Island Construction
The key projects players necessary for the successful completion of this construction include the owner, architect/designer, prime contractor, operator, and society. The roles of each player are explained as follows;
The Owner owns the real estate and any development that takes place on it. He is responsible for assembling the construction team consisting of the players mentioned above, and then financing the work conducted by these players. He retains the ultimate authority to approve or disapprove their work based on mutual contractual terms. There are several ways the owner may request that the project be delivered, but giving the nature and location of this project, the recommended delivery method should be Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR). This delivery method allows the owner to rely on a knowledgeable construction manager to provide project management expertise. This is advantageous to the owner, because he has limited knowledge about the construction market on the island and so hiring a local construction manager would mitigate this lack of knowledge. The owner should also consider properly vetting any legal concerns pertaining to construction on the island. Historically, the Caribbean region has experienced precarious situations arising from disputed transfers of land ownership and titles. Prior to investing sizable amounts of money into the island, it may be wise to hire a local law firm to confirm their will be no challenges to his rightful ownership.
The Architect/Designer or design team is responsible for transmitting the owner’s vision for the construction into plans and specifications that can be read and interpreted by the contractor and then built out. In this case, the design team may be viewed as a bridge between the owner and the contractor. To perform their role adequately, the design team needs to be qualified enough to make use of skills, education and experience in conducting analysis of existing conditions on the job site, in order to determine the best design that meets or exceeds the owner’s vision, while keeping costs within the proposed budget. The owner should communicate this proposed budget to the design team early in the design phase, to provide them with a clear view of the project’s playing field. The design team should aim for a sustainable design with limited negative impacts on the environment, and optimizes the health and comfort of building occupants, thereby improving building performance. The project should reduce consumption of non_renewable resources, minimize waste, and create healthy productive environments. The owner should ensure that the design team uses the appropriate unit system, which would be metric for a Dutch colony, to properly communicate dimensions to the contractor. Another gap could be addressed by the incorporation of local building codes and materials when developing the design. If a U.S. firm is selected to perform the design the owner may request that a member of the design team fly out to the island and maintain a presence there throughout the construction phase, so that any questions that arises may be addressed as quickly as possible. Alternatively it may be beneficial for the owner to pursue design services via a local firm, if a qualified firm is present. Utilizing a local firm would provide close proximity to the project site, better understanding of local construction means and methods, and better inclusion of locally available materials which would reduce overall logistics costs. Another gap that needs to be addressed stems from the limited preferences provided by the owner, meaning that the design team would have to make reasonable provisions for plumbing, sewage, ventilation and pest control. As this is an island all utility demands for the house will need to be generated or found on the island. This lack of public utility service will be a large factor in determining the systems which are installed in the facility. A good example would be power generation versus installation and operation of a HVAC system. The amount of power which could be generated through solar and/or wind may not be enough to support the installation of a full HVAC system. Ultimately the design team will need to propose to the owner what combination of utilities and then the subsequent systems that may be included in the design.
The Professional Construction Manager (PCM) is critical to the success of the project. The PCM would act as the principal point of contact for the owner and would handle project management activities on the owner’s behalf. It is important that the owner seek out a trustworthy PCM with experience and knowledge about the local market within the island’s proximity. The objectives of the PCM include ensuring that the project is delivered in time, within budget and at an acceptable standard. Given that the PCM is responsible for managing the project’s schedule, close collaboration with the design team is beneficial to fill any potential phasing gaps. The PCM should advise the design team about suitable phasing plans based on experience, so that it may be incorporated early in the design. The PCM is also responsible for maintaining the project’s budget, so ensuring that the design team incorporates local materials in the design is an important cost-saving measure.
The contractor is responsible for actualizing the project. All construction activities are conducted by the contractor based on plans and specifications provided by the design team. It is recommended that the contractor be incentivized to employ time and cost saving techniques, while maintaining the project’s quality at an acceptable level. The contractor is also responsible for understanding that the construction is to take place in a colony administered by the Dutch State, and so should ensure compliance with all applicable statutes and codes. Although safety is a shared responsibility amongst all parties, while the construction is ongoing, the prime contractor assumes paramount responsibility for all its sub-contractors and workers. The construction site is on an uninhabited sub-tropical island which presents countless safety challenges. Safety issues include diseases such as yellow fever and malaria from insects, deadly bites from poisonous snakes, cholera or dysentery from the consumption of contaminated water, food poisoning or diarrhea from contaminated food, and a host of construction related injuries. These safety issues are magnified by the fact that the construction is in a remote location lacking timely medical support. The owner may need to consider working with the contractor to provide an onsite medical station to support the workers should an emergency arise. As mentioned earlier, the construction site lies in a Dutch colony, which may have different worker compensation regulations from that of the United States, so the contractor would need to take this into consideration and communicate it with the owner. A significant gap which must be addressed between the owner and contractor is the logistic and schedule of the construction. As the construction location is an uninhabited island all material, labor, equipment, tools, and temporary facilities will need to be brought to the island. The contractor must be able to understand these issues and present a plan to address them. To aid the influx of deliveries to the island, it may be prudent to construct a deep water dock in the early stages of the project. Further logistical concerns would be the availability of the labor force, as the project island location is 20 miles from the nearest mainland port, the daily transportation of labor will need to be addressed. The contractor can propose to house personnel on the island or transport daily, however a plan must be in place and discussed.
Building operators serve many functions. They ensure that the house’s mechanical, electrical equipment, and plumbing systems are running efficiently. Maintenance is very important, otherwise, machines and equipment may breakdown and cause unsafe conditions. They also may assist in making repairs to the house’s equipment, inspecting equipment both inside and outside of the house. If they are unable to perform repairs, it is their duty to find someone who can or make arrangements for replacement with the owner. Building operators need to ensure service contracts are enforced, service levels are achieved, and contractors are adequately supervised when on site. For safety issues, building operators are responsible for inspecting and testing fire protection systems for proper operation, at regular intervals, to ensure safety requirements are met. The owner needs to make provisions for security on the island to provide both personnel and materiel support.
The society has limited input in this project because the construction site is on a private and uninhabited island, the only society on the island would be those involved in the project. The owner may choose to inform the surrounding community about the upcoming project, but is not obligated to solicit their opinion on whether to proceed or not to proceed with the project. The owner may also choose to advertise to potential buyers and request their input in the design. So long as the owner, designer, PCM and prime contractor adhere to the statutes and codes of the Dutch state, all should go well.