How BIF help reduce project costs

When controlling project costs is such an important consideration, it's more important than ever to find specialists with the knowledge and experience to provide valuable advice from planning to construction.

Construction has always been a collaboration of expertise and ideas; it's the thing that first attracted me to the industry and still provides the boost I need to keep my interest intact . By finding the right guidance as early as possible, a specialist can provide the Main Contractor (or Client) with time reducing, cost saving or performance enhancing advice, by being part of the design process.

Understanding what a resin floor finish is capable of (and most importantly, what it's limitations are) is quite a rarity, so the following points are provided to demonstrate some fairly common areas where we believe the Main Contractor or Project Manager can gain an advantage by seeking advice from an established, reputable contractor;

Guidance of material choice

Ask a manufacturer what the optimum material would be for a project and you receive guidance on a product within their portfolio. No suprises there of course, but as experienced contractors we understand that certain materials will outperform other (often identical looking) systems.

We may know if similar systems cost less, or if other systems are technically superior and most importantly we will know if cost savings can be found if for example, adopting a different approach to the work was considered.

Last minute specification uplifts

At some stage, every Quantity Surveyor or Project Manager will have cut their teeth on a flooring project where prices start climbing because either no allowance in the specification has been made for DPM Primers or perhaps other items within the specification have not been included. This justifiably will leave a bad taste in the mouth for anyone trying to control project costs.

Also, a manufacturer will never mind adding material to a project later and as specialist contractors, we frequently struggle to include items that we believe will be needed whilst we price a project at Tender. Our greatest fear is to appear too expensive when submitting a Tender Package. The "just price exactly what is noted in the specification" response can often be heard leaving an Estimator's lips and whilst this view is quite correct, it can lead to problems later. These may include;

a) the right contractor losing out on a project for including non specified items, or

b) a shock for the QS post tender when the right contractor looks at the project in detail; or

c) the wrong contractor follows the spec, then takes a step back when failure occurs ( the main part of his defence being to recite the original specification, as he makes his excuses and leaves through the nearest door).

In any event, reputable contractors may well have missed the opportunity to work on the project, which is no good for us, you, or the Client.

Shifting Trends

We've recently noticed a trend to provide advice before a project goes to Tender. Our expertise and experience is being sought far more now than at any time in the last 5 years; and its a trend which is gaining pace.

A Client recently called me to look at a project and during our meeting he told me that he believed that expertise often saves money and adds technical merit to a project. He was seeking advice for a particular refurbishment project, which involved a survey, writing a report to show any findings, providing detailed pricing and a likely Programme to complete the work. This would then form part of a Feasibility Report for their Client.

Today, BIF provide a design input to Project Managers either;

• solely on a consultancy basis (ie where we remove ourselves from the

Tender process for an agreed consultancy fee), or

• provide a design and install package, which allows us to propose the most suitable system for an agreed project cost. This includes engineering a resin system to meet particular performance criteria.

My next Blog will set out how BIF engineer these resin systems to meet the needs of your Client and how they reduce costs to an agreed or a manageable level.

Cost control is King, but to achieve it you need to speak with someone who's been planning, designing, overseeing installations for years. You need to speak with an experienced resin flooring company; you need to speak with a resin flooring contractor...