What We Do During Preconstruction

What we do during preconstruction

What value do we provide during preconstruction?

If we’re empowered with proper resources during preconstruction, we can deliver an accurate and detailed budget, a schedule that will actually work and a project that runs smoothly. 

Initial Budget Development

We take your ideas and vision and put a reasonable number to them. We don’t deal in “hmmm it might be about this much per square foot” we deal in reality. The time spent developing a realistic starting point pays dividends down the road, it reduces the chance of surprises or having to move backward, ensuring a smooth process flow from the earliest stage to the completion of the project.

Design Consultation

We’re in constant contact with the design team to make sure that your vision is coming together, but most importantly to make sure it’s a design that can be executed within your budget. We are consistently analyzing the documentation to find ways to value engineer your design, ensuring we don’t leave any stone unturned looking for ways to gain efficiencies for your budget.

Selections Consultation

The more decisions and selections we have during this phase, the more ability we have to actually get the numbers tight. When we’re dealing with hypotheticals it makes things more difficult. We provide experience-based consultation to assist in selecting the best inputs for your project that will make the most impact for you, we work with the design team to make sure the right options are put forward for consideration.

Subtrade + Supplier Negotiations

During the preconstruction stage we are striving to get you the best pricing for your project possible from our stable of trusted subtrades and suppliers. We have developed these relationships since 2009 and there’s a reason they are in our network. If you visit one of our projects and like what you see, we need to use the same team to deliver your project. We ensure appropriate costing by fully budgeting each aspect of the project ourselves before delivering scopes and material quantities to suppliers and subtrades to make sure they are in line.

Final Budget Development 

One of the most important parts of preconstruction is the development of a final budget. The final budget sets the parameters of the project and must be taken seriously and have the proper amount of effort, we cannot be flippant with the numbers. We will lock in subtrade and supplier quotes where possible to give certainty and mitigate market price fluctuation risk as much as possible. Just because we have the inputs we do in the final budget, does not mean you can’t deviate during the project. If you want to increase an allocation to one aspect, we can offer ways to reduce others, if necessary, to maintain a relative balance and deliver to the overall desired budget.

Project Scheduling 

When the construction documentation is completed and the project is ready to be planned, we work to develop a complete schedule. We build the schedule and necessary deliverables into our proprietary 9 Phase Playbook that we tailor to each unique project. We input the Playbook into our cloud based software to provide our clients with full visibility into the established roadmap for their project.

Risk Assessment + Mitigation Planning

Construction has risk, that’s just a reality, safety risk, budgetary risk, environmental risk. During our preconstruction phase we assess the potential safety risks for your project and assemble and organize necessary subtrade and supplier documentation to ensure that we are all working toward a safe outcome and are protected in the event that we need to be.

Budgetary risk is a factor that we can work to mitigate with accurate information for inputs and selections during the preconstruction phase. If selections can be established during preconstruction, we can lock in their pricing and ensure no fluctuations. We can also lock in subtrade and labour quotes to execute the design.

 Once the construction documentation is complete or near complete, we can move to solidify structural material and subtrade quotes. Because lumber and steel are commodities, they are the most volatile and subject to market fluctuations. We reduce these risks to the overall budget by carrying a prudent contingency fund, in an ideal situation, the material costs decrease from the time of signing the agreement and completing the project but that is not always the case.

Lessening the impact on the overall budget of market price changes is a constant point of attention, if we know an input price has risen significantly, we can offer changes to other aspects of the project to reduce or eliminate the effect.

Weather plays a big role in the progress of a custom home or addition until the project is closed in. Depending on the time of year the project is planned to commence, we establish an action plan to counter the weather; frost protection of the foundation, masonry scheduling and planning to prevent water entry into finished areas (for additions) are just a few of the plans we need to establish.

Site Development + Preparation

Once all budgeting, planning, and scheduling is complete we move forward with our site development and preparation. This includes disconnection of existing utilities, installation of temporary power, delivery and set up of site protection such as fencing and security cameras.

