Construction Manager Pro

An Energy Recovery Ventilator (ERV) can significantly reduce energy costs for a small commercial building in the southern United States by improving the efficiency of the HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) system. Here are several ways an ERV achieves this:   # 1 Heat Exchange Efficiency ERVs transfer heat between incoming and outgoing air streams. In warm climates, they can cool incoming fresh air by transferring the heat to the outgoing stale air, reducing the load on the air conditioning system. This process helps maintain indoor comfort without requiring as much energy for cooling.   #2 Humidity Control In humid southern climates, ERVs also transfer moisture. They can reduce the humidity of incoming air by transferring moisture to the outgoing air, which reduces the need for dehumidification. This leads to lower energy consumption as the HVAC system doesn't have to work as hard to remove excess humidity.   #3 Reduced HVAC Load By pre-conditioning the in...

The Critical path method (CPM) scheduling is a process for building a Construction project schedule and analyzing it to determine the most critical tasks that most affect the scheduled completion date. Let’s look at this example of a custom house that I completed. As you see from the drawing and 3D rendering, the house is 1,800 Square feet, one story and a three car garage. Figure 1 & 2 I start to develop a rough draft of the Schedule. I obtain the activities for the schedule from my construction takeoff and estimate. (Figure 3) The Takeoff is a list of activities that are necessary to complete the project. I feel that it is important that the Project Manager/Estimator of the project be involved in constructing the Schedule. If that is not the case with your company, work closely with the estimator in developing your Schedule. He or she understands the project in a very detailed way.  To determine the durations, I develop this from the construction ...

When you start a construction project, you should start an estimate for the construction work, There are several estimates that you need to be aware of as you continue with your project. Conceptual Stage At this conceptual stage, you should start with some schematic and preliminary drawings of your desired project. You may meet with your Architect or an experienced Design-build Firm that can provide these drawings to you. From there, you want to inquire about the first kind of estimates, For home builders and small commercial projects, you may want to look at a price per square foot. This square foot price would be from the General Contractor or Construction Manager's previous projects. Conceptual Price Estimate Another estimate would be the conceptual price method. A builder or Architect may have historical data that conceptually shows the project.  For Instance, I was involved in building a 25-million-gallon Water treatment plant that produced 25 million gallons of water da...

What are As-Built Drawings In my first job after graduating with a civil engineering degree from Penn State, I oversaw a $5 million Manufacturing Plant on 35 acres.  During construction, we installed a 6” fire water line from the pump building throughout the project to the three main buildings, the Manufacturing building, the warehouse, and the office building. The contract drawings show the fire line to be constructed under the concrete driveways. The drawings did not give a dimension to any of the buildings. So, we installed it directly between the buildings about 20 feet off the manufacturing and the warehouse building. We did not survey in this placement if the fire line. We completed the fire line and then constructed the concrete slab over it. Before we completed the project, we had a water leak in front of the warehouse. We measured 20 feet from the warehouse and saw cut and busted out a 5’ by 5’ section of concrete and dug down expecting to find the water line and the...

Metal Wall Panel Warranty We completed a custom house for a client, and he requested to have maintenance free metal wall panels on the exterior of his  house. He wanted a Wow-type color that would stand out.  He selected the Hawaii Blue from Lehman.  I investigated this color because I was concerned about the fading that may occur. You see in the following photo that his next-door neighbor had fading on his garage, In reviewing the following chart, you will see that bold colors like Colonial Red and Regal Blue have a low SRI number. SRI is the Solor Reflective Index number. These colors absorb the sun's heat and will break down the color pigments.  Whereas the lighter colors will reflect the sun's energy.  In selecting the Hawiian Blue color I investigated the Paint Warranty from Lehman. They indicate a 40-year limited warranty on their painy. And the limited warranty is as follows; They will provide coverage within 30 years and if the p...

Soundproofing your home office On a recent custom house project that we built for a client, he requested that his office be soundproof.  His office would be adjacent to his utility/mechanical room.  The mechanical units in this room would emit the following decibels. Energy Recovery Ventilator ---   26 decibels Air Handler -------------------------   65 decibels Washer/Dryer ----------------------    65 Decibels Hot Water heater ------------------   50 Decibels We designed and constructed the walls between the office and the mechanical room for a rating of 50 STC. STC is Sound Transmission Class.  To achieve this rating, we installed 2 layers of staggered wall board with Green Glue spattered between the boards.  We also installed 3-inch batt insulation in the walls.   We sealed the wall board's bottom and top with a Green Glue Sealant.      All of the electrical outlets in the walls ...

A poorly constructed project is also dangerous during and after the construction of the project.  You need to adhere to quality control on your construction projects .  Here are two examples of building failures due to a poorly constructed project. The Hard Rock Hotel collapse in New Orleans occurred on October 12, 2019, in which 3 people died,  The Champlain Towers South Building collapsed occurred on June 24, 2921, in which 98 people died.  In review of the Hard Rock Hotel Collapse, you will see from this picture that the west side of the building sheared off from the core of the main building.  Hard Rock Hotel    In OSHA's review of the collapsed building, they reviewed the structural drawings and found that the decking spans exceeded the pan decking manufacturer's recommendations for span distances.                      Spans Exceed metal decking requirement OSHA also found that the west side o...

  The Leon County Court House Project. This project was a $25 million GMP (Guarantee Maximum Price) Contract between Leon County, Florida, and the Construction Manager I was working for in the  late 80's. A Dispute arose on this project in the Atrium area of the Courthouse.                                                                   Marble Atrium  As you see in the figure, the 2nd-floor  opening for the Atrium was offset 10’ to the right. All of the other floors were in line with the first floor. That is how it was shown on the structural drawings. The Concrete Trade built the structure by these drawings. What needed to happen was that the concrete floor at the 2 nd floor would have to be saw-cut back so that it would be in alignment with all the other floors. Change Proposal from the Con...

  Did you read the specifications and study the drawings? Are the materials what is specified? Are the masonry units the right size, color, and texture? Check this against the approved sample/ Is the mortar as specified? Are certifications on the masonry available? Do you have the approved sample panel? Sample Panel At the start of the masonry work, inspect the proper layout and horizontal coursing. Layout procedure. Did they conform to the sample panel? Are the joints properly tooled? Joint Design  Is the mortar type correct? Check the specifications/ Type M- Below grade application in contact with earth. Type S-- general Use, severe exposures (1800 psi) Type N-- general use, severe exposures(750psi) Type O-- interior Use(350psi) Type PL & PM are masonry grouts (2500 psi) Has the good face of the masonry been designated? Masonry units must be cut with a masonry saw. Is the masonry cleaned without acid and with brushes? Verify mortar color is provided and approved if requi...