General foreman
A general foreman, sometimes also known as a site supervisor or construction works manager, is responsible for general management, organisational and operational control of a construction site.
The role of general foreman differs from that of a site foreman in that they must have an overall understanding of the different construction disciplines in order to organise all site teams, inspect their work and control the overall job. By contrast, a site foreman generally oversees the work of one or two teams rather than multiple disciplines.
As well as being in overall control of the construction site’s operational activities, the general foreman is often responsible for placing material orders, coordinating health and safety inspections, providing safety briefings, and so on.
On some projects, the general foreman may be in sole control of the site, whereas on larger and more complex projects they may work alongside a project manager and/or site manager. In these circumstances, the site manager may take some of the responsibilities for material ordering and health and safety inspections, as there are more working gangs and disciplines on site which require the general foreman’s operational control.
A general foreman must have several years of site experience, and generally progresses up from being a site foreman working across a number of different disciplines. They should have an excellent knowledge of materials handling and the internal procedures of their organisation.
[edit] Find out more
[edit] Related articles on Designing Buildings Wiki
Featured articles and news
A call for prevention and sensitive re-use.
The CIAT principal designer register
Providing assurance and verification of the capability and competence of registered ATs.
Building Safety recommendations and Northern Ireland
The NI roadmap to improving safety in high rise residential.
BSA residential sector competence standards guidance
BSAS 01:2024 Organisational Capability Management System Standard - Competence Assurance.
Specifying rendered external wall insulation for fire safety
How to interrogate the evidence provided to the specifier.
The benefits of writing articles for your organisation
How to create a profile for your organisation and publish for free.
No Falls Week. The importance of safe working at height
What to expect and what is on offer to avoid accidents.
Scottish Government action to reach net-zero targets
Retrofit expert group highlight critical actions needed.
A forward thinking, inclusive global community of members.
From engineered product life-spans, to their extension.
Circular economy in the built environment
A brief description from 2021. Where are we now?
CLC publishes domestic retrofit competency framework
Roadmap of Skills for net zero.
Understanding is key to conservation.
Open industry engagement survey seeks responses
Institutions and the importance of engagement.