The Crucial Role of Pre-Construction In Remodeling Or Building Your Home
“Success is the residue of planning.” - Benjamin Franklin
Your project has never been done before. Every home Woodwright Builders has worked on is unique with a set of it’s own characteristics, history, and nuances that come into play. Every client has a unique set of goals, budget, and values which have to be considered. Every project is a one-off prototype. For the best results, all this information must be considered at the conception of the project - not once the contract to build the project is signed and breaking ground next Monday.
Whether it’s a small remodel, like a kitchen or bathroom, an addition, or a custom home the pre-construction phase is critical to the success of any project. Investing the appropriate energy into this phase is one of the main reasons why our projects are so successful.
01. Thorough Planning Is Key
Successful construction projects require thorough planning. Rushing into a project without detailed planning often leads to problems and delays. While pre-construction is an expense, the benefit of collaboratively planning and sequencing a project on paper is priceless for the overall build. The cost of pre-construction varies depending on the size, scope, and complexity of a project. Smaller projects may only require 12-30 hours, while a large and complex project may require 200+ hours.
02. Design and Construction In Parallel
The pre-construction phase often involves developing the project from both a design and construction perspective. Our team acts as consultants, working alongside architects/designers and clients to establish accurate budgets, constructability, and value engineering input. Sometimes our clients come to us with a completed set of construction documents. This is perfectly fine and we will happily provide support for our clients.
03. Estimating- Accuracy Through Information
Gathering comprehensive information upfront leads to more accurate cost estimates and timelines. This can look different depending on the project, e.g., remodeling an old home vs. building a custom home. Lack of information results in assumptions and scope of work that wasn’t account for, which can significantly impact the budget, lead to change orders and create frustrations, and lowered level of confidence during construction. Estimating takes time and is a multi-step process. This is the flowchart we use for our estimating process, courtesy of our esteemed business coach:
04. Benefits of Pre-Construction
Working together closely through pre-construction allows for a better understanding of the project and facilitates accurate communication with clients. It enables our team to provide a clear picture of what it takes to build the project and helps ensure we are accounting for all project scope, including costs. We are 100% transparent with all of costs associated with your build; another reason why our projects are so successful.
05. Proactive vs. Reactive
Pre-construction offers the opportunity to be proactive in evaluating potential issues, materials, means and methods of construction, and value-engineering options. In contrast, making decisions during the construction phase becomes reactive and limits the time available for evaluation which lead to cost and timeline overruns.
06. Confidence in The Budget
The pre-construction process builds confidence in the established budget with transparency between all parties involved. With careful planning and value engineering, the project can be executed within the set budget, reducing the need for a large contingency, cutting the scope of work during construction, or banking on the hope that everything will work out perfectly (hint, hope rarely works).
07. Cost Efficiency
Investing in pre-construction is worthwhile to avoid budget overruns, construction delays, and inefficiencies. It provides a structured approach and mitigates risks associated with inadequate planning. All of the work upfront will pay dividends in the end.
In summary, the pre-construction phase is crucial for establishing trust in your builder (hopefully us). If we have done our job correctly during this phase, expectations and alignments will be set ensuring efficient project execution within the defined budget and timeline. By investing in pre-construction, clients can expect greater confidence in cost control and a successful construction process overall. Construction can be stressful enough and having the proper planning upfront will lead a more enjoyable experience for our clients and for our team.
