Procurement and Risk

PROCUREMENT

Since the proposed scheme postulates to create a new community comprised of existing as well as incoming residents, I have considered it crucial to allow the current community to voice their opinion on the matter; a community referendum would be organised before the pre-planning consultations to present the proposal as well as collect relevant feedback from the residents which could be used to develop the project at later design stages.

Moving the project forward, a tender process is proposed to be organised by the Southwark Council and the design team which would allow to appoint the most suited contractor to carry out the works.

The construction commences after the planning application has received approval and a complete design package has been produced and approved for construction.

The overall scheme is comprised of four structures as well as ground works. The construction would, thus, be phased to allow each structure to be completed before commencing works further [for detailed phasing with contract types please refer to the diagrams below].

COSTING

The proposed scheme comprises four new structures [three extensions and one new build]. Indicative Building Costs recommend approx. £1307 per m2 for housing association standard flats.

The estimated cost is around £44m with

an approx. additional 15% for external works [~ £ 6.6m]

However, due to the specialist character of the farming equipment and facilities additional costs have to be taken into account. Furthermore, when working with existing structures, unexpected costs often arise after the construction has commenced. It is thus crucial to allow a percentage of the overall costs as an emergency fund that would be included in the initial costing of the scheme.

Due to the complex and innovative character of the project, I would propose percentage fees to be used by the practice. This allows the fees to be continuously correlated to the size and complexity of the project; should the time required to resolve a particular design aspect increase, the fees would increase accordingly without the need for renegotiation.

A typical breakdown of the percentages for each stage would thus be as follows:

Stage 0-2 Initial 15%

Stage 3 -4 Developed 55%

Stage 5 Tender and construction 30%

Stage 6-7 Hand over and use optional

A 3 to 4% profit would be expected for the development. Assuming that the overall cost of construction amounts to around £55m the expected profit would be just below £2m.

RISKS

Due to the innovative construction approach with raised concrete frames a number of risks have been identified

1. Prevention of loss of life and injury has to be avoided at all times; throughout the construction and adequate measures need to be introduced to ensure safety to all existing structures, residents and the design and construction team members.

2. To minimise disturbance caused by noise and vibrations a detailed schedule of works is required. Assuming that most of existing residents work throughout the week and rest at weekends, a Monday - Friday timetable is preferred. Time wise a suggested slots follow standard office hours, 8-18 when the residents leave their homes to commute to and back from their work place.

3. To ensure the best manufacturing quality and minimise the risk of defected elements pre-cast concrete has been proposed as the primary construction material. Casting off-site in a controlled environment allows to create better quality elements as well as increases the comfort levels for the workers.

4. A detailed structural survey is required before the construction works commence on the existing structures and foundations to investigate the structural condition of the buildings as well as identify any areas that need reinforcement [eg. strengthening of foundations]. Existing structures are to be monitored regularly by a structural engineer to avoid any undermining throughout the construction.

5. To minimise the disturbance to traffic and avoid road closures when accessing the site, all deliveries and equipment is to be located off the main roads

6. Adapting works pose a small risk of causing disturbance after the primary construction works have been completed. The provision of pre-cast elements as well as proper timetabling [works are to be conducted within office hours] minimises the need for heavy duty machinery to be used on site.