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he
most hotly debated
topic when discussing the budget of a project |
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is the
General Conditions line item. The costs
associated with General |
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Conditions have been called a place where Contractors hide some profit.
This is completely false. If you were to ask most contractors where
they go over on their budgets and thus lose money, they will say General
Conditions. Items listed in the General Conditions line for your
project are only to be used on your project. There are two parts to
General Conditions: normal costs and supervision. |
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Normal Costs
The General Conditions are real costs of construction; they just seem
vague because one does not have a tangible product with which to
associate their cost. Although they are not there at the end of the
project, they are required for construction and have real values. Items
such as portable temporary electricity, heat and water are included.
Cleanup crews during the project and a final cleanup before move-in are
included. Other items like portable toilets are included because the
alternative is unthinkable. Some other General Condition items are the
costs associated with a jobsite office. Things like an office/storage
trailer, phone and fax, office supplies and blueprint reproduction are
real costs of the project. On a large-scale project there are over
100,000 different parts. The only way to stay on budget and especially
on schedule is to stay organized. A company that tells you otherwise
will not be able to provide you the type of service that you deserve. |
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Supervision
Another debated topic is the issue of Supervision. At ADC we provide
full time supervision on each project. We also include this cost as part
of our General Conditions. Basically, the project will not get built by
itself. Some companies charge for supervision and then have someone stop
by every once in a while to check in on the project. This is not
supervision, and should not be charged as such. The role of the Jobsite
Superintendent is to make sure that the project gets built exactly as
the plans and specifications indicate. The best and only way to ensure
cooperation with Subcontractors, scheduling of suppliers and approval of
choice items is to have a full time Superintendent. Also, when the Owner
or Architect has a question or comment about the project, there is
always someone onsite to greet them.
At ADC we figure actual costs for our General Conditions and can thus
give you the best value for your project. If you have any other
questions about General Conditions, please feel free to call our office
at any time. |
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