Approximately 80% of SCHAEFER’s contracting projects are executed using the TEAM-BUILD (negotiated) approach rather than BID-BUILD (bidding). We sincerely believe this approach is to the advantage of all parties – architects, designers, engineers, owners, and the contractor. Let us tell you why.

Cost Savings
The TEAM-BUILD approach allows all parties – the architect, designer, engineer, owner, and contractor – to collaborate from the beginning to identify potential “budget busters” before time-consuming and costly construction documents are completed.

Shifts Responsibilty to the Contractor
In a BID-BUILD scenario, most of the responsibility is on the architect, designer, engineer and owner to guarantee that bid documents, plans, and specs are complete and accurate. In TEAM-BUILD, much of the responsibility shifts to the contractor, including completeness of drawings, site requirements, overall budget, contract management and availability of materials.

Accurate Budget Setting
The BID-BUILD process does not produce an apples-to-apples comparison. That’s because many contractors will bid exactly to the plans provided, despite having identified missing elements, while others include costs for necessary elements that may not be represented in the plans. In the TEAM-BUILD approach, budgets are created in concert with plans, so they reflect actual, true costs.

Full Disclosure
Full-disclosure on every project is standard practice for us. We have nothing to hide. As part of the TEAM-BUILD budget process, we provide an itemized breakdown of all costs involved in your project – including our fee!

Strong Teams
The TEAM-BUILD approach builds trust from the beginning, encouraging all parties to work together to make scheduling, executing, and pricing goals a reality.