One of the most exciting parts of a construction project is the groundbreaking. It’s the start of the ACTION and I LOVE seeing action on a construction site! Excavators moving dirt, cranes lifting steel, trucks hauling concrete; there’s nothing more fun to see. The groundbreaking is also the first day that project owners get to see their dream rising from the dirt and begin to take the shape of their new facility. As thrilling as the groundbreaking is, the REAL VALUE in the project is found much earlier in the process during the pre-construction phase.

#1 – The first way the pre-construction phase builds value for the client is during the design phase. Obviously getting a phenomenal architect/engineer team to design your facility can help lead to a great building. What is far more important than any set of blueprints is the road you take to get there. If an architect designs a facility that turns out to be well above the project budget, a tremendous amount of time and expense is wasted in re-designs which add absolutely zero value to the client. A well-managed pre-construction process allows the designs, budgets, and schedules to be developed simultaneously so you never waste money on out-of-budget blueprints.

#2 – We often work with clients who are operating in a facility that doesn’t match their needs. It’s easy to just jump and say you need 50k or 80k square feet for a manufacturing facility, but you can potentially save significant floor space by planning your new space specifically for your current and future operations. A successful pre-construction process plans out how your machinery fits into the space, how employees function in their work area, and how raw materials and finished products can most efficiently flow through your operation. The cost of good planning will always be less than the long-term cost of a poorly operating assembly line in a building that doesn’t fit you.

#3 – Finally, a well-managed pre-construction process can save you lost productivity during the build. If construction workers, equipment and materials are hampering your ability to continue manufacturing operations while an expansion is built, you are losing valuable profits. Pre-construction planning can organize the construction process around your operation ensuring that your team can stay focused on doing their jobs and stay profitable.

It’s important to remember that getting the absolute best value out of an industrial facility expansion or relocation means teaming with an experienced construction manager from the earliest moments of a project’s conception. A successful pre-construction process saves you far more than just getting a lower cost building but also protects you through improved manufacturing operations and minimized lost time for your workers. If you’re thinking about any kind of remodel, expansion or relocation, call a construction manager FIRST so you can maximize the benefits of pre-construction planning.

We often tell clients that the most important part of a capital building project isn’t the building…it’s the manufacturing operation that goes INSIDE it. Anyone can build 4 walls and a roof for cheap but if it isn’t designed specifically for your operation, the building is going to cost you loads of money in the long term by hindering production and cutting potential revenue.

One tool we use to help make sure that our designs perfectly match your needs is by integrating your operation directly into the architectural blueprints. We actually model your machinery, equipment, and work spaces along with the walls, pipes, columns and floor slabs to ensure your operation fits and your productivity can stay at its maximum potential. Check out one of our models in the above video and see how we can help you maximize your production capacity and minimize your long term costs!

Design your building AROUND your manufacturing line!

What about lost productivity?

Does your building have columns in the way of your forklifts? Do you wish you had an extra truck dock? Is space in your facility at a premium? Is your building less than perfect for your operation?

Now think about how your less than perfect building is affecting your bottom line. Say you’re a mid-size manufacturer with $5M in revenue – if impaired forklifts, too few truck docks, and cramped space cut your efficiency by just 2%, staying in your building is COSTING you an extra $100,000 in lost revenue EVERY SINGLE YEAR. Over a ten year stay in your building you’re losing over $1,000,000.

Lets be clear, the building your operation resides in will never MAKE you money. It’s the machines, materials and people that provide the value for a company. However, your building can certainly COST you money; and LOTS of it. By re-evaluating your facility and remodeling, expanding or relocating to an ideally designed building you can ultimately save millions of dollars where it counts the most.

Imperien’s approach with our clients is to evaluate their specific needs and help identify what the PERFECT building looks like for them. We help clients see exactly what the full cost of a facility is, what they can do to fix it, and how much money they will save by making the change. If your facility is anything less than perfect give us a call to talk and we can help you lower manufacturing costs and improve your bottom line.

We got a great opportunity to speak at the 1 Million Cups Rockford networking group. Our presentation focused on the three biggest mistakes we find clients making in building construction projects and how to avoid them. These top issues come up the same in small $10k projects and large $40M projects. If you’re even thinking about a construction project for your business, give us a call first and find out how we can help save you time and money in the process!

1. Spending too much time on your project
Building expansions and relocations don’t MAKE money, they COST money. With most business owners valuing their time at over $200 an hour, make sure you are spending your time on activities that drive income and bring in a team that can mitigate the cost of your expansion, and optimize your long-term operational capacity.

2. Missing out on financial incentives
Financial incentives aren’t meant to finance a capital expansion, but they can make them more cost effective. Most businesses leave money on the table that could be used to further leverage their investments; sometimes incentives are worth millions! A team can help you evaluate all potential incentives, from tax credits, to infrastructure improvements, to ensuring you are using all available tools to minimize your capital outlay.

3. Finding out too late the budget doesn’t match scope
Old methods of project delivery are slow, expensive and can’t adapt to changing client needs. Worst of all, it COSTS you money to find out you’re over budget. As an alternative, design-build services are structured to provide you the building you want, according to your time and budget. By starting with schematic and conceptual designs, your project can be refined incrementally as the budget and scope become more clear over-time. This saves you time and money.

4. Buying a building, rather than selecting a site
Don’t rush to buy a building. The wrong building in the wrong location costs MUCH more than a site selection professional. There are many variables that impact the total operating cost of a building, from workforce availability and cost, to utility fees and transportation access. A site selection professional can help you measure and weigh the impact of these variables on your long-term operating costs.

5. Hiring contractors, instead of a construction team
Traditional projects create separations between the design and construction teams, and often between individual contractors. The separation adds time and cost to projects, leaving the building owner managing individual contracts with a suite of service providers. Individual contractors may have opposing interests, creating a management headache for the owner. A design-build professional can manage both the design and construction, as well as the sub-contracts, protecting the owners’ interests and simplifying the process.

Click Here To Download The Slide Presentation

Click here to see a video-presentation discussing these mistakes and how to avoid them

Imperien offers full-service capital project services from concept to completion. Our services include comprehensive site selection, financial incentive negotiation, building design and construction management.

We work to help clients stay focused on their business throughout the process and avoid wasting their time on a construction project. Our team of financial incentive experts provide the tools necessary to make capital expansion projects financially sound. Imperien coordinates projects from initial conception through completion to keep budgets and scope in line throughout the entire process. Site selection services look at all costs associated with a particular location and ensure selection of the site with lowest cost of ownership. We work to package together the full team of experts and service providers to represent clients with architects, engineers, contractors and project financing to get them the highest return on their investment.