What is “Construction Administration” and why is it important?

We recently received a list of questions about construction administration from a client. Our client sent us some excellent questions, so we wanted to discuss them here and help others better understand this important part of the design-build process. If you’re about to accept a bid, you’re probably asking yourself the same things.

Q: What does the designer do during construction administration?

A: Construction administration (CA) is also sometimes called “construction observation.” It’s the process that the designer  goes through to stay involved during the construction process to help solve problems and assist with delivering a high-quality projects. Typically it entails only a couple hours a week, regular meetings on site with the contractor and owner, and every once in a while a larger chunk of time if there is an issue that needs resolving.

Many times clients like to remove the designer involvement after they get their plans. They figure it’s money saved. However, this is not a good idea and not how we work at New Avenue. We find it is immensely valuable to have the design-build team involved from beginning to end, and often this saves money at the end of the day.

Every contractor knows that it is extremely rare to have a set of plans with all the details and specifications perfectly complete. And even on the off chance the plans are perfectly complete, there may be unexpected changes or unforeseen site issues that couldn’t have been anticipated. The owners may change their minds about something or construction may hit an unexpected snag.

Designers step in to help resolve these issues. It is always easier and cheaper to make changes on paper, before you build something in the field. Having the designers available to work through detail drawings, find replacement material selections, or work with the clients to make last minute design changes can save hundreds or thousands of dollars and help keep the project on track.

Q: Should I pay for construction administration after the design is finished?

A: Absolutely. As we mentioned above, it is cheaper and easier to work out decisions on paper rather than have to make changes once construction has started. The fees your designer charges for their time during Construction Administration will save you money and also make the construction process easier and less stressful. You have the designer by your side to help discuss options and overcome challenges.

Q: What type of tasks/responsibilities would the designer take on as part of construction admin?  

A: The designer typically makes biweekly or monthly site visits to observe progress. These meetings take one or two hours (sometimes instead of a regular schedule we pick specific times during construction for the owner, designer, and contractor to meet on site and discuss progress). Beyond these meetings, the designer is on call to clarify questions - called Requests for Information (RFIs) - from the General Contractor and posts a note, texts or calls to discuss and help find a solution. If needed, the designer can revise the drawings and deal with any changes to the approved permit drawings if a major revision is needed. (Only the designer is allowed to modify the approved permitted drawings, and this is a law). Changing heating systems, windows, walls, etc. can all be major revisions.

Q: How does construction administration differ from or overlap the roles the contractor typically plays? 

A: The designer’s role is to provide insights based on what is usually 6–12 months of thinking about the project. These insights often go into great depth and are manifested through lots of conversations with the client and then translating those ideas into the design drawings. The designer also provides a second opinion when the contractor sees a way to do something that you may not want or may need to discuss. The builder is contracted to construct what is shown on the drawings. Any changes or deviations from the drawings must be discussed with and approved by both the designer and the client before the builder can move forward with the changes.

Q: Can I, as the homeowner, take on the construction administration tasks myself? 

A: Most homeowners don’t have the experience needed to make the necessary decisions quickly or effectively. They also have invested heavily in the designer’s involvement in getting the project permitted and it isn’t wise to not have the designer assist getting the project over the finish line. It’s easy to get tripped up on things as a homeowner. People say there are 10,000 decisions in a remodel or new house, and we’ve been thinking about them for decades. Knowing how important budget and schedule are to all of our clients, we have our design team stay involved and perform construction administration on all of our projects.

Q: Would we pay the designer on an hourly basis?  

A: We offer fixed fees for the design and construction services. Construction Administration is built into these fixed fees. This allows you to have cost certainty so the budget doesn’t unexpectedly rise. When we put together our initial design fees we include Construction Administration in those fixed fees. In this process they are not invoiced on an hourly basis.

Q: What do you estimate the costs would be if we were to ask a designer to take on a CA role? 

A: We schedule about two hours per week for the duration of the construction phase. Sometimes we may not spend any time in a week and other weeks we may spend 8-10 hours or more. It varies greatly depending on what is going on with the construction. This is why we say that the average time is about 2-hours per week.

For a project that takes 9 months to build you can expect Construction Administration fees to be approximately $5000. (9 months x 4.4 weeks per month x $135/hour = $5,346).

Q: What else do I need to know?

A: Some contractors argue that they can fulfill the role of designer as needed during construction. They probably can get the project done, but even so, both the finished project and your experience will be better with a second opinion from the designer. We have also found that contractors often don’t follow the drawings when no one is observing their work. This can lead to legal headaches, expensive changes, and delays to the construction schedule. No one wants these things to happen, including the contractors who are trying to serve you to the best of their ability. This is why we firmly believe that the best approach is design-build and having a unified team that works together from start to finish.