General Contracting Compared to Construction Management
The desired outcome and goals of both general contracting and construction management projects are the same.  These goals include a quality project, constructed meeting our client’s needs completed on or ahead of time and at or below budget.  However, the approach and methodology employed in attaining these goals is different in each of these types of agreements and each has their appropriate place.  A summary of each and a description of their appropriate application follows. 

General contracting is a contract agreement that is best employed when the requirements of a project are clearly defined prior to the commencement of work.  It is also the contract arrangement more recognized by most clients.  In this arrangement, the owner engages a design team to create project drawings and documents clearly defining the work to be completed.  These documents are provided to a number of general contractors and “hard bids” are submitted.  On the basis of the bids received (which are conceptually equivalent as defined by the project documents), one general contractor is selected and awarded a contract.  This general contractor is then responsible to complete the defined scope of work for the bid price.  In the event that the scope of work changes, modifications to the contract sum and time are made through the issuance of a contract change order. 

Construction management is a more suitable arrangement when the project requirements are not clearly or fully defined prior to the commencement of a project.  In this type of agreement, the construction manager and the owner negotiate a reasonable percentage fee for the work being performed.  In return for this fee, the construction manager assists in the completion of the design, solicits multiple subcontractor bids in each trade and works with the owner to select the appropriate subcontractors for each trade.  The agreed upon awards are then made and the construction process is coordinated and overseen by the construction manager.  The construction management process is a fully open book process in which the owner and the construction manager work cooperatively to achieve the desired outcome while controlling cost.

Because we are project management professionals, Haas Construction Management is an organization equally suited to both general contracting and construction management work.  We are very familiar with both contractual agreements and frequently act in both capacities.