New construction is an exciting endeavor for your church. You can finally expand your space to fulfill your ministry vision! However, before starting on a building project, it is crucial to decide which construction method you want to follow — traditional or design-build.
Churches by Daniels is a church design-builder who believes this streamlined process is the most cost-effective, efficient, and timely way to design and build a church. We’ve shared our expert knowledge about the design-build process below to help you decide for yourself if this system is the right avenue for your church and ministry.
Differences Between the Design-Build Process and Traditional Design-Bid-Build
The design-build process, also known as “design-construct” or “single responsibility,” is a system of contracting where one entity manages the architecture, engineering, and construction all under one contract. Here is how this differs from the traditional process:
Traditional
With the traditional building process, also called the “design-bid-build” process, the business owner (that’s you!) is required to find, interview, and hire an architect, engineer, and construction manager, who then hires subcontractors and suppliers. With this method, the business owner acts as a “go-between” and is left with the burden of communication and coordination between these separate entities.
Churches find that the traditional building process makes it more challenging to ensure the team is communicating regularly and staying within the confines of their budget and vision.
Design-Build
With the design-build process, the architect, engineer, and builder belong to one company, so the business owner is only responsible for hