In Principle Application
This process applies if the estimated cost of the project is in excess of £10million. The project should be developed by a project team to the Royal Institute of British Architects Design Stage C and should include the following:
- A project brief
- Floor plans and elevations
- An estimate of development cost
- An indication of planning issues including the identification of any onerous Section 106 agreements.
Once AIP has been determined, a detailed submission should be worked up.
Project Team Procurement
A wide range of skills and resources are required to address a construction project. The consultants who provide them will need to be assembled into a team that will work to a common goal of achieving the project objectives. It is fundamental to the success of any project that the right people are appointed at the appropriate time with clear terms of reference.
Assembly
The consultants and individuals required can be assembled in different ways, the actual method being dictated by the project and procurement strategy. The Lead Advisor for the project should make clear the consultants required, their terms of reference and forms of contract on which they should be engaged. A project team could consist of the following:
Lead Advisor
Project Manager
Quantity Surveyor/Cost Consultant
Health & Safety CDM Co-ordinator
Architect/Urban Designer
Building Services Engineer
Structural Engineer
Geotechnical Engineer
Acoustic Engineer
Planning Consultant
Environmental Consultant
Selection
A number of techniques are used in the selection of individual team members e.g. competitive tendering, negotiation. Where a number of phased projects are anticipated a framework of consultants can be established from which you can call for input as required. Where public monies are being expended there is a need to comply with EC Procurement Rules. The Lead Advisor should recommend the relevant criteria for team selection and the most appropriate method for doing so.
The LSC framework of consultants, due to be established later this year, will be mandatory in consultant procurement and replace the processes above.
