Robert Lowther
President
In a word, yes. If you are in the process of starting your own practice or perhaps relocating your current practice, the single largest capital expense will be your construction costs. It’s important to note that construction actually starts with the construction plans NOT at the swing of the first hammer.
Without a solid, detailed plans including Mechanical, Plumbing and Electrical you open yourself up to confusion and most assuredly change orders that increase your construction costs.
Why are dental construction plans so important?
In most instances, your construction contract will be what is called a “Stipulated Sum Agreement” (we’ll cover those in future blog post). As such, the defined scope of work will be your construction plans. So, in order to ensure your building permit issuance is smooth and that your builder stays within budget and scheduling, a detailed set of dental construction plans for your new start or relocating practice is critical to make that happen. It’s also the best way to ensure your vision for your new space becomes a reality.
Here is a short list of the plan sheets that should be included in a complete set of plans:
- Cover Sheet (this is typically required by most municipalities and provides key information to the building department, zoning and building inspectors).
- Project General Notes
- Accessibility (ADA)
- Site Plan and Life Safety Plan
- Demolition Plan
- Dimensioned Floor Plan
- Finish Plan
- Elevations (of cabinetry, interior features)
- Reflective Ceiling Plan
- Trenching Plan
- Keynote Plan
- Data/Low Voltage and Audio Plan
- Mechanical Plans (exhaust fans, HVAC equipment)
- Mechanical Equipment and Schedule Plans
- Electrical Plans, Symbols and Abbreviations as well as General Notes
- Plumbing Plans (i.e., Water Plan, Sanitary Plan, Vacuum and Air Plan, Med-Gas if used, Plumbing Schedule, details and Isometrics, Riser Diagrams).
All of the correlating scope of work should be cross referenced between each sheet/pan and coordinated for accuracy. This goes a long way to ensuring your vision becomes a reality and that everyone remains on the same page. It also goes a long way in settling disputes on the jobsite as well.
Making sure that your vision is encapsulated and detailed will ensure that your builder will know exactly what you want and how you want it to be.
They also ensure that the building department and construction team know what the expectations are.
Most savvy Landlords will require you to obtain a building permit as part of your responsibility. Additionally, the Landlord will likely require that you provide your plans to them for review and approval PRIOR to starting work. Pro Tip: Submit your signed/sealed plans to the LL and the Building Department at the same time. That way you are that much further along in the building department review process. Most changes requested by Landlords are very minor and don’t typically impact the code review.
If the Landlord does require changes, be sure to have the architect or Owner’s Representative relay those to the builders and if needed to the building department.
Once the building permit is issued, make sure the a full set of the approved plans with the city/municipality stamps are printed and placed on the jobsite. The builder should note on those plans any deviations or changes from the approved scope of work, so that you will have what is called the “as-built” plans.
Do you really need a licensed architect and engineers to do your construction plans?
In a word, yes, there are no assurances that the building department review of your plans will catch any and all potential issues with your plans. I know, doesn’t sound right does it? By using a properly licensed architect to review, sign and seal your plans as well as licensed engineers (Mechanical and Electrical), you will save yourself a lot of challenges.
While there are builders out there that offer a “design – build” approach, we do not recommend it. Reason being, if the architect and engineers work for the builder, you lose a critical separation. Most contracts have an Initial Decision Maker, that person is usually the Architect. If they aren’t paid by you, you lose that advocacy.
By having an established design team separate from the builder, you ensure that your vision is captured more completely in the plans. Also, make sure that everything is in writing. Any working sessions with the design team should have minutes published and distributed to everyone on the team to document each decision point throughout the process. If something isn’t right, you’ll be able to trace it back to who broke the chain of implementation.
By having an established design team separate from the builder, you ensure that your vision is captured more completely in the plans. Also, make sure that everything is in writing. Any working sessions with the design team should have minutes published and distributed to everyone on the team to document each decision point throughout the process. If something isn’t right, you’ll be able to trace it back to who broke the chain of implementation.
Think of your construction plans as part of your success plan. If you have a solid set of construction plans it will go a long way in keeping your project on track. And as often happens, the builder and their sub-contractors will not be able to take advantage of what you don’t know.
