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Category Archives: Solid Advice

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02Sep

Make Informed Decisions About Design, Permitting & Construction

Author TBC Categories Solid Advice, Tri-Bay Benefits, Pre-Construction, Commercial Construction
No matter what kind of construction project you are planning, be it residential, commercial, industrial, alteration, or new, you can count on us to provide you with the proper information to make an informed decision about Design, permitting, and construction. In today’s world, the cost is an important factor in most of our decisions.
It is not always the most important one. Small business owners, especially start-ups, are cash flow dependent. Before embarking on a construction project, it is imperative to have as much accurate cost information as possible. That is sometimes a tall order. How much is a permit? How much does an Architect cost?
Do I also need Engineers? Usually, the first question people ask is how much will it cost to alter this space or build a 30,000SF warehouse?

Many contractors will throw a cost based on square footage out there without any knowledge of the contents of the new warehouse, what its use will be, where it is located, how many people will occupy it, etc. While that number might be close to being accurate nine times out of ten, it is not. 

We believe that if the following questions and answers are discussed before, a more accurate cost and time line will emerge and fewer surprises will arise in the process.

  • Where is the building (or land) located, and who’s jurisdiction is it? (Some jurisdictions take longer than others for permitting)
  • Have you asked the Planning & Zoning Department in that jurisdiction if that type of building/business is allowed in that location?
  • Who provides the utilities for that location? Are they already in place? Are additional services required for your business?
  • Do you have an Architect? MEP and Structural Engineer? Do I need a Civil Engineer?
  • What is your desired timeline to occupy the space?
  • What kind of business previously occupied the space (if not a new building)
  • Do your design team and contractor have experience with this type of construction or business?
  • Do you have a conceptual idea of how you want your space/building to look?
  • Do you have a budget in mind, and where did you find your projected costs?
All of these questions and others are the ones that best launch a successful construction project. These questions will all play a role in the final projected construction costs.
Are you “thinking about” an idea for a business or new building? We will walk through this process with you from beginning to end and assist in developing the idea or at the least provide you with enough accurate information to make an educated decision.
Tri-Bay Construction is ready to help make your business dreams come true!
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02Sep

The Value of Upfront Consultations with Experts

Author TBC Categories Pre-Construction, Commercial Construction, Design-Build, Solid Advice, Tri-Bay Benefits
As promised in our last issue, this month’s discussion explores the value of consultations with experts and the myriad of problems that can occur when work is performed without proper permits. Let’s first define “Authority Having Jurisdiction.” Simply put, these are the entities that make the rules for a geographic area.
Following the rules is a far more involved (some say complicated) process than some choose to go through. One of the difficulties is that the rules for following the procedures in place for any given area may differ significantly from an adjacent geographic area. There is a myriad of reasons for the differences, which are not always clear to the public.
Like most rules for any organization, they can be based on:
  • Past experiences
  • Financial reasons
  • Demographics
  • Logistics
  • The spatial organization of the jurisdiction
  • And a host of other variables that contribute to the uniqueness of that area.
Above all, most of the regulations are put in place to protect the general public from the contractor’s errors and prevent the contractor from making errors that may be dangerous to the public.

The Division of Building Safety and the Fire Marshall’s office are often seen as entities that cost business owners and homeowners money. Quite the opposite is true. While some disagree with how the rules are interpreted, derived, and even implemented, that is fodder for another discussion. Today, we deal with following the rules in place and why following the rules is less costly in the long run.

Let’s look at one case scenario for a commercial building. A business owner occupies part of a warehouse-type building.

The business is rapidly growing, and the remainder of the building becomes available for lease. The business owner and building owner strike a deal and sign a lease for the business owner to take over the rest of the building. Without permits the business owner makes “improvements” to his added space to include new equipment for his operations, structures for new equipment, openings in the walls between the units, even a new overhead door in the building structure. A friend who is an electrician adds another circuit breaker to the electrical service and the business has grown so much that the business owner has hired ten new employees. All of these improvements “had to be done” but hiring an Architect, Structural Engineer, Electrical Engineer, obtaining plans, hiring a contractor, getting inspections on the new work would “cost too much” and “take up valuable time.”

The business owner is now operating at double his capacity and everything seems to be fine. Then the Fire Inspector comes to the building to perform an annual inspection. The fire inspector notices several items that require correction. The building owner doesn’t take care of these items right away so when the fire inspector returns (standard operating procedure) and sees that the corrections were not made, the Building Department is notified, and a building inspector visits the building. The building inspector observes some “improvements” that do not meet current building codes and are potentially unsafe. He makes a note of the items and upon searching the building’s records, sees that permits have not been obtained for much of the observed new work. Here is where the situation grows exponentially worse.

