How to Speed Up Commercial Construction

03 May How to Speed Up Commercial Construction

In commercial construction, late completion is both annoying and costly. On-schedule projects carry financial incentives for both you and the contractor — it’s in everyone’s best interest to avoid extra work days. Speeding up commercial construction is possible when the permits and financial paperwork are in order and the client and contractor stay engaged in communication throughout the project.

Make Permits a Priority

Talk to your contractor or schedule meetings with local authorities to discuss options for pre-submittal, pre-approval, and any other advantageous ways of dealing with regulations. Commercial construction in California often involves water and environmental issues in addition to the typical building permits. A contractor with a helpful pre-construction process can help you navigate the paperwork to prevent hold-ups.

How Much Is Early Completion Worth to

You?

The sooner your commercial construction gets completed, the sooner you can start doing business and making money. Calculate your projected revenues for that time to determine how much you can afford to build into the contract. Bonus amounts for early completion, liquidated damages for late completion, and other financial incentives can help keep the project on target.

Establish a Chain of Command

Facilitate easy and fast communications between you and the contractor. If your administrative assistant will be answering the phone calls, make sure they know where all the relevant info and documents are located and how you want to respond to things.

Everyone needs to multi-task these days — be sure that nothing slips through the cracks.

Stay on the Same Page with your Contractor

On the other end of communications, you’ll want your commercial construction contractor to be a leader and a partner. Discuss your expectations about how much the project manager and team should be proactive and suggesting actions and changes that might speed up the project.

The goal should be a game plan for daily or weekly meetings and collaboration throughout. Commercial construction always goes smoother and faster when information is shared immediately and often. Give your contractor methods of reaching you and commit to open communication.

Clear the Task Queue Regularly

If you are a big-picture thinker, make sure to build in time to address smaller issues throughout the project. Set aside an hour a day a few times a week for “housekeeping” chores and to reassess the commercial construction process. Make liberal use of the alert and reminder features of your favorite organizational tools to catch hangups before they delay the project.

McNeil Construction focuses on specialty commercial construction with an emphasis on pre-construction services and helpful project management from start to finish. Contact us to discuss your timeline and project goals.