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EVOLUTION OF THE CONSTRUCTION PROJECT

OVERVIEW

To better understand the working drawings and specifications, you need to have some understanding of the process that most construction projects go through from conception to completion. In this unit, we will look at the project team members and their responsibilities, and explore the sequential steps of a project through four phases: conception, promotion, design, and construction. As we explore these phases of construction, we will be referencing Figure 1.1. This graphical representation of the phases will allow us to tie together the project tasks, team members, and contract documents developed and used on most construction projects.

THE CONSTRUCTION PHASES

The construction of a building project goes through four distinct phases. Each phase results in the involvement of many different organizations contributing information to the building projects design. These phases and organizations ensure all of the necessary elements are addressed before completion of the project, and it is important that we understand them.

FIGURE 1.1 Four Phases of Construction

The Conception Phase

The start of the project comes when the owner decides a new building is needed. This decision is made in response to many possible factors. Perhaps the owner decides more manufacturing space is needed, more storage, or more warehouse space. The owner might decide he needs additional seating capacity to entice more customers to visit an establishment. Perhaps he just wants to have an updated facility or building that conveys the new image of the company. Whatever the reasons that motivate the owner, they result in the need for construction. The owner is the driver for the entire process since he has the design and the money to accomplish the project.

Depending on the owner and the business, he may or might not be very familiar with the construction process. If the owner constructs a lot of buildings each year, such as in retail or chain restaurants, he may be very familiar with the process and how to manage it. If he only builds every 10 to 20 years and building is not part of his business plan, he may be quite unfamiliar with the construction process. If the owner is not familiar with the process, it is probable at this point in the process that he or she would enlist the services of a construction manager. This individual would be well versed in the construction process and would advise and assist the owner through all phases of process. He would, in some cases, act as the agent for the owner and make commitments that bind the owner. In these cases, the construction manager could be called the owner's representative. If the owner builds a significant number of buildings each year, it is probable that there is someone on staff who will manage the process for the owner. In fact, if he builds many buildings each year, the owner might have a complete real estate and construction staff.

Once the owner has decided to build, he must then decide where to build. It may be that he already has property, especially if he has a campus-style setting for his company's operations. Or, he may simply possess property that he intends to use. If not, he would begin the search for property that would fit the business need or that would enhance the building's function. Most likely, the owner would begin the search by contacting a developer or a Realtor. This individual would direct him to the available properties that would most likely satisfy his business requirements.

A developer would be likely to show the owner properties that are undeveloped, lacking roads, utilities, and other amenities, but that would fit the owner's requirements and allow the flexibility to fully customize the site and building. The developer would generally offer up the property and agree to install the necessary roads and utilities to fit the owner's project requirements. These improvements would typically be developed as the architect and engineers develop the construction project. The advantages to this approach are that the owner has a site that fits his or her requirements exactly when completed, including all traffic requirements and with all utility requirements sized correctly for the finished project or building.

A Realtor, by contrast, would introduce the owner to properties that are already developed with roads or driveways and parking, all utilities available at least at the property line, and perhaps even an existing building that could satisfy the owner's requirements. The other significant difference between a developer and a real estate agent is that the developer is working with properties that he or she typically owns, whereas a real estate agent is showing properties that are owned by someone else.

Once the owner has selected a property for his project, he would want to make sure that the boundaries are defined and filed with the local municipality or county to ensure there is no confusion on where work can be done on the property. Most municipalities have set-back rules that govern how close a building or structure can be to adjacent property lines. The owner would also want to know where all easements are located for the municipality or utility companies. To accomplish the recording of the boundaries, a surveyor will be hired to come in and develop drawings and a written description of the property (Figure 1.2).

A surveyor will measure the distances around each boundary of the property, using sighting equipment, and document the information, using a metes and bounds system. He or she will note exact locations of corners, directions of turning points, and changes in elevation as necessary. The surveyor will document these dimensions by developing the survey drawings and a written description. These documents will be filed with the city or county the property resides in and will be recorded on the plat drawings for that municipality.

Simultaneously, the owner should be starting conversations with the appropriate city planners to determine if the property can be zoned for the type of activity the owner is going to use the property for, if it is not already so zoned. This is especially important for undeveloped properties because zoning may not have been established for the area yet and the process for obtaining zoning could be time consuming. Most properties shown by a Realtor would already be zoned and, if not zoned for the owner's specific activities, appropriate zoning must be obtained. The city planners can give the owner some idea of the amount of time and work that could be involved in this process.

Recognizing that the city planners will need some idea of the project to establish zoning requirements, the owner must now select an architect to develop the drawings and specifications. The architect will begin to be more heavily involved with the owner to start defining the project for which he or she has the primary responsibility for the design and development of the contract documents.

At this point, only the owner has any vision of what the project will look like. The architect must extract this vision from the owner and begin committing the vision to paper so others can observe the project as well. To do this, the architect will begin a series of meetings with the owner. The first meeting will be to gather basic data on the owner's needs, what type of business the owner will be conducting, how many people will occupy the building, how much raw material is needed at any given time, and so on. The architect will want to understand the owner's intended workflow and processes, or any people flow requirements that are required to satisfy the business intent. Next, the architect will begin to ask the owner questions about the vision of the project: How does it fit on the property? Which direction does the building entrance face? How many room should the first floor have? and so on. With the data gathered at this first meeting, the architect can begin developing sketches based on an understanding of what the owner wants. This called the SD phase, or sketch development phase, by the architect.

FIGURE 1.2 Survey Drawing

At this point, the architect will focus on perhaps a basic floor plan, general site layout, and front elevation view of the proposed building. These sketches should reflect the comments of the owner on product or people flow, building appearance, and project's intended use. Once the architect has these first sketches developed, he or she will return to the owner and review them to validate the architect's understanding of the owner's vision.

The owner now has something to look at and can confirm for the architect that the sketches reflect his vision. Also, the owner can now see the project and apply changes. The architect might say, “Based on our last conversation, I have developed these sketches of how I envision your project.” The owner would reply, “Yes this is what I want here and here; however, now that I see your sketch, I think this should really be over here.” This type of exchange could continue for weeks or longer, if needed, until the architect is convinced that the same vision is shared by him and the owner.

During these exchanges, the architect would be providing guidance on things that are or are not feasible for construction. The architect would also provide insight on costs for certain elements and would guide the owner on design decisions that might be affected by codes and laws. The owner would finally reach a...