What is Design-Build?
Suntec Concrete and the structural Engineer of Record (EOR) can unite under one contract to form a single design-build team for the cast-in-place (CIP) concrete structure of the building to bring years of experience into driving the efficiency of your project. Incorporating our structural team with the Owner, Architect and their entire design team brings a collaborative approach to streamlining design coordination, schedule and cost-efficiency.
Why Design-Build?
This method is extremely efficient if you are wanting to collaborate on the best structural system for the project while incorporating the overall Architectural features of the project. The combination of CIP concrete and Design-Build project delivery provides a unique opportunity to deliver a project at an overall better value, delivering a high quality, schedule, and efficiency-driven structure that achieves the vision of the design team.
What are the critical components of a Design-Build Team?
- Communicate and collaborate throughout the project: One of the key differentiators between a Design-build contract and a design-bid-build contract is the fact that Suntec and the structural EOR team exist as a single entity. In this case, the various players in the team have the opportunity to establish a unified goal and vision from the beginning.
- Develop a team-oriented mindset that encompasses not only the Architect, General Contractor, and Owner, but the Concrete Contractor and Structural Engineer as well: The presence of a strong team mentality not only benefits the team’s morale, but it ensures that every aspect of the project takes a considered, holistic approach to building. Early subcontractor involvement streamlines the delivery of the project and minimizes the impact and the number of change orders and RFIs.
- Establish a target design: For the Design-Build team to fully align, a target design must be established. The existence of a clearly defined target design ensures that the team has a unifying vision to work toward while extracting the most value out of each member of the team.
- Implement best practices: Similar to establishing a target design, the implementation of best practices provides each member of the team with clarity as to what value they bring to the table. With these best practices established, team members have a clear understanding of where they can add the most value and make the largest contributions to the success of the project.
- Manage the project with precision: Target design and best practices do not entirely contribute to the success of the project, but they are two major factors. With the design-build approach, there are options for fast-tracking detailing, sub coordination and scheduling. With the proper management, the goals of the project can be easily achieved.
- Commit to selecting partners that offer the best technical skills and not just the lowest price: As illustrated in the aforementioned points, the success of a Design-Build team is heavily dependent on the capabilities and knowledge that each member of the team can bring. Chosen your Design-Build team should be chosen basis on the depth of experience, knowledge and cost.
Suntec’s Design-Build approach is adequately equipped to deliver a streamlined delivery to your project. Reach out to Patrick Donnellen any time at 602.997.0937 or patrick@suntecconcrete.com to discuss your Design-Build needs.
