Preconstruction Service
Preconstruction Services is a critical part of the entire construction process. The earlier the planning begins, the more opportunities there are for time and budget savings.
Partnering:
Cullen begins every project with a Partnering Meeting. Our national, award-winning Partnering establishes guidelines of communication and your goals for the project that the entire team agrees upon and together will accomplish.
Budgeting Philosophy:
Cullen’s budgeting philosophy lies in the Tradition of our culture. Budgeting for a project has a set of best practices we follow to ensure accuracy—the only element that distinguishes the winners from the losers in construction. We never stop evolving our practices with new technologies and environmental practices to stay competitive in the negotiated and bid markets.
Estimating Approach:
Our estimating approach reflects the maximum level of detail known about any component of the project. We create estimates using historical data to predict a building’s ultimate content in advance of completed construction drawings. Our estimating process combines information from past projects and our estimating data base. This estimate will serve as the baseline estimate that coincides with your budget to ensure your project stays in budget. Other aspects of estimating include: constructability analysis, life-cycle cost analysis, and value engineering.
Preconstruction Case Study:
An Accurate Cost Estimate Prevents Over-Budget Bid Results so the Owner can Incorporate Additional Scope at No Extra Cost
An excellent example of how Cullen’s Preconstruction Services kept a project within budget and incorporated additional scope is the MRI Remodeling Project at Froedtert & The Medical College of Wisconsin (F&MCW) Cancer Center.
During the Cancer Center build-out project ….Read More.
Bid Package Development:
An important factor in preconstruction services is bidding. Cullen bids 50% of our work, which gives us an advantage over our competition. After the scope of work is defined and approved, Cullen will use bidding software to issue invitations to bid to thousands of subcontractors state wide. This process encourages and procures competitive bids locally and statewide.
Cullen has an open book policy throughout the entire project. When the project is ready to be bid, we invite you to participate on bid day. As the bids come in, our clients will witness how our accurate cost estimates provide bid day results that are 1% of the approved budget.
Read how our bidding saved a school district $124,000! Read More.
Building Information Modeling (BIM)
If utilized on your project, Cullen will work with the architect to refine the documents though our BIM software for review and feedback. This process streamlines the budgeting and design by turning around updated drawings into realistic budgets in days.
Imagine watching a building sprout on your computer screen before any dirt is moved. That’s the idea driving our BIM tool. BIM is the cornerstone of Cullen’s pre-construction service which integrates our cost estimating programs with BIM to create models capturing the three dimensional aspect of a building with both cost and schedule. The use of this tool, together with the knowledge of our in-house expertise in concrete, masonry, and steel, makes Cullen’s pre-construction the best available in our region.
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Dan Swanson
Vice President of Preconstruction Services
Dan’s Bio:
Dan oversees over $300 million in estimating and preconstruction services per year. Projects range from $1,000 to $100 million, all receiving the same attention to detail and accuracy.
His knowledge of LEED and ability to value engineer solutions to bring projects within budget and save owners money through life-cycle cost analysis makes him an expert in his field.
Dan’s Estimating and Preconstruction Experience:
- Commercial Project Experience: Epic Systems Corporation – 5 Corporate Office Buildings, Learning Campus, and Parking Structure
- State of Wisconsin State Office Building Project Experience: Wisconsin State Capitol; Risser Justice Center State Office Building; WHEDA State Office Building DATCP (Tommy Thompson Building) State Office Building.
- State of Wisconsin University Project Experience: UW Hospital & Clinics; UW – Madison Engineering Centers; Camp Randall Stadium; UW-Madison Bio Chemistry Building; UW-Madison Education Building; UW Madison Fredric Ogg Hall; UW-Madison Sterling Hall; UW-Madison School of Human Ecology; UW-LaCrosse Residence Halls; UW-Whitewater Residence Hall
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