Construction schedule with Swiss public holidays
A construction schedule counts in working days. For that count to hold, it has to know which days are not working days: weekends, public holidays and company shutdowns. In Switzerland this is more demanding than elsewhere, because holidays are governed by the cantons.
Cantonal differences are the norm
Only a few holidays apply nationwide – New Year, Ascension, the National Day and Christmas among them. Much of the rest is decided by the canton: Corpus Christi is observed in the traditionally Catholic cantons, elsewhere work continues. The Geneva Fast is a Geneva day. For a construction project this means the same calendar date can be a holiday in Zug and a full working day in Zurich.
Planning with a generic calendar therefore shifts systematically – sometimes early, sometimes late. On a single task the difference goes unnoticed. Across a chain of dependent tasks it accumulates, and shows up where it is most expensive: at the handover date.
Bridge days belong in the count
When a holiday falls on a Tuesday or a Thursday, the adjoining working day is in practice not worked on many sites. A plan that counts it as productive is more optimistic than reality. Including it is not generosity, it is accuracy.
Shutdowns and blocked periods
- Company shutdowns of individual contractors – often several weeks, in summer or around Christmas.
- Periods blocked by conditions, such as noise protection windows or a winter break.
- Dates that are not work but still need room: acceptances, client meetings, inspections.
These periods are specific to the project and appear in no calendar. They belong in the plan nonetheless, because they shift dates just as a statutory holiday does.
In Menira
A project carries its canton. The holidays follow from it – national and cantonal, for all 26 cantons, bridge days included and across the years the project spans. Your own entries can be added: shutdowns, blocked periods or dates, one-off or recurring every year. When a task moves, the plan keeps counting with these days – dates stay consistent without manual recalculation.