Because of the code violations, the Fire Marshall and the Building Inspectors perform a more thorough inspection. This produces a much more extensive list of violations that are now recorded. Some are new and some may have existed before this business owner leased the space. A timeline is given to the business owner to correct the violations. The business owner will now be required to submit a Permit application with signed, sealed plans drawn by a licensed architect and appropriate Engineers or risk closing the operation entirely.

Some additional time lapses because the building owner cannot find the time to address these issues, which he knows will interrupt his business and likely cost money that has not been budgeted. The Building Official and Fire Marshall return to the building, observe that the requested corrections have not been made, and some additional work has been performed without a permit since the last visit. The Building Official and the Fire Marshall decide (rightfully so) that there are enough unsafe conditions that they shut the business down completely.

While this is an extreme case scenario, what was likely a few thousand-dollar problem, has now become a tens of thousands of dollars problem, including:
  • The loss of work for dozens of employees
  • Loss of revenue for the business
  • Interruption for all the other companies that counted on the goods and services from this business.

Even if the building was not declared unsafe by the authorities having jurisdiction, the unsafe conditions might have eventually caused a severe preventable injury to one of the employees, which cannot be “fixed” with money.

While this may be an extreme case, many examples of the unexpected cost of doing work without permits or licensed contractors exist every day. We cannot put a dollar value on someone’s life and well-being, be it an employee or the general public. Once an injury or death occurs, it cannot be reversed. Architects and Engineers are educated and licensed to design buildings and workspaces that are safe for all. Building Codes and Permitting regulations are in place for the safety and well-being of employees and the public.

Contractors are licensed to work with these Architects, Engineers, building officials, and Fire Departments and are responsible (morally, ethically, and financially) to provide safe work and living spaces for all. While saving a few dollars and some time may appear to be the best route to take and may provide a short-term benefit, the long-term consequence could mean the loss of life and less importantly, exponentially more expensive to correct the problem. Unlicensed work and unpermitted work are always more expensive (figuratively and literally) in the long run.

If you are unsure of whether or not you need a permit, consult a licensed professional.
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03Aug

The Importance of an Administrative Foundation

Author TBC Categories Tri-Bay Benefits, Pre-Construction, Solid Advice
This month’s discussion will focus on the importance of foundations when ready to construct a building. Our focus is not on the building’s concrete foundations but instead on the foundation before the foundation.
There is an administrative foundation before construction that, if not prepared thoroughly, can become catastrophic. No matter how the crack in this foundation is discovered, it is usually expensive and sometimes worse than anticipated. This is an often overlooked part of building construction, as is the operation and maintenance of a building, whatever its use is or will be.
Before construction plans have begun, some preliminary items must be investigated and documented first. To follow are just a few items to consider:
  • Surveys of the property
  • Zoning of the property
  • Occupancy and Use of the building
  • Rights-of-way
  • Easements
  • Liens
Whose responsibility is this? This question has various answers among different people. Some have a portion of the needed information, and others don’t have any of the required information. Some of these items fall under the umbrella of pre-construction services, and some do not. What is included in “pre-construction” services must be clearly defined.
While we want to believe that we have all of the information and that spending a small (in comparison) amount of money for these services is an unnecessary expenditure, making that decision can turn into a colossal error in judgment.
Case in point: The property owner hired a design team after the purchase of a property which was assumed to be correctly surveyed and investigated for liens, encumbrances, easements, utilities, zoning, etc. Then the design team took over and began drawing plans, defining applicable zoning and municipal ordinances, and clarifying jurisdictions of the various portions of the project.
Based on the information provided, the design team assumed all investigative work had been complete. Plans went through the Plan Review process in all three jurisdictions. All parties involved stamped the plans approved for construction, assuming all of the preliminary investigative work had been thoroughly completed.
Having approved plans for construction, the selected General Contractor commenced building a construction team of suppliers and subcontractors. In the bidding process, all subcontractors, suppliers, and even the General Contractor assumed that all preliminary work was complete and the project was ready for construction.
Having built a team and contracted with selected subcontractors, the General Contractor mobilized and went to work on the project. One month later, the adjoining property owner declared there was a parking easement recorded and that the construction seemed to be encroaching on that easement.
The moral of this event is that proper preparation should never be based on assumptions. The most important lesson in this scenario is that a small investment in pre-construction services could be worth more in the long run than the expenditure of the entire project.
The project could depend on a qualified, experienced contractor who is willing to go the extra mile for the sake of the client and all of the people who will be involved in the project. Had the design team communicated with all of the separate entities before sending the project out for bidding, the results may have been different.
Utilizing a design-build, integrated project delivery method or pre-construction services provides more collaboration and communication and fewer assumptions. Knowing that another set of eyes is paramount to a strong foundation for any project is priceless to all involved.
Next month we will explore the value of consultations and collaborations in those areas where others have more experience and expertise before taking action on any construction project.
We will discuss the dangers of saving a few dollars by not obtaining permits and the effects those decisions have financially and, more importantly, on the life safety of the people those decisions affect directly and indirectly. Preparing properly to leave positive ripples costs less in the long run.

