Coordinating Design

Construction follows design. Builders construct a project on the site per approved architect’s and engineers’ drawings. The professional design fee is negligible compared to the construction cost (material and labor). The professional fee is typically around 10% of the construction cost, but good or bad design could increase or decrease construction cost, in various ways.

The most common misconception is that the design (selection of materials and building systems) drives the cost up. I would argue that incomplete design and not coordinated drawing sets between disciplines (architecture, mechanical, electrical, plumbing and structural) are the enemies of the project’s budget. The errors and omissions in design itself most times reveal themselves during the construction when there is a conflict on the site. Finding solutions to design while construction work is ongoing is expensive and stressful. Often simple design solutions that could have been implemented during the design phase and before the construction commenced is hard or imposible to implement during the construction. Finding alternatives during the ongoing construction could be financially prohibitive. Delays are also expensive in construction business. 

There is a term “liquidated damages” used in construction contracts. This is the damage that the owner incurs due to change orders related to the estimated project delivery date, and ultimately the contractor not delivering the project on time. The owner could suffer in lost rent or may need to pay construction loan interest longer. On larger scale projects those factors could bring investors/owners to an unfavorable financial situation. In well written contracts, liquidated damages are addressed properly, so that the owner is compensated for any possible loss related to project delays. 

Mobilizing labor is factor at large when it comes to construction cost. Having an experienced trustful contractor on board with understanding of project construction schedule and sequencing is crucial for the benefit of a project. Accessibility of the site and constructability are topics that shall be discussed with the contractor early in the design phase. Alternate design decisions shall be considered if the budget is not supportive of certain designs at place. To name a few, use of crane, selection of unique furniture pieces, large sizes of fenestrations and cladding slabs, custom or patent design solutions could drive the construction budget up radically. 

A good design doesn’t mean expensive. Good design is careful, intelligent, and within the estimated budget. Architectural Design is much more than a large size marble slab. Architecture is sustainability, sculpture, atmosphere and feeling. As Ludwig Mies van der Rohe said” God is in the detail”. Elaborate detail is not necessary labor charged, but rather well thought through and simple. 

There are two main stream project delivery methods in the industry. One is Design-Build and the other is Design-Bid-Build. There is also Fast-Track delivery project for large scale and complex projects, and some other project specific delivery methods. It is important to underhand needs and expectations of a project, retain professionals that are willing to discuss the project in detail and advise accordingly. Good team will save money on every project. Ideally, the contractor is onboarded in early phases of design as well to be able to bring own expertise of construction in the field early on to the table. Redesigning is expensive, redesigning in the field is way more expensive.