Excerpt from book Chap. 1 - Preliminary Construction Considerations

Preliminaries:

Preliminary preparation tasks to be accomplished prior to buying a lot are
numerous and largely laid out in Chapters 2 and 5. Design and drawing or drafting of plans
are discussed in Chapter 3.

Early Quotation s:

Plumbing, heating and air-conditioning, and electrical quotations from those
subcontractors should be solicited as early as possible after plans are developed. These three
disciplines require the most time to prepare estimates and their own in-house drawings than
any other subs. These three subs will require much advance notice to schedule your project
with their other jobs and ordering materials, resulting in a long lead time, between reaching
agreement with you to beginning work. It is prudent to contract with them at an early time.

The homebuilder should request informal bids (quotes) from at least two
subcontractors in each field of work, and three would be better. You will also need prices
very early from a framer, concrete supplier, lumberyard, excavator, and foundations
engineer. There is no reason to hesitate in gathering all of these quotes very soon after the
plans are drawn and before receiving the building permit.

Once you have decided upon a subcontractor in each category and after
signing an agreement, you should contact all the other subs and vendors (materials
suppliers) you will not be using to thank them for their bid. This should be standard practice
throughout the construction process. It is not necessary to give an elaborate dissertation
about why you decided the loosing bidder’s price or scope of work was not adequate for
your project. You may merely call, speak to your salesman directly, or if he is not in you may
leave a message with his receptionist, stating that you appreciate all the work he did in
preparing a price for you, that you will not be able to use them on this job, but you would
like to be able to get another quote for future work when it arises.

Be sure to keep a journal or spreadsheet, titled “Thanked, but not awarded,”
which shows to whom you spoke, and the date. Many times the receptionist will not notify
the salesperson or that person may even forget you spoke to them about this. We have had
unprofessional bidders who were so insulted that they called to ask why they had not been
notified that they lost. Since we kept a record, we were able to tell them that we had left a
message with their assistant, and thank them again. Be sure to let them know that you do
not shop their bid (see Glossary,) and you would like to get a quote from them on future
projects.

To call and thank the people you do not use is a courteous gesture and the least
you can do for the free work of their quotation. They also must take your job off their list of
prospects for planning purposes, and will call you anyway if you do not preempt them. This
will maintain good relationships with your subcontractors and suppliers if you build again,
or even use them later during the same project.

Temporary Power Pedestal:

You must order a temporary electrical pole or pedestal from your local power
company in advance for installation after the lot has been cleared and graded. Discuss the
delivery of this with your grader and electrical sub, so that there is little down time for your
foundation contractor, waiting for power after the lot is ready for him. You may be required
to furnish and install a post for erection of temp power by the electrician according to detail
drawings available from your power supplier. This might consist of a treated wooden 4 x 4
and a plywood backboard within a specified distance from a utility line transformer. Verify
requirements with your local electric company. The temporary power pedestal will provide
electrical receptacles for your foundation subcontractor’s saws, air compressors, and other
power tools for most of the project. Until the house power is turned on, usually within about
the last week or two, the outside temporary supply will be the sole power source. See Chap.
4, Detailed Schedule part C and Appx. B for more information.

Other Preliminary Tasks:

Chapter 2 contains information on warranty and insurance companies, which
you may want to contact prior to construction. Many other items mentioned in the Brief
Home Schedule of Figure 1 are discussed in detail in later chapters of this book.
This brief schedule has subcontractor types highlighted in bold text upon first
appearance of their trade to indicate that before allowing them to walk on your lot you must
have a subcontract agreement signed (see Chapter 5 and Appendix D), their I-9 form (proof
of citizenship,) certificates of insurance, and other information.
Inspections:

The last column in the Brief Home Schedule (Fig. 1) is a list of common
inspections that your local building department may perform before progressing to
subsequent tasks on the list. Be sure you know which ones you are to call and which your
subs are to call. Consult with the subcontractor who’s work is being inspected about a day or
two in advance of when you guess he will be completed. Ask whether he will be ready for
inspection if you call it in for the next day. Make the call a day before needed, or whatever
your building department uses as advanced notice.

The list of required inspections may be obtained from your local building
department at the time of permitting. We have built in rural counties where there was no
formal code enforcement department, and a lone city engineer with no building experience
was providing that service. He informed us that only one inspection would be made at the
end of construction, because he was too over-booked to do more.
In contrast, however, you may begin to believe that many building
departments have become extensive labyrinths of tax-collecting bureaucracies that
seemingly only serve to delay your project and fatten the public coffers. You must be patient
while waiting for your building permit to be approved, which might seem like waiting for
an inefficient commissar to stamp your work release in the old Soviet Union. Anger at the
clerk will not expedite your permit and may even prolong it.

Building Purpose:

Whatever your reason for building your personal abode, self-expression,
pioneering spirit, a design outlet, control of your quality of life, thirst for knowledge, love of
shopping, competitive drive, quality control, or financial savings, be sure it is something you
have the time and determination to complete. Once you begin the process it will be quite
expensive, and if you decide this was not really an endeavor you wanted to undertake you
could lose much of your investment to that point. In that case you may have to hire a general
contractor to complete the house and take responsibility for the outcome, who will add a
factor for not knowing whether the work to date was performed properly. He will want to be
paid well for this risk, and your construction will be delayed also at a price. It's more
expensive to stop your supervision mid-construction that to hire someone else who is
experienced to finish the project from the middle.

C. Geoffrey Kremser, ...........................................................PE Page 8 of 289

(continued in book, Working for Subs)