Posted by Everyone enjoys sitting down and watching some HGTV now and then. Some even get inspired to try a DIY construction project to spruce up their homes. Before you pick up the hammer and start renovating, you should become familiar with the ins and outs of the construction process.
Whether you are trying to do a little project at home or want to get into construction as a career, here are the basics you’ll need to know.
Planning Process
Before you start putting up walls and nailing things together, there is a lot of planning that goes into construction. The first basic of construction is to have a solid planning period.
During the planning period, you’ll be able to come up with guides to steer your construction project in the right direction. You may decide to work with an outside firm or contractor during the planning process. Architects are also great to bring on in the beginning. They’ll help you with the design process and do an in-depth analysis of your site to ensure you’re on the right track pre-construction.
Once you have all of your designs done and the planning wrapped up you’re ready to get your project off the ground. The planning stage is also where you can start pre-construction.
Pre-construction is the phase of planning where you’ll finalize the designs. You can start planning out the budget of the project in pre-construction to see what it will realistically take.
When planning your budget, you should always add a little wiggle room. Construction projects tend to go over budget easily. It’s best to have some extra cash set aside. Pre-construction is the part of the planning process that usually decides whether or not you’ll move forward with a construction project.
Sometimes, it isn’t worth it. But other times, preconstruction can give you more confidence in a project than you may have had at the beginning.
Obtaining Permits
Depending on the type of project you are working on, you’ll need to do a little research on permits and zoning. If you are just doing a small renovation on your house, you may not need any permits. You should still check with your town or city as some places may have very strict rules on how building projects can be done.
If you are working on a large-scale project, it is more than likely that you’ll need to obtain building permits. Especially in urban areas or places that are more congested. Large-scale projects include new factories, housing projects, or other buildings that will take a long time or cover a large area.
If you find that you are using concrete on a project you will most likely need a permit. Large construction projects can benefit from using tilt-up concrete methods to make large walls and foundations quickly. Just make sure you have the right permits to do so and you’ll be able to proceed with no issues.
Construction
Now that you have finalized plans and all the permits in place, you’ll be ready to start the construction phase.
The basics of the construction phase include building a frame for your project. If this is a house it will probably be a wooden frame, the bones of the house. When you are in the construction phase, you’ll be bringing in different teams to complete different parts of the process.
Construction tends to work linearly, so one team may have to wait on another one to finish their part of the job before they can get started. Time management and scheduling skills are necessary to keep a construction project on track.
You’ll also have to make sure that shipments of materials come in on time to keep things rolling. Pre-construction planning comes into play during the actual construction. The better the pre-construction process is, the more likely you are to have a smooth construction process.
Post- Construction
Once the project is complete there are still a couple of loose ends to tie up. Post-construction involved returning any rented equipment, cleaning the worksite, and wrapping up with subcontractors. Once you finish post-construction everyone can get ready to move on to their next projects.
Conclusion
The construction involves many different moving parts all happening at once. It can get tricky to keep track of everything. But following the basics of construction can help keep everything on track. Understanding the basics will make every project run smoothly from start to finish.