FEASIBILITY & BUDGET ESTIMATES
A well defined scope of work and an accurate budget are critical resources for keeping the project on track during the design and bidding phases. The ability to monitor the project scope and costs during the design is of extreme importance. Variances can be identified and corrective actions taken, only when the available information is current and correct. Because we are always looking for the true “Cost to Complete”, the amount of detail contained in our estimates often exceed the information contained on the plans or in the specifications. For that reason we strongly recommend budget estimates at these critical stages:
- Schematic Design / Feasibility Estimate
- Design Development / Estimate
- Design Bid / Estimate
When this series of estimates are prepared for a project, the scope and costs can be accurately monitored from the inception of the design period through or the completion of construction.
AVAILABLE SERVICES
Based on our client’s needs, we offer the following integrated platform of services:
- Project Feasibility Reports
- Due Diligence for Acquisition & Disposition
- Development Strategies
- Budgets, Schedules & Cash flows
- Constructability Review &
- Constraints Analysis
- Construction Risk Management
- Strategic Planning and Consulting
- Construction Document Preparation
- Bidding & Purchasing
- Project Management
- Construction Management Services
- Owner’s Representative
- Monthly Activity & Evaluation Reports
- Construction Defect Analysis
- California “A” Licensed General Engineering Contractor
- International Services (Mexico) (United Arab Emirates)
- Framework Programs for Construction Management
- Expert Witness: Costs, Defects and Standard of Care
- Change Order Analysis & Negotiation
- Draw Inspections for Construction Funding
- Bond Exoneration
- Asset Rehabilitation
- Land Planning & Entitlement Coordination
- Special Projects as Independent Contractor
- CFD Formation & Management
CONSTRUCTABILITY REVIEWS
The one question that must be answered…. Does the design tell the contractor what he needs to know and more importantly, if it doesn’t, how do you protect yourself from change orders. Most change orders come from lack of information, inaccurate information or inconsistent information. To prevent this from happening, it takes standing on the site, knowing how it’s going to have to be built, seeing the constraints and understanding how they’re going to impact the design and the costs. The opportunities for dealing with this are early and few. Unfortunate in many cases, the office staff who actually design the project, may have never seen the project. It’s critical for plans and specifications to accurately depict the site conditions. You can’t wait for your contractor to tell you what’s missing, at that point it’s frankly too late. J T Kruer & Company has the ability to create an even playing field for our Clients by providing all the knowledge and resources the contractor has, at a time when it benefits the Client the most.
BID QUALITY ESTIMATES
Our approach is somewhat unique. We meticulously take off all the work, from earthwork to landscaping. We do not “cut & paste” pricing from other budgets. We develop specific project pricing based on the geologic setting, the special or unique requirements of the governing agencies, factors that may impact production rates; such as site constraints or difficult to install construction materials. We also consider the availability contractors and the competitiveness or the local construction market. Our next step is to get material and fuel pricing from local suppliers, we then build our crews, assign the appropriate equipment and then develop a realistic production rate and make-up.
If this sound like how a contractor prepares a bid, well it’s because that’s exactly how it’s done. The major difference between our bid quality estimates and the contractor’s number is that we don’t consider where the price needs to be to get the work, but rather, what is the true “Cost to Complete”.