RESOURCES
ARTICLES FOR THE CLIENT
QUALITY DESIGN INNOVATION CAN HAVE AN ENORMOUS IMPACT ON REDUCING COSTS
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The cost of engineering services also is important, but should be a secondary consideration behind qualifications. Engineering design costs typically represent less than one percent of the total life-cycle cost of an average project. Yet an innovative, quality design can have an enormous impact on reducing construction, operation and maintenance expenses, which comprise the other 99 percent.
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Hiring consulting engineering firms on an as-needed basis allows large public and private sector clients to keep their costs down by not having to support dozens of permanent in-house design professionals. Clients have the flexibility of hiring only those experts in specific specialties for whatever time they are needed. Consulting engineers give small public and private entities opportunities to develop projects which would otherwise be impossible with their own limited staffs and budgets:
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Selecting a Contractor
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No matter how good the design or how well administered the contract for construction, a project can suffer from costly delays, extras, and disputes when a contractor is selected solely on the basis of price. A carefully chosen contractor, on the other hand, can help minimize problems inherent in the constructions process.
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Managing Change Orders
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Change orders are an owner’s nightmare—unplanned costs and delays can add up to financial ruin. So the prudent owner looks for ways to keep change orders to a minimum and seeks to manage the change order process when changes are necessary or desirable.
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The Role of the Owner During Construction
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The success of every construction project depends as much on the project owner, typically the client of the engineers and the contractors who were hired, as it does on the engineers and contractors themselves. The owner sets the parameters that define the project. With these advisors, the owner can begin the necessary steps to create any project:
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"[Engineering] is a great profession. There is the fascination of watching a figment of the imagination emerge through the aid of science to a plan on paper. Then it moves to realization in stone or metal or energy. Then it brings jobs and homes to men. Then it elevates the standards of living and adds to the comforts of life. That is the engineer’s high privilege."
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Excerpt from "The Memoirs of Herbert Hoover: Years of Adventure, 1874-1929