Getting it built.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH BEFORE STARTING
Complete design and specification An agreed programme An agreed price and payment schedule Who supervises
WHY COMPLETE DESIGN FIRST
Changes during construction are the largest cause of cost overrun.
WHO SHOULD SUPERVISE
A qualified professional, independent of the contractor.
WHY INDEPENDENT
The contractor cannot certify their own work objectively.
WHAT SUPERVISION SHOULD COVER
That work matches the specification That materials are as specified That progress matches the programme That payment claims are accurate
WHAT TO PAY AGAINST
Verified completion of defined stages.
WHAT TO WITHHOLD
A retention, until defects are corrected.
WHY RETENTION
It is your remedy for defects that appear afterwards.
WHAT TO AGREE ABOUT VARIATIONS
That they are priced and approved in writing before the work.
WHY
Verbal variations are the commonest source of construction disputes.
WHAT TO RECORD
Progress, with dated photographs Instructions given Materials delivered Problems and their resolution
WHY PHOTOGRAPHS
They evidence what was built and how.
WHAT TO ESTABLISH ABOUT MATERIALS
Who buys them, and how quality is verified.
WHAT SUBSTANDARD MATERIALS PRODUCE
Failures that appear years later.
WHAT TO INSPECT
Foundations and structural work, before they are covered.
WHY THEN
They cannot be inspected afterwards.
WHAT TO PLAN FOR
Delay, and its cost.
