Looking back to Chapter 5’s discussion of constructability, what suggestions might a GC make to the structural engineer with respect to the structural steel drawings?

Data from chapter 5

One important contribution contractor make during the preconstruction phase is to review progress drawings from the design team and comment and make suggestions regarding their ‘constructability’. This is not to say that the design team’s documents are not constructible, but rather, can they become more constructible or easier to build? Constructability analysis involves reviewing the proposed design for its impact on the cost and ease of construction. These proposals are often as simple as changing a welded structural steel connection to bolted, which can be assembled in the field faster and safer or having steel gusset plates welded on to the columns in the fabrication shop rather than in the field, which is also safer and ensures better quality control. An example with wood framing is to change dimensional lumber to engineered lumber, which will be straighter and not shrink. A popular change with wood-framed mixed-use development apartment buildings today is to have the wall and floor systems ‘panelized’ and built in a fabrication shop, which improves quality and enhances the schedule. These prefab panels are then flown in with a tower crane and connected with fewer field connections. Many of these types of changes save cost but not all. Some constructability changes may actually increase cost, but improve the schedule, quality, safety, energy efficiency, and/or long-term building maintainability. Along these same lines, the construction team acts as another set of eyes and helps edit or QC the drawings. The GC can help mitigate potential subcontractor change order opportunities while reviewing progress drawings. Most designers are not keen on contractors finding errors in the drawings during the construction process and drafting requests for information (RFIs) followed by change order proposals (COPs), but they are often appreciative of the GC when errors are corrected before the documents have been let to subcontractor bids.