Key Project Facts
Location – Thursley, Surrey
Project Type – Single Storey Rear Extension & Full House Refurbishment
Services – Construction Project Management & Contract Administration
Build Timeline – 6 months
Project Value – Circa £200k
Project Overview
A stunning orangery set within the beautiful Surrey countryside completely transformed this humble farm house. In addition a single storey side extension was added to serve as a separate annexe for their elderly mother.
Following the appointment of their chosen contractor, the clients approached Minniedale to focus on the programme and cost tracking. They wanted particular focus on the efficient delivery of the build and saw the benefits in having someone independent oversee this and address any concerns directly with the contractor on their behalf.
Our Role
Minniedale Projects’ involvement began once the client had appointed their chosen contactor.
Key responsibilities included:
- Preparing a detailed build programme and keeping this updated to keep everyone on track and ensure milestones were reached
- Weekly site inspections to check progress and quality
- Meeting with the contractor to ensure they were aware of any ‘slips’ in programme or lack of labour on site
- Identify areas where we foresaw potential issues or where client decisions would be needed
- Acting as the primary point of contact for the client, ensuring clear communication and structured decision-making throughout
Project Challenges
The contractor was appointed prior to Minniedale’s involvement and there wasn’t a detailed Schedule of Works or cost breakdown. It was important for us prepare a ‘cost overview’ spreadsheet to log all the builders payment requests and keep a detailed list of the variations raised during the build. This was to enable cost control and to ensure the contractors payments aligned with the agreed scope. We requested all variations to be raised prior to commencing and figures were presented with a split between labour and materials together with timeframe. This enabled us to ensure variations were fair, could approved quickly and at the same time consider impact on the build programme.
The contractor didn’t provide a build programme so we took the lead and kept it updated. This was important for the contractors planning but also client decision making. During our weekly site visits we met with the client to discuss any variations raised and how the programme was going. These steps often get missed on projects where there is no independent Project Management oversight with variations often being raised after the work is complete.
Independent Project Management & Client Assurance
The key factor for our clients appointing us was twofold. Ensure the project was delivered on time and provide clear and unbiased information exchange between contractor and them as clients. Having someone independent enabled swift decision making while leaving the contractor to push on with the work.
Outcome
The clients had cost control all the way through, had full oversight on the programme and could leave any chasing/issues/decisions to be communicated via us. This enabled them to focus on their responsibilities and make decisions quickly with well informed information.
Building Project Management Services in Surrey
Minniedale Projects provides independent building project management and contract administration services across Sussex, Surrey and Hampshire, supporting commercial and residential projects from planning through to completion.
If you are planning a refurbishment, change-of-use development, or commercial fit-out and require an experienced Building Project Manager or Contract Administrator, contact Minniedale Projects to discuss your project.
Learn more about our construction project management services.
