In the state of Arkansas Construction Management is mostly used by public institutions, hospitals and companies operating in the industrial sector.

Each state will have their own laws, but in Arkansas, any public entity can use agency construction management. Universities can use At-Risk or AS-GC so long as the project is over $5 million in construction costs. Cities can use Construction Management if the project is over $2 million in construction costs. K-12 can use any type of Construction Management with no restrictions on project costs. Counties can only use Agency Construction Management as the state constitution only allows for projects to be awarded via low bid.

Private entities have a lot more flexibility than public ones and many simply select a Construction Manager they already have a relationship with. However, if the client requires competitive evaluations, public and private Construction Managers are selected in very similar ways. The client will develop and advertise a Request for Qualifications or a Request for Proposals. This request will typically ask for information related to the history and competency of the firms responding. Public institutions in Arkansas are not allowed to select a Construction Manager on price, but private industries are and will often ask about fees, proposed cost savings splits and expenses related to reimbursable costs. The client will then review the Qualification Statements and create a shortlist that is then interviewed. After the interviews are conducted the client will weigh the information presented and choose the firm they most feel comfortable with.

Experience with Construction Management.
There are many contractors who see Construction Management as just a way to negotiate public work. To truly reap the benefits of this method of project delivery it’s very important that you hire someone who understands and has a history of delivering on all the expectations of this method of project delivery.

Capabilities.
It’s important to assess the competency of the Construction Manager’s forces. It is equally important to assess the current obligations of the Construction Manager.

Experience in similar construction.
It isn’t necessarily important if the Construction Manager has built exactly your type of project, but it’s important that they are at least familiar with the type of construction. For example, if you are building a multi-story bank, the Construction Manager you are interviewing might never have built a bank before. But if they’ve built a lot of multi-story offices that require high-quality finishes and coordination with owner supplied equipment, they are likely competent to serve as your Construction Manager. But if they are competing against a client who has built a lot of banks but only single-story buildings, you want to carefully consider that contractor’s ability to properly serve as Construction Manager for your project.

Trust.
At the end of the day, it’s important that you trust your Construction Manager. They will be a critical member of your team and the success of your project depends on their ability to perform.

Yes. During the preconstruction phase we’ll divide each component of the project into specific bid packages (i.e. sitework, concrete, drwyall, roofing, etc.). Subcontractors will then be invited to submit a bid on a specific package. We always seek to get a minimum of three bids on each bid package.