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05Jul

A Family-Owned Business Empowers It’s Team

Author TBC Categories Pre-Construction, Solid Advice, Tri-Bay Benefits
How would you answer these questions?
  • Is there an advantage to working with a family-owned business?
  • Is there an advantage to working with a smaller company?
  • Is there an advantage to working with a company that has a lot of repeat business?
  • Is there an advantage to working with a company with high internal organizational trust and long-term subcontract relationships?
If you answered “yes” to all of the above, you are correct. As a family-owned business, every employee has a common interest. Tri-Bay is family-owned in two ways.
  • Immediate family members hold key management positions.
  • Field personnel and management have 20+ year relationships. They are family also.
We work as a cohesive team, and information is shared freely among family members, so there are no secrets about our business. This creates an internal environment of trust and confidence in decision-making and the common goal to grow the business. Every one of our management team is empowered to make decisions based on what is best for our clients and our business.
As a small company, our clients and subcontractors still receive individual attention. Management is not separated from clients after a project starts. In our technological world, personal interactions seem to be waning, and reliance on electronic communication continues to rise. Face-to-face and person-to-person contact fosters trust that an email or text cannot accomplish.
Our subcontractors trust us (external trust), and we trust them because we see and work with them regularly. Consistency breeds trust between subcontractors as well. When tradespeople recognize the same faces from project to project, a relationship develops, egos are put aside, and an environment of mutual respect is developed. Information is shared more freely, which breeds efficiency and productiveness. Our clients benefit from these relationships, which fosters recommendations and future work.
A company with repeat clients clearly demonstrates that the Contractor is trustworthy, skilled at what they do, and provides the client with what they need every time. When we complete a project, we do a completion review (post-project) with our subcontractors, the designers, and most notably with the client. Our client’s feedback is what allows us to improve with every project. 
No construction project is perfect, nor is it accomplished error-free. When we review a completed project, we want to know what we did well, but we also want to know where and how we can improve. If your Contractor is not doing this, you will likely not refer them to your friends and colleagues.
Do you trust your Contractor? What we sell is a service, not a product. Without trustworthy people, there is no good service.

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01Jun

Construction Pre-planning is Vital for Success

Author TBC Categories Pre-Construction, Solid Advice, Tri-Bay Benefits
Last month we discussed the qualities to look for in a Contractor. This month we will explore some of the pre-planning you can do before you even get to permitting and construction. Whether you are about to lease a space for an existing/new business or purchasing land to construct a new building, there are many things you should do in advance.

Do not rely solely on the “experts” or assume that these upfront items have been taken care of before the project launch. Keep the old adage in mind that “failing to plan is a plan to fail.” This saying especially rings true in the construction industry. Any gaps can become a costly delay.

Define the scope with a contractor, including how you want the space or the building to perform. The result will always turn out better than if you hand a contractor a set of plans and say, “Can you build this?”; How fast? How much? Defining the scope and performance often will change the cost for the better.

Walking through this pre-construction process with a Contractor is equal to interviewing to find the right fit. You should identify the level of risk the project may have, such as delay points, permitting procedures, and design decisions that will affect the overall budget, material specifications, and more. Walking through this process can determine whether the project is viable at all.
To follow are some of the crucial elements that make up a successful project:
  • Clearly define goals and deadlines for the Owner and Design & Construction Teams: Set realistic cost projections, confirm scheduling, and establish clear communication lines early to prevent misunderstandings.
  • Collaborative scheduling: This critical step requires all team members to create a realistic schedule for the project, from design to project turnover.
  • Sustainable Building: Know the benchmarks that make a building or a space considered “Green.” Having a clear understanding of the costs associated with green building methods and materials will eliminate surprises during construction and may even alter the performance goals before the project begins.
  • Permitting and Jurisdictional idiosyncrasies can often delay the review process: Understanding the local codes and ordinances by meeting with jurisdictional officials before the submittal process may shave valuable days from the overall schedule. Otherwise, poor communication can derail a plan before it gets started. Gaining clear direction helps alleviate items easily overlooked if unfamiliar with the project’s jurisdiction location.
  • Accurate budgeting and expense tracking plan: The team can accomplish this with the early selection of finish materials, so costs are known before construction begins—brainstorm to uncover the hidden fees that are bound to arise and can often be budget busters.
There are many more components that makeup Pre—Construction Services and Planning. We will continue to discuss the benefits of Pre-Construction planning and will then follow that with the types of Project Delivery available and their pros and cons.

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