Mount Holyoke College, Clark University, the University of New Hampshire, Berklee College of Music… Each of these notable institutions of higher education has turned to a design-build solution when it came time to update, upgrade and enhance existing residence hall facilities. They all have chosen Cutler Associates to undertake their projects because Cutler has become known as residence hall renovation specialists.
Whether a turn of the century historic building, an outdated 1950s dorm, or a re-purposed aging hotel, college and university residence halls need to be brought up to code and meet the modernized standards and evolving needs today’s students demand and deserve. But doing so presents a number of challenges; two of the biggest being time and cost constraints.
That’s where design-build excels. An integrated design and construction approach addresses both budgetary and time challenges. The design-build delivery method means a single source for project coordination which maximizes both budget and value. One integrated team means faster delivery, sole responsibility, less risk.
Residence hall renovations come with the added challenge of working on occupied campuses. To minimize the impact on campus activities, many of these projects are undertaken on an abbreviated construction schedule over the 12- or 14-week summer break. Again, the design-build method meets that challenge. Getting the job done right, on such a tight schedule, means that a great deal of very detailed site assessment and planning has to be put in up front – ideally, beginning up to a year in advance. Obtaining board approvals and ensuring purchase and delivery of long lead time materials is critical to the success of these fast-track projects.
With architects and builders under one roof this can be accomplished with greater efficiency and more effectively than otherwise. Coordinating, strategizing, estimating, planning, executing… with design-build it all flows from a single source – and the benefactor: the client.
There is proof that this approach works. Utilizing the design-build delivery method, Cutler has never missed a schedule commitment – and has never come in over budget. Whether for a $7.2 million 15-month historic renovation, a $3.5 million 14-week modernization, or a $9.5 million two-phased renovation and upgrade, the unified design-build process yielded successful projects. A win-win-win: for the client, for the students, and for the builder.
Roderick C. Shaffert, p.e., leed ap is Vice President, Scholastic Division at Cutler Associates of Worcester, Mass.