At the completion of the preconstruction stage, we’re ready to start your project and move to the construction stage.

Why an Integrated Approach is Important for Your Project

What does an integrated approach mean to us?

An integrated approach means fully merging all important parties for your project into one cohesive team from an early stage of the design and planning process. By establishing a team that’s on board early, we can ensure that everyone feels a part of a whole and will deliver their best work. 

Selecting the team early allows each member to plan to be able to be accountable to an overall schedule for the project, rather than being brought in at the last minute. For example, if a structural engineer is required, they often won’t need to be involved until the construction drawings are ready. If they are selected at that point, they won’t be able to quickly and efficiently move your project into their workflow. Instead, if they were selected early on and told to plan to begin their portion by “X” date and complete it by “Y” then they can build that out in their schedule and deliver on time.

Who do you need on your team? 

Architect/home designer

The architect or home designer is key to capturing your vision and pushing your boundaries to arrive at a design that’s uniquely yours and completely functional for your family. They are the ones that pull your ideas and theirs together to create a place that will resonate with you. For some projects you will need an architect, for some, you can pursue a less expensive option of a home designer.

Builder

The builder is the quarterback for your team on the field. They are the ones calling the plays and coordinating between all the stakeholders. They set the schedule, develop the budgets and execute the project. The earlier you involve your builder the better. While you’re working through the initial design process, your builder is the best resource for keeping your project on budget. You can have important conversations along the way “if we do that will we still be inside our budget?” The worst scenario is to have fully designed your project, only to realize in the end that significant revisions need to be made to maintain budget constraints. 

The relationship with your builder needs to be built on trust, if you don’t trust them enough to bring them into the fold early on, maybe you need a different option.

Interior Designer 

If you’re going to invest the amount required to complete your project you really need to consider putting an interior designer in the lineup. Completing a large renovation or new custom build is not inexpensive and you want to get the full value out of it. An interior designer can bring new ideas to the table and ensure a cohesive vernacular throughout. When you walk into your new home you want to say “Wow, I can’t believe we live here”.

Engineer

When an engineer’s work is completed properly you never know. They are a critical part of the team developing the design. You want to make sure they’re on-boarded early and engaged to be able to streamline the flow of the design phase, as well as be a sound board for ideas that could lead to cost savings through different construction practices.

HVAC Designer

People don’t really think about HVAC design until they’re staring at a bulkhead they don’t like the look of. To have your home function and be comfortable during all seasons and have the proper look, the HVAC designer should be engaged early. During the design phase the architect or home designer can make accommodations for supply and return air ducting that will present in a pleasing instead of intrusive way.

Civil Engineer

Water has to flow somewhere, that somewhere can’t be into your house or your neighbour’s house, that’s where a civil engineer comes in. They make sure your property functions as it should. 

Key Subtrades

If certain subtrades are part of the roster from the early stages they can provide insight into options for value engineering to get the most from your project. It also ensures they are fully integrated into the process to mitigate potential delays during construction. Problems can be solved before the construction starts, not during, and schedules can be amalgamated to ensure a smooth flow.

Why is an integrated process better?

First and foremost, an integrated process will save money over the lifecycle of a project. First, by having key team members on board early, you’re going to save time and money in the preconstruction process, having full alignment and integration removes friction or the need to play catch up later on; scopes are defined, deliverables are clear and ambiguity (which is expensive) is eliminated. 

Once the project is underway there is far less risk to the budget when the project was developed with an integrated approach. Because everyone was fully engaged from early on, there are no excuses, no “I didn’t know about that” that would add friction and cost. You also compress your project schedule to the greatest extent possible, which reduces the soft costs incurred.

You’re also going to save a lot of headaches and requirements for decisions to be made on the fly. By integrating the team at the start, you set yourself up for a smooth, efficient, well executed project.