Design/Build Services
Decumanus Green provides both design and construction services. We build new homes and we remodel old ones. We can help you to visualize and realize the home that you want.
WHAT IS DESIGN/BUILD?
What is Design-build? In contrast to conventional models, in which an architectural firm designs a project that a client then puts out to bid with several builders who compete to win the bid, the design-build model brings together a client with a single firm that is responsible for the entire process of designing, pricing and building a project. The responsibility is with us alone. Besides design-build’s substantiated track record for lower costs, there are a number of other benefits to the model:
RELATIONALITY
The design-build model depends heavily on a solid, trusting working relationship between the client and the design/builder. The building or renovating of a home is a highly complex process; there are myriad decisions to be made and it requires effective communication between parties. The fundamental ingredient for dealing with that complexity is trust. If that is not there, then no amount of checks and balances can safeguard the integrity of the building process. In design/build, the clients and the firm make a commitment to each other: each works to their utmost to ensure the efficiency and quality of the project.
ACCOUNTABILITY
The design/build process assures that there is a single source of accountability, because clients have a single party to deal with. They are not caught in the middle between the builder and the architect. Problems that arise are the responsibility of a single entity, the design/build firm.
CLARITY
In the design-build process it is in everyone’s interest to constantly strive for the greatest possible clarity. The clients can be up front about budgetary constraints and the builder can be likewise with costs. Because the project is not being put out for the lowest bidder, there is no risk of a lack of clarity in early drawings leading to a lack of commensurability in the bids.
OUR DESIGN/BUILD PROCESS
Clients know us for our beautiful efficient homes and renovations, but they love us for our trusted process. Our design/build process has developed through over 20 years of trying to improve our clients’ renovation experience. Taking on a large construction process is full of uncertainties and unknowns. Our familiarity with our process and the confidence we have in it helps us create feelings of confidence and surety in our client
THE FIRST MEETING
The process starts with an initial meeting involving the clients and the project manager. During this meeting, we ask clients about their vision of the project. Is it more space they are after, a different configuration of space, the same space but more efficiently and beautifully packaged and more easily maintained? In turn, the project manager explains our design-build process. We explore whether what the clients are looking for matches up well with what our design-build process provides. The goal here is clarity about “fit”. Are the clients, the project and our process all a good fit for each other? If the answer is yes, then we take the next step: the design-budgeting agreement.
THE DESIGN-BUDGETING AGREEMENT
The design-budgeting agreement spells out the steps involved in the designing of the project and details how cost projections is integrated into that design process. It specifies the cost of that process either by listing hourly rates for different tasks within the process or by establishing a design budget in accordance with a carefully prescribed scope of design. It also specifies a timeline for completing the design-budgeting phase.
At the end of that phase, we give the clients a set of drawings sufficient for permitting and building the project. Depending on the project, we may also provide 3-D renderings of the project. We also deliver a clearly spelled-out scope of work, a finish schedule, a detailed estimate of costs and a construction schedule outlining the timeframe for the work. At this point the design-budgeting agreement ends and we start the next phase of the process: the build agreement.
THE BUILD AGREEMENT
The build agreement guides the professional relationship between the client and Decumanus throughout the entire construction process. This agreement contains the documents produced by the design-budgeting phase, including the scope of work, finish schedules, the cost estimate, and the construction schedule timeline. It also details the payment schedule for the job, including initial payments for obtaining permits and starting construction. That agreement is complete when all the work has been finished, the town has issued a certificate of occupation, and all the payments have been received by Decumanus.
THE OWNER/PROJECT MANAGER
The project manager is the heart and soul of our design-build process, and for that reason the owner of the company serves as project manager on every Decumanus Green project. The Owner/PM ushers the project from beginning to end, from the point of first contact by the client to the completion of the project and on into the warranty period. The Owner/PM is the single point of contact to whom clients can turn with any of their questions or concerns. Because the Owner/PM is intimately involved with the project from the very beginning and stays involved till the very end, there is no one more knowledgeable about the job as a whole and no one more capable of resolving issues if and when they arise.