By Vaughn Prost
info@prostarchive.space
If you’ve heard the concept of Value Engineering talked about with regard to building projects and construction plans, it might sound like a foreign idea. But Value Engineering (VE) is central to how Prost Builders does business and interacts with clients/owners.
One recent example, among many, of how Prost Builders has proven the concept of VE was a major building project at Jefferson Middle School in Columbia. Prost saved the Columbia Public School District over $300,000 when the designed steel bar joists and metal deck system was going to delay the construction for five months due to steel supply issues. In response to that schedule demand, Prost value-engineered a double-tee, pre-stressed concrete roof system for the new gymnasium roof system to save the school three months’ time on the schedule — and save over $300,000.
What is Value Engineering?
The construction contractor has the best knowledge of today’s pricing and supply chain issues.
The most money can be saved, and the schedule controlled early in the design process, when Value Engineering (VE) is most effectively used. VE is a deliberate, disciplined methodology to look at all building systems to deliver the best possible value for initial and long-term project investment.
There are six stages of VE:
Information gathering from plans, specifications, and owner requirements.
Brainstorming VE ideas.
Evaluating cost and schedule ideas.
Developing plans to implement VE ideas.
Presentation of VE to client.
Implementation of VE if approved.
VE is beneficial to the project owner because it uses these five key principles:
Optimizes efficiency: By adopting VE in the building’s planning and design phases when the contractor is engaged, a more accurate project schedule and cost is determined in the preconstruction phase. This can help the owner save money and time. VE finalizes the cost/time schedule at the earliest stage, so that there are minimal design changes that add extra time and cost to the project.
Function-focused: The VE team can find alternative materials or design concepts that provide better function at a lower cost to maximize project function and quality.
Can lower project cost: The VE team can propose these lower-cost alternatives (without compromising the client’s functional and value goals for the building): Architectural design, construction materials (such as energy-efficient options), construction methods (including streamlined workflows), efficient staffing structures, and reduce long-term maintenance costs.
Supports creativity: Viable VE proposals result from creative brainstorming to provide as many alternate solutions as possible to deliver the required function cost-effectively to the owner.
Multidisciplinary effort: The team of experts, from engineers to architects to contractors, actively participate in the creative design, analysis, evaluation, and development processes. Each team member of the VE team has a proper grasp of the client’s vision for the project and is aware of the original project specifications and use their experience to enable the project owner to optimize function, quality, and cost across all project areas.
In short, Value Engineering is a systematic approach to analyze the project building systems individually and determine better alternatives to achieving maximum return on time and money invested, and to find the best value for the owner’s projects. The main goal of VE is project improvement in design, function, schedule attainment, and reduced long-term operation and maintenance costs for the owner.
