I just had it reinforced that technology solutions are still dependent upon the nut behind the wheel (user). I recently moved up from a 10 year old vehicle to a new one with interactive computer controls for almost everything imaginable. The same applies to technology solutions in construction – be it in the field or [...]
Have you ever noticed that some companies seem to make it impossible to sign a contract? This happens a lot in construction. Whether it is a standard form contract, modified standard or completely customized set of contract documents, some terms can make it not worthwhile to pursue. It recently happened to us. A major firm [...]
Recently I was asked if design-bid-build yields the “least expensive market” factor in change orders and/or any subsequent claims/litigation. It is my belief this is a resounding “Yes.”, to the question. By its very nature the design-bid-build procurement process is a competitive one where all of the competitors are bidding on the same scope of [...]
Is there room in the construction market for cheap? After all, cheap really has a couple of meanings. How about when cheap is low in price and worth more than its cost? This has a place in the market for the buyer. The phrase, “I bought it cheap!” can be thought of as bragging when [...]
Protecting the Owner’s GMP Interests In some respects auditing a GMP contract for the owner should not be necessary. The owner has placed their trust in a firm that has promised to look out for their interests on the project. So why bother to audit? Well, there are many reasons. A simple reason would be [...]
We extend our best wishes for a happy holiday season and a new year of joy, peace, and prosperity. Our blog will resume January 4th.
I recently attended a breakfast educational meeting. It involved a panel discussion on construction. The panel members were an architect, contractor, subcontractor and an attorney. It focused on project delivery methods and some of the problems associated with the various types. The one common thread, for all of the problems discussed, was the lack of [...]
I recently overheard a contractor bragging to others on how they could have a cost advantage over their competition. This caught my attention. So I listened. It seems in their bidding practices they priced materials/equipment items that were not approved in the specifications. They would not request these items to be approved in the bidding [...]
There are several levels of market pricing in the construction industry today. These markets generally are the open competitive bid, invited competitive bid, competitive negotiated, sole source negotiated and specialty bid market. These markets may involve firm price or cost reimbursable terms. The least expensive market for owners today is in the open competitive bid [...]
Six joint venture teams recently bid on a $500+ million government project. There were over 10 amendments during the bid period. Each bid set cost over $4,000 and the amendments were extra! They won’t hear any results for a minimum of 4 months. Also the project is unfunded. This means that it can’t be built [...]
