Most owners trust, or want to trust, that their design team and contractors are doing what’s in their best interest. For the most part this is true. But no one is immune to the facts of the project lifecycle. In the beginning of a project, everyone is full of bright ideas and good will, contracts have been signed and the owner feels good that things are finally underway. In the middle of project the novelty has worn off and now the workers are hitting their stride, doing what professionals do best, their job. At the end, this is where the wheels fall off. Maybe that’s an exaggeration, but understand my point. During this stage fees start to dwindle and everyone wants to be done. Any changes at this stage will be handled quickly but without a lot of thought as to the consequences and problem solving typically isn’t a budgeted line item.
So what professionals am I talking about? Both design and construction. The important thing to realize is that these two phases don’t happen at the same time. The two service arcs are offset, think of McDonald’s Golden Arches with a slight overlap in the middle. So in practice, when the design phase is winding down, the construction phase is just starting to ramp up. And when the construction winds down, nobody wants to be on the project solving problems or they’re probably losing money.
This where commissioning comes in, we provide a bridge from design to construction, help with problem solving, and make sure that everything is handled quickly and effectively with the owner’s requirements in mind. Common sense tells us that a problem solved quickly saves time and money. If it’s left to linger, people will spend time talking about it again and again, but not doing anything about it. So protect your investment, include commissioning in your projects. Don’t be left holding the keys to a building that mostly works, get commissioning and get what you wanted.