Producing an internet query like general contracting near me will produce an enormous number of Google results to sift through. General contracting is the science and art of the general contractor’s business practices.
General contracting is the actual action taken by the general contractor to provide their client’s construction services.
In either case, the primary reason you are likely seeking general contracting near me is that you are looking for a construction expert to facilitate your project from start to finish. Including all work tasks associated with this profession.
General contracting near me queries include a vast amount of professional construction firms by different classification titles. The practice of general contracting requires expertise in many professional business areas other than just building construction knowledge.
Not only are prime contractors required to be experts in all fields of contraction, but is necessary to be experts in the administration of the business. We will explore the skill requirements and many different contracting practices that building contractors follow.
Seeking the General Contracting Skills of Construction Contractors
What is general contracting?
General contracting is the professional practice of developing work-related plans for facilitating labor, materials, and equipment for construction or improvements of a specified building.
This is done through the hiring of skilled labor trades performing to the instructions and plans provided by the building contractor. The materials are traditionally purchased and provided for the skilled trades to perform their services.
This method creates 100% accountability for the warranty service.
The actual requirements of the general contractor include the resource logistic, the project financial affairs, and scheduling and coordinating of labor, materials, and equipment.
They accomplish these tasks, they are required to conduct communication meetings, quality control standards, and compliance inspections.
The prime contractor is the actual professional title that is derived from the action of general contracting.
But the general contractor is also known by other frequently used name titles such as; prime contractor, building contractor, direct contractor, main contractor, builder, and prime contractor to list a few.
Little do most people realize that there are other building contractors that in fact operate as prime contractors but go by different job titles.
These would be professions such as home builders, and commercial contractors, many remodeling contractors’ functions and operations are conducted through building contracting.
The activities of building construction are the result of these professions contracting for materials and labor to execute the creation of a building project.
The planning and preparation for facilitating the building process make the difference between the success and failure of their projects.
These may be either in the residential, commercial, or industrial sectors of the construction industry.
For that matter, the term construction contracting implies the same thing as general contracting with just a small difference.
Construction contracting is a term commonly used to refer to entering a construction contract agreement.
So, in fact, nearly every operating building company conducts construction contracting. To learn more, visit the following link about what a prime contractor do.
What does a general contractor do?
A building contractor provides a whole host of services to deliver the new construction or remodeling of a building creation or improvements. The day-to-day operation services can be classified into two separate categories; administration and management.
Management services are what most people attach to the term general contractor. Management services include tasks such as on-site supervision, quality control inspections, planning scheduling, material and labor procurement, and client customer service.
The administrative services are usually back-office activities and are conducted in the office. These would be items such as accounting bookkeeping, financial management, document management, estimating, contract, and insurance administration.
We will next discuss the role of the general contractor during new construction. Follow the link to understand the questions to ask the contractors during renovation projects.
What are the different types of prime contractors?
As we have briefly discussed, there are many different types of building contractors offering contract services with different professional titles that operate and conduct building contracting. These will be better explained in reference to their industry sector.
The construction industry can basically be categorized into 3 subsections; residential, commercial, and industrial. The reason for this is that the building codes that govern the building of structures in these separate categories are classified by these subsections.
There are residential building codes, commercial building codes, and industrial building codes.
Although the tasks and responsibilities of a building contractor are very similar, the clients, the building structures, and the construction practices are extremely different.
The prime contractor needs to be an expert in their preferred field of contracting.
These professionals must be familiar with the methods and mean used to build structures and knowledgeable about the compliance codes. There is a need for them to be educated in the disciplines of skilled trades and the principles of structural engineering and MEP theories in their special industry sector.
The actual construction of residential structures is far different from the building of commercial structures. While residential contractors use lumber to build their structures, commercial contractors use steel and concrete.
We will discuss some of the different types of prime contractors.
What is a residential general contractor?
New home construction residential general contractors would be called home builders. There are many different varieties of home builders, but typically home builders construct single-family houses.
They will come in many company sizes and their homes in varying price ranges, but the operations are fairly consistent with general contracting services provided.
Home builders can be classified into 3 categories; production builders, semi-custom builders, and custom builders.
Production home builders are also known as volume builders. They produce larger volumes of homes formally called tract homes. These home builders will design 4 to 6 homes with multiple front elevations are homes.
Having fewer home models with similar building products makes them more cost-effective to build. The key difference with most production home builders is that do not like to make changes to the plans.
Semi-custom home builders are similar to volume home builders in the house they build, but semi-custom home builders will allow certain structural changes to their standard home plans.
Custom home builders traditionally build one-of-a-kind home plans. They are both custom designed and custom-built. These houses are more expensive than the production builders’ houses or the semi-custom home builders’ houses.
A second type of residential contractor would be the remodeling contractor. Much like their name’s sake, residential remodeling contractors also operate much like the prime contracting model.
In some cases, the remodeling contractor will provide employees to do the work. These are called self-performing contractors.
They will still facilitate building contracting with licensed trade contractors like mechanical, plumbing, and electrical, and will operate both field tasks and office tasks of prime contracting.
The size of the construction companies and the supportive staff roles of the building contractors will also vary from one to the other.
Remodeling contractors are just as knowledgeable as home builders about the building process. One could make the argument that they are often more knowledgeable due to their experience disassembling a structure safely before modifying the structure.
What is a commercial general contractor?
Much like the residential contractor, the commercial general contractor can be classified in their construction expertise and as new ground up building or renovation/remodeling contractors.
Commercial contractors direct the construction of various types of structures like high-rise office buildings, big box construction (grocery stores & major retail centers), schools and government buildings, retail strip centers, and even restaurants.
Each one of these new building types has its own level of construction challenges that routinely requires to be navigated.
Commercial general contracting also has a remodeling/renovation sector for general contractor services. Commercial remodeling contractors provide remodeling services to commercial clients for almost any type of commercial building.
Commercial contractor companies can also provide tenant build-out services for both newly built and remodeling construction.
It is the commercial contractor’s responsibility to align the construction goals and milestones with that of the owners. As the prime construction contractors, their onsite duties include safety compliance assurance, construction document control, inspections & quality control, and construction cost controls.
The administrative duties include contracts, insurance, procurement, financial affairs, and accounts payable. To identify more about the commercial general contractor’s role, visit our commercial builder’s resources at commercial construction.
What is a project management general contracting?
Project management is a general contracting service that provides both management and administrative management for a specific construction project.
Project management firms are responsible to the owner for all construction operational controls as the primary building contractor including all site construction activities and delivery accountability.
The principal differences between a project management contracting firm and typical general contractor contractors are best defined in the nature of the construction contracting details.
General contractor companies traditionally conduct business by bidding the owner’s project at risk for a fixed price. They make their profit by controlling the construction cost and managing the labor, materials, and equipment efficiently.
Whereas the project management team is normally hired by the owner on a cost-plus basis. Their responsibilities also include the day-to-day management of the construction project operations and documents.
The difference is that the project management company is generally not at risk for the construction cost. If there are cost overruns, they are the obligation of the owner.
The project managers are the owner’s agents in the contracting business affairs of the project. Project management skills are the talents required by building contractors to successfully execute projects.
Conclusion
General contracting near me is the act of conducting a relevant search for the right professional that offers the duties and roles of a building contractor. Building contracting services are directed by construction contractors and construction companies offering general contractor services.
Understanding these services and industrial markets is key to identifying the right building contractor for your needs.
Following a prepared plan of vetting and selecting the right building contracting company will lead to creating a sound and professional relationship with your building contractor.
