JC Virtual PMs Podcast

Contractor Design Portions What They Are And How To Review Them Properly

Contractor Design Portions — commonly referred to as CDPs — are design packages that are transferred from the employer’s design team to the main contractor or a specialist subcontractor as part of the construction procurement. They represent one of the most significant areas of design risk on any construction project, and yet they are also one of the most inconsistently managed. When CDP submissions are reviewed properly, they protect the client’s quality and safety standards and reduce the risk of costly late-stage problems. When they are not, the consequences can be severe and difficult to recover.

How To Manage Scope Creep In The Design Stage Before It Reaches The Site

Scope creep is one of the most reliable ways to turn a well-planned construction project into an expensive, overrun one. It rarely arrives dramatically — it accumulates quietly, one apparently reasonable request at a time, until the project the client is building bears little resemblance to the project they budgeted and programmed. By the time the consequences are visible, the changes are already embedded in the design, contracted into the works or partially built. Scope creep in design typically starts with small additions — a client who wants an extra room here, a specification uplift there. Each change seems manageable in isolation. The problem is cumulative: by the time the project reaches procurement, the brief has expanded significantly, the programme has been eroded by the additional design time and the budget is under pressure. When the contractor is appointed, these costs crystallise — and the client is often surprised by the gap between the original estimate and the tender price.

Design Freeze- What It Is, When To Call It, And What Happens When You Don’T

Design freeze is one of those project management concepts that sounds straightforward in theory and proves remarkably difficult to enforce in practice. The idea is simple: at a defined point in the design process, the scope is fixed, the design is locked, and changes can only be made through a formal change control process. In practice, design freeze is routinely ignored, softened, moved or quietly abandoned — with consequences that range from programme delay to significant cost overruns and site-level rework. In practice, ‘design freeze’ is frequently misunderstood, poorly enforced, or simply not called at all. The consequences range from minor inefficiencies to serious contract disputes. This article explains what design freeze really means, when to call it and what happens on projects where it is never properly established.

BIM Level 2 Vs ISO 19650- What UK SMEs Actually Need To Know

If you work in the UK construction industry, you have almost certainly encountered both terms. BIM Level 2 was the framework that drove the industry’s adoption of Building Information Modelling over the past decade — the government mandate, the PAS standards, the CDE requirements. ISO 19650 is the international standard that has now effectively superseded it. The relationship between the two is one of the most common sources of confusion for SME clients, contractors and consultants trying to understand what is actually required of them on a given project. BIM Level 2 was a UK government mandate introduced in 2011 and fully implemented across all centrally procured government projects by April 2016. It required project teams to produce and exchange 3D information in a structured, collaborative way, using a defined set of standards and protocols — primarily PAS 1192-2 — and to deliver project data in a format that could be used for facilities management. The intention was to improve efficiency, reduce errors and build a richer information base for the operation of built assets.

The SME Client’S Guide To Appointing A Principal Designer Under CDM 2015

The Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 — CDM 2015 — place legal duties on everyone involved in a construction project. For SME clients in particular, one of the most important and most frequently misunderstood of these duties is the appointment of the Principal Designer. Getting this appointment wrong — or failing to make it at all — can leave the client in breach of their statutory obligations and personally liable for the consequences. Many SME developers and construction clients either misunderstand their obligations under CDM 2015 or leave the Principal Designer appointment until far too late in the design process. Getting this wrong creates legal risk for the client and can create health and safety problems that are difficult and costly to address later. This guide explains what you need to know as a client, when to make the appointment and what to look for when selecting a Principal Designer.