Our Process
What to Expect
The first step in making your vision a reality is meeting with our team to discuss the details and goals of your project. Based on the vision you share with us, our team will make design recommendations and add value to the overall project experience, building the foundation for our partnership with you.
Stage 1: Share Your Vision
The first decision to make is who will be responsible for managing the design team and construction team. We’ve outlined the three most common design methods below:
Design-Build – Our team will hire and manage the design team and provide turnkey services for all phases: design, permitting, pre-construction, and construction. This minimizes the owner’s risk and creates a one-stop-shop and single-source collaborative experience for your project. One call to our team will answer all your design, permitting, and construction questions, saving you time and money. The liability for design and construction-related changes remains mainly with the design and construction team, minimizing the risk of change orders and budget overruns.
Design-Assist – You engage the architect of your choice and our team collaborates with the design team during the design phase. Design and constructability issues are worked out early on and incorporated into the final set of permit documents. Our team will make recommendations to the design team on the constructability and value; however, the choice to include the recommendations is made by the design team with your approval. This method is only effective when our team is engaged at the beginning of the design process and you wish to engage in every detail with the design team. The liability for design and construction-related changes is reduced through the collaboration process during design. However, the owner manages all design-related risks and cost changes.
Bid-Build – The most common and least collaborative of the three options, you manage the design team without collaboration with our team to develop a set of permitting documents. The design team and construction team are contracted separately and design and constructability issues are not identified until late in the process, potentially impacting cost and time.
Once the delivery method is determined, our team goes to work generating recommendations and providing guidance to ensure your vision is achieved. The first step is always the most critical step and provides a measured mile for ensuring your project’s success: permit/construction documents, established budget, and established project schedule. Your vision starts to become a reality!
Stage 2: Build Your Vision
The permit documents developed in Stage 1 are submitted to the local building department for review. The permitting agency reviews the permit documents for code compliance and issues a permit to our team for construction. Our Pre-Construction team is busy while the permit drawings are reviewed, developing scopes of work and distributing the drawings to our preferred pool of qualified trade partners for pricing. Soliciting trade partner bids is the last step to determine the final construction cost. Pricing is received, vetted, and the overall construction cost of the project based on current market conditions is established. The construction cost becomes the contract amount for the construction of your project.
A project team is assigned to your job and begins the final buyout process with the trade partners, issuing subcontracts based upon the pricing received. During this step, the project manager and superintendent perform a detailed evaluation of the project and develop the final project schedule confirming the start date, finish dates and milestone dates. Our team will conduct a pre-mobilization meeting with you and review the project logistics, schedule, and additional information regarding documentation and execution of the project. The project is mobilized after the permit documents are approved, and the Agreement between Owner and Contractor is executed. Excitement builds as construction commences and you watch your vision rise out of the ground! Your dedicated team will provide frequent communication and develop solutions when changes arise.
Stage 3: Live Your Vision
You have watched as your project has progressed from: your vision, to paper documents, to bricks and mortar in the field, and your project’s completion is quickly approaching. A strong finish is just as important as a strong start and our team is there the whole way. We work tirelessly to complete your project on or before your completion date. Once the project nears completion, the final inspections will be scheduled, the punch list will be completed, and the final cleaning performed. The construction team will wrap up the construction process by compiling the closeout and operations documentation and training your team on the operations of the facility. Final financial and payment information is reviewed and submitted for final payment. Once the Certificate of Occupancy is issued, your vision has become a reality and you can occupy your new building! Let Andrew General Contractors, Inc. become a partner in making your vision a reality!