Residential Construction Archives

Archive for Residential Construction

Making FF&E, Material and Finish Selections

· October 9, 2013

The term FF&E is an acronym for Furniture, Fixtures, and Equipment.

Furniture is movable items such as tables and chairs. Fixtures are the immovable items such as cabinets. Equipment is a machine such as a water-heater or air conditioner. All are used to make a house or other space suitable for living and/or working.

Materials and Finishes, are generally talked about in one of two ways; products and construction materials. Every product you choose while developing your project plan will be made of a specific material with specific finish options.

People sometimes use the terms Material and Finish, interchangeably, but they are not the same thing. Material is what a raw component is actually made of, while the term Finish describes the sheen, color, and texture.

For example, people often talk about paint as if it is a finish, which it is, but only in the context of being applied to another product, like drywall (sheet rock). However, nowadays the paint itself comes in countless finish combinations when considering available colors, texture additives (like popcorn), and sheen such as gloss, semi-gloss and flat.

Manufacturers differentiate their product lines by generally providing better materials, finishes and options in higher priced products.

The same is true in construction. The qualities of products on the market today generally fit into many different categories: Economy, Basic, Common, Deluxe, Luxury, and Custom – or other similar words. Companies can use different words to describe the same quality level, even among manufacturers of similar products.

There are incalculable combinations of Material, Finish and product combinations. There are so many, there is no way to cover all of them, but don’t let that overwhelm you.

Construction Conductor explains how you can use that to your advantage in Who Selects What.

Categories : Coordination, Planning, Project Management, Residential, Residential Construction

Tags : Bathroom Renovation, Home Remodeling Tips, Kitchen Renovation, Landscaping Renovation, Project Planning, Real Estate Investment

11 questions to ask before signing with a contractor.

Posted by Richard Cartright

· October 2, 2012

Before sending out your bid package, talk to multiple companies to get more information about each.

Give each contractor a quick call to conducting a short phone interview as you connect, or you can choose to include a questionnaire as part of a simple interview process. It’s up to you, as it is truly a matter of comfort. If you have a lot or contractors to talk to it is easier to compile the interview questions into a single document that you can ask all of the prospective bidders to fill out and return, than it is to spend a lot of time talking on the phone to each one.

Get to know each contactor by asking them some questions. Here is a list of question that you should ask in order to decide if you want to send a contractor your bid package:

1. How many years have you been in business?

You want to know how much experience the contractor has.

0 – 3 years can mean the contractor is really new to the profession.

4 – 6 years and they should have some good experience under their belt, but there are still a lot conditions they have never encountered.

7 – 10 years; most conditions are old hat and something new is usually nothing to worry about.

+ 10 years and they are well seasoned and have seen just about everything there is to see.

2. How many years of experience do you have in the construction industry?

You want to get an understanding of how skilled the contractor is beyond the existing business. More years of experience in more parts of the construction industry means the more they will recognize each aspect of the job and better respect for the needs of other trades.

3. How large is your work crew and how many are permanent employees?

You want to know how much of the work the contractor expects to handle with their own crew. The more work they do themselves the more they have control over the quality of work activities. The more they outsource, the more opportunity there is for miscommunication and poor coordination.

4. Which trades does your company typically subcontract?

You want to know how ‘involved’ the contractor intends to be in the actual labor. Are they handling the transitions? If so, they may be better able to actually see if there are quality problems. Are they outsourcing or subcontracting out most or all the trades on your project? If so, they may not be watching closely enough to spot potential problems.

5. Do you require a deposit and if so, how much and what is it used for?

You want to know how financially solid the contractor is. Do they have the resources to mobilize and start construction, or ‘do they need a deposit to get started’ or ‘to buy materials’? If they can get going without an ‘upfront’ payment then they are more financially solid than if they need a deposit. I seldom recommend giving the contractor a deposit, but even I do acknowledge that there are times when doing so can be helpful.

6. What is your current workload?

You want to get a feel for how much attention the contractor can give your project. The fewer their staff and the more projects they’re working on, the more you should be concerned they can’t focus long enough to quickly knock out your job.

7. Do you use project schedules to help manage your projects?

You want to know if this company is organized. The more organized the contractor is, the less you’ll have to worry about. It doesn’t mean you won’t have to worry about anything; you’ll still need to inspect your project. The more disorganized the contractor the more likely for there to be problems, delays and the higher the price tag.

8. If we select you, with your current workload when would you be able to start our project and how soon could you finish?

Here is where you just flat out ask them about their production ability and if they could handle your job IF you select them. You want to see if their time frame fits with your planned schedule. Plus, if you select them this gives you some good contractual start and finish dates that the contractor has voluntarily given you.

9. Can you provide references and pictures of similar work you have completed?

Of course you always want to check up on their work. So asking for references should go without saying, still it is important to ask, so we include it on the list.

10. Are you interested in bidding on the project?

It may seem funny, but I find that this is a useful question to ask. Occasionally you’ll find a contractor that actually doesn’t want to give you a bid. When you meet that contractor, they will usually let you know right away. It happens for various reasons which we’ll have to cover in another article. The point is that if they do not want to bid the project, don’t take it personally. Be grateful that you know right away. That way you can just move on and you don’t have to spend any time chasing them for a bid you were never going to get.

11. We checked and noted that you have a ____________ rating with the Better Business Bureau, can you please explain the reason you think you have this rating.

Of course, if the contractor in question is not even listed with the Better Business Bureau, then you don’t even need to worry about asking this question. However, if you checked and you find that a contractor has a bad review or bad rating, ask them about it. Anyone can have that bad experience that follows them for far longer than they’d like and contractors are no different. Maybe the company was victim of a psychopathic ex-employee, an unusually difficult situation, or maybe the bad rep is for a very good reason. You won’t know if you don’t ask.

Categories : Bidding, Commercial, Project Management, Residential Construction

Tags : Contractor Interview, Contractor Questions, LinkedIn, Project Management

Construction coordination can be tricky.

Painted walls and finished floor.

All physical construction work is broken down into parts such as: carpentry, concrete, electrical, flooring and painting to name a few. The same terms used to describe the parts are often used to describe the trade responsible for executing the construction of that part. Each construction trade’s work is unique. For the vast majority of trade work, the labor must be completed by the specific tradesman. You can’t have a painter install flooring and you can’t have a carpenter run the electricity. However, there are tasks between trades that often overlap and can be handled by either of the involved trades.

Here is a simplified example of overlapping tasks:

Let’s say that you want to get the floor replaced in your house, and you want the house interior painted too. The flooring company installs the floor but can’t do any painting. The painting company will paint everything, but cannot install any flooring, baseboard or quarter-round.

The kind of existing floor you have, determines whether you currently have quarter-round (or base-shoe) in place. It is often less expensive to install new quarter-round than to remove, restore and reinstall the existing quarter-round. For this reason, flooring companies often furnish new quarter-round, if it is needed to ‘finish’ the flooring installation. Sometimes the furnished quarter-round is already color coordinated to match the flooring. Sometimes the quarter-round needs painting to match the walls, and sometimes you get the choice.

You can have the house painted, and then have the floor installed, but who paints the quarter-round after the flooring people install it? You can have the flooring people install the floor and quarter-round before the painters paint, but what happens if the painters damage or get paint all over the new floor while painting? What should you do first? How do you coordinate the work between the trades in order to ensure nothing is messed up or missed?

The best approach is to work with the contractors to schedule the coordinated work between the two tradesmen. Here is a simplified example of how that can work:

If the new quarter-round is designed to match the floor, whether or not the old floor has quarter-round, coordination is really easy. Just have the painters come in and paint then have the flooring installers come in afterward to remove the old quarter-round if neccessary and install the new floor and quarter-round afterward.

If the new floor needs no new quarter-round and the old floor has quarter-round, then include the removal of the old quarter-round as part of the painting prep-work. Then have the painters’ paint before having the flooring people install the new floor.

If the quarter-round needs to be painted, getting everything done requires a little more coordination. Include the painting of the new quarter-round in the painters’ contractual scope of work, this way it won’t add any extra cost to the project later. Ask the flooring company to furnish or let you pick up all the quarter-round in advance. Installers often deliver materials in advance to give the materials time to acclimate to the space’s temperature and humidity level before installation, so getting the quarter-round in advance shouldn’t be a problem. This way you can have the painters’ paint the quarter-round while on site for a cost that has already been negotiated.

Have the painters paint before the flooring installation. The painters should protect all of the furniture and paint as contracted. You won’t have to worry much about the floor if you are replacing it anyway. Once the quarter-round is painted and the paint is dry, have the painters set the quarter-round aside.

Coordinate the work so that when the painting company is finished painting the space and the quarter-round, the flooring company can come in the next day (or shortly thereafter) to install the flooring and the painted quarter-round.

Using this sequence ensures that after the floor installation, all that could be left is a tiny bit of touch up painting at the quarter-round nail holes and cut marks. After the floor installation, if the painters need to come back to the site to paint elsewhere, you can have them touch up the quarter-round as needed. However, if the painters have already completed all their work it will cost more to have the painters come back to do the touch up painting. In this case it is more cost effective to include the touch up painting in the flooring company’s contract scope of work, or handle that ‘tiny’ bit yourself like a GC might do.

For each trade that you add it becomes a bit more complicated to coordinate the individual company’s work. In addition, each project and contractor is unique. Some contractors may be willing to take on more work, while others less. It’s important to coordinate the work during the bidding process, in order to make sure that you don’t pay twice to have the same task completed, or become a captive audience during construction because you forgot to include specific tasks.

Can You Afford a Project Manager?

Posted by Richard Cartright

· March 16, 2012

Many homeowners look at the idea of hiring a Project Manager as an extra, unnecessary expense in their home building project. “After all,” they think to themselves, “I’m already paying an Architect and a General Contractor. Both of them are supposed to be managing my project, why should I hire another manager?”

That’s actually a very good question, one that I hope you’ll let me answer for you. First of all, these three people, the Architect, the Contractor and the Project Manager all have different functions, even though they look like they are all doing some of the same things. We need to understand what the difference between their different functions and different outlook is.

The Architect is concerned about the design of your home. He wants to build you something that is going to make him look good, while providing you with a home that will keep your family safe and comfortable. Although most Architects also claim to manage the construction project, what they’re really doing is making sure that your home is built according to their design and specifications; not trying to save you, the owner, money.

The General Contractor is concerned about how your home is built. More specifically, he’s concerned about how much it costs to get built. You have a contract with him, which limits the amount of money which you’ll pay for his services. So, he wants to make sure that the project costs less than that, ensuring his profit. He’ll do the best possible job, within those parameters. But, when push comes to shove, he’ll sacrifice quality to keep his profit.

The Project Manager doesn’t have to worry about the design or the profits. If you hire a Project Manager, he doesn’t need to worry about his profits, because you’re already paying him to do the job. His concern is that the whole project is completed in the best possible way, in order to make you, the customer, happy.

You see, the Project Manager is the only one of those three who is your advocate as an owner. He’s the only one whose best interests are to look out for your best interests. That makes his focus much different than the other two professionals whom you are working with.

The important thing in getting the maximum benefit from the services of a Project Manager is when in the overall project timeline the owner hires him. The greatest savings for the owner comes from hiring the Project Manager first, even before hiring the Architect. In this way, he can be proactive for the owner from the very beginning, before any other professionals are hired.

If the Project Manager is hired first, he can do the most good. As the owner’s representative, he can locate, interview and negotiate the best possible contract for the Architectural work. As part of this negotiation, the Project Manager can negotiate with the Architect to remove the extra costs associated with contract administration, communication and schedule management out of the Architect’s contract. Since the Project Manager would be handling these functions, there is no reason to pay the Architect for them as well.

By doing things this way, there is no additional cost to the owner for having a Project Manager on their home building project. In fact, since Project Managers typically charge lower rates than Architects, there would probably be an overall savings. However if the Project Manager is hired after the architect, then they are unable to negotiate the administrative savings, so the additional cost would be the cost of the Project Manager, less any savings that they can provide throughout the project. Finally, if the Project Manager is hired after the General Contractor, he is only able to provide damage control. His payment would be over and above whatever other contract costs.

If you feel that you need an advocate, someone who is looking out for your best interests in your home building project, then you need an independent Project Manager. Your Architect and Contractor may be friendly, qualified professionals; but they aren’t your best advocate, the Project Manager is.

Categories : Construction, Construction Management, Project Management, Project Manager, Residential, Residential Construction, Uncategorized

Tags : Construction Management, LinkedIn, Project Management, Project Manager, Project Planning

The best way for contractor’s to get the job.

Posted by Richard Cartright

· March 6, 2012

Contractor’s know that the best way to get the job, is to have the best combination of good rapport, good referral(s), the best price.

From the very beginning, all contractors want to be your ‘friend’. They’ll want to come to your house and talk, be cordial and friendly enough, and some will soak up your time if you let them.

Contractors didn’t always appreciate referrals. With companies like Angie’s List and HomeAdvisor, that’s changing, but a contractor is still only as good as the current job. Past performance can mask current problems, and contractors can use a good referrals as a reason to have higher prices. Construction and renovation take time. Contractors do what they need to get jobs done and make more profit and a lot can go wrong between the start and finish. That can leave you with a bad taste in your mouth, and you’ll remember the headaches more than anything else.

I’ve seen people tell a contractor they are the only bidder, only to wonder why the price is higher than the budget. You want to help ensure you get a contractor’s best price, add competition and use Construction Conductor. They’ll keep their pencils sharp. Competition makes contractor’s work a little harder to get the job, but there’s a catch and contractors know it. Not all bids are equal and contractors have tricks they can use to make their bids look lower.

The best contractor does well in all three areas: they have great rapport, super referrals, and a fair and reasonable market-based price. Most contractors tend to perform well in one or two areas, but fall short when it comes to all three.

It is up to the You, the owner, to decide which attribute is most important. But you must be careful in deciding which aspects outweigh the others.

Like the balance in the figure on this page, if you place more weight on the rapport / good referral side of the balance, the contractor has little incentive to sharpen their pencil. If you place too much weight on the Price side of the balance, you might overlook character flaws or negative reviews from the contractor’s previous clients.

In the end, the best way to make you get a contractors best price is:

Be courteous while not too friendly (You can be friends after the project is done, if you still want)
Be casual about referrals (You will be making an objective decisions)
Mention the other anonymous bidders (Make sure they know they are competing)
Always negotiate (Be careful: Doing this the wrong way will backfire)

Here is more about how contractors cut costs to win the contract.

Categories : Bidding, Residential Construction, Uncategorized

Tags : Contractors, LinkedIn