities. On the other hand, I draw up a wide variety of planning documents for the project, such as planning cycles or planning review cycles.

Another key task is to review and coordinate plans – liaising with all planners, coordinators, schedulers and project managers across the various trades. Later in the project, I’m in constant contact with the site managers and support them with advice and practical assistance to ensure that construction proceeds as smoothly as possible. In conclusion, my job is, above all, about one thing: communication.

What makes a successful working day for you?

When it comes to planning and coordination, problems such as overlapping deadlines or delays can always crop up. So, for me, it’s a good day when I can spot and resolve these ‘problems’ before they actually arise, so that they don’t occur on site in the first place.

How do you go about solving problems?

First, I try to analyse the challenge thoroughly and consider who can help me with what information. I then coordinate the rest of the planning process. Here too, as in everything I do, communication and good teamwork are absolutely essential.

What role does digitalisation play in your job?

Digitalisation is becoming increasingly important in all sectors. This is certainly true for us as well. A great deal has changed in this area in recent years: from paper plans to fully digital plan reviews using 3D models. We now produce all our plans digitally in 3D using BIM. A major advantage of this is that we can edit the digital plans immediately and also distribute them directly to the individual trades using new indices.

Would you like to find out more about this exciting profession? In this video, Marc takes you along to see what his day-to-day work on a building site is like: