Well before ground is broken, working with a trusted construction partner on pre-construction planning is key in having a positive impact on the project schedule and bottom line. A contractor providing pre-construction services will coordinate the frequent communication needed between the core team, developer, architect, engineer. They will also cross-reference any technical information with all subcontractors to ensure a project is positioned for success before the first shovel hits the ground. Pre-construction services will include project spec reviews, value engineering, organizing plans/drawings, scheduling, and budgeting. This early-stage process also gives the development team time to get acquainted with their GC partner and quality contracting organizations will use the pre-construction phase to demonstrate their value on a project.

While the ease of submitting permit applications online, especially in today’s world of limited interaction may seem ideal, uncoordinated development teams often don’t consider the long-term implications of submitting slightly different plan sets to various approval agencies. For example, a civil engineer is focused specifically on satisfying his underground local, state and federal requirements. While these requirements have some cross over to the electrical, plumbing, and gas trades, there are some areas that are not congruent. This often causes conflicts between drawing sets that don’t get identified until construction begins. When it comes time to actually build the project the team is left with a host of issues due to inconsistencies like these. Given the high cost of land in the Boston area and ever-rising construction costs, hiccups like this can put a large dent in the budget and push projects behind schedule. With a general contractor on board to work on pre-construction, they will coordinate with all parties to ensure plans are uniform and no surprises will arise on this front during the actual construction.

Value engineering is also a key part of the pre-construction process. Let’s take a look at an upcoming project in East Boston on which Hemenway Construction, a local general contractor was brought on to provide pre-construction services. When Hemenway joined the project team plans for the luxury condo project had been approved through zoning. The Hemenway team began the pre-construction process with an in-depth review of all plans for mechanical equipment. Working with the architect and code engineer they were able to save $40,000 just on the planned mechanicals for the building. This is a significant savings on just one aspect of the project. Hemenway then worked to coordinate all plans for submission for permitting to ensure continuity for the project. After just 3-4 revisions internally the plans were off for review with ISD and when construction kicks off in the coming months the project team is all lined up and poised for success. 

Pre-construction services give contractors and owners the opportunity to evaluate the entire project and create a plan to fit the scope of work within the client’s budget. With a contracting partner, like Hemenway Construction Management working as the common denominator between all parties on a project there is a significant opportunity for cost savings and assurance of timeliness. While right now the Boston market seems to be insulated from many of the issues caused by the COVID-19 outbreak, there are still many questions on the long term impacts on development. Given this climate, working through pre-construction to ensure a project stays on schedule and budget is going to be key for developers moving forward. For more details on how Hemenway Construction can assist you with pre-construction on your next project contact Chris Hemenway, info@Hemenwaycm.com