Design Management is a key skill within Richard Crookes Constructions. Two-thirds of our projects involve managing some or all of the design, depending on the design status and the client’s requirements.
We manage the design at any stage from masterplanning and concept design, authority approvals, detailed design, or ‘for construction’ documentation. We are finding more often our clients choose to get us involved earlier in various forms of Early Contractor Involvement (ECI).
We manage the design in close collaboration with the client, user groups, stakeholders, and expert architectural practices and engineering consultancies. In many cases the client’s architect and consultants are novated to us. In other cases we bring a team selected for their specific skills and experience. Early Contractor Involvement allows us to incorporate ‘buildability’ into the design and explore and assess options and innovations, achieving the best cost, program and building solution.
We tightly manage the overall design process ensuring it is well coordinated, stays on programme and progresses towards achieving the client’s aspirations, objectives and budget. We also challenge the design along the way, applying our knowledge and experience into the design in terms of materials, construction strategies and techniques (‘buildability’), which results in the best value for money for the client and facilities that are fit for the intended purpose.