Project Fails

Before we proceed on my recommendations on how to select and deal with contractors, let's discuss first some common mistakes committed by each parties that often times result to project fail. These mistakes are considerations in order to fully understand the ways in dealing with contractors.

Mostly in a client's perspective, the project fails because of the contractor. But usually, it is not the contractor that should always take the blame.

CONTRACTOR'S FAULT

1. Underestimate. If discovered before signing of contract, the contractor will probably withdraw unless otherwise, the OWNER agreed to correct the estimates and adjust the contract cost. Options are to have a higher cost or make some downgrading. If found out during construction this will have an impact to both the Contractor and the OWNER. The contractor might not finish the project, leaving the OWNER in a compromising stage.

2. Cheating. We all have the impression that all contractors tend to cheat, from material quality, overpricing, overbilling, etc. But there are still many contractors that would not risk their reputation in exchange for small additional income thru cheating.

Skipping procedure or shortcut of works is also cheating. But take note that not all shortcut works are considered cheating. There are some that are just mere construction techniques and technically acceptable.

3. Incompetence and Negligence. This results to poor quality and workmanship. Either produced by low-skilled workers or poor supervision, monitoring and checking of the foreman and/or the project engineer. Project engineer's poor comprehension of the plans and miscoordination can terribly ruin the project. Due to negligence, the contractor might also overshoot. The estimates are fair enough, but due to wrong execution and repetition of works, the allotted budget is reached before finishing an item. This results to frustrating losses.

DESIGNER'S FAULT

1. Incomplete and Inaccurate Plans and Details. The saying "No Plans are perfect" is an excuse for this. But the basic details should be ensured included in the issued set of plans. The CM and the Contractor should also review the plans before starting construction.

2. Late Response to Detail Request. It is normal that in some point during the construction, the CM and Contractor might find out that there are missing details in the plans. They are then permitted to submit a RFI or request for information to the Architect to issue the required design detail. But sometimes the architect's reply is taking too long that the project cannot move forward.

CONSTRUCTION MANAGER'S FAULT

1. Negligence. We are assuming that CM is competent and duly qualified, but failed to conduct proper checking resulting to wrong execution, misalignment and inconsistency of actual with the plans. This may cause delay to the project, material wastage and additional expenses.

2. Corruption. Yes, there is corruption even in construction. Some freelance CMs receives extra cash from the contractor in exchange for approval, recommendation to owner and other favors.

OWNER'S FAULT

1. Late Decisions. During construction, the OWNER's main participation is to make decisions. As the project progresses, he begins to see the actual. And because of this, he may decide to change something because he realizes that its not what he wanted. This is normal. That's why we have construction revisions. But the problem is most of the time, it takes too long for the owner to decide on the revisions and makes delay on the project.

2. Late Payment. Late payment usually happens during construction. And its quite understandable but not being late for more than a month. Because of this, the contractor tends to slow down or even stop at all since he is underpaid.

3. Too much Questioning. We understand that OWNERS are spending hard earned money for their dream house so its normal for them to ask questions. But sometimes, due to this questioning, a lot of nonesense issues arises and affects either directly or indirectly the progress of the project.

What I've mentioned above are only the most common mistakes. There are still more but might depend on the case or situation.

Tips in Finding a Contractor

If you prefer to find a contractor by yourself, please read on to have a heads up on finding a good contractor;

Steps in finding a good contractor:

1. Get a list of potential Contractors. If you are a first timer, at least 3 - 5 contractors should be in your initial list. But it is recommended that you keep as many contacts as you can so that you can have better options and add other candidates in case one contractor fails to meet your expectations.

Don't engage with them yet. Just get their contact and basic information.


Ways to find a Construction Contractor:
 1. Relatives and Friends' Recommendations
 2. On-line/Internet
 3. Yellow Pages
 4. Newspapers and Magazines
 5. Ad posters, Billboards, etc.
 6. Scout for ongoing construction projects
 7. Ask for your Designer's recommendations
 8. Product and Service Expositions

2. Gather information about the contractors. You can try searching for their website or online protfolio. You can also join forums and ask about any feedback about them. You can make a call to inquire and ask for their company profile. Many construction firms nowadays have online company profile.

Information to take note:
1. PCAB Classification. This is to ensure that the contractor is qualified to do construction works for your project.

2. Years in Service. Of course, the longer they have been in the industry, the more experience they have. But be sure to check the time line of their projects. Having only 1 project in 1 year is ok. But having no project in a year or two is an issue you should clarify with the contractor.

3. Finished Projects. Aside from reading the list of their accomplished projects, you can also ask about brief history of some of their notable projects so you can have an overview on how they handle projects and how they dealt with their previous clients.

4. Office. Knowing the location of their office is not enough. Go and visit. Investigate on how long they have been taking office in there. If they have been there for so long, about 10 years above, they might be doing good business then. Also proximity of their office to your project is an advantage.

5. Equipment and Material Warehouse. If possible, try to visit their warehouse also. A good contractor should have an organized warehouse. This is also a proof that they have the equipment, machinery and resources to finish quality projects.

6. Permits and Licenses. Although this should be there as expected, there's no harm in having a double check including the validity of the professional license of the engineers and architects in the firm.

7. Client and Project Reference. You can ask this at the early stage if you are seriously considering the contractor. But don't expect too much because arranging a project visit is not that easy but should not be impossible. In respect to their previous client, the contractor will normally seek for permission first before you go for the inspection. If this pushed through, chances are, you've found a good contractor. The fact that you have been allowed to visit their accomplished project only proves that they have established a good working relationship with their previous client, and possibly to you also in the future.

Remember, don't directly contact their previous clients and ask for feedback without asking the contractor first. This can be considered unethical and/or unfair collection of opinion. You'll never know. It might be that the client was the bad guy, and the cause of the project failure. If the contractor is in good faith, it would not be afraid to let you meet its previous clients.

We will continue with the Selection and Dealing with Contractors in the next articles. Thank you for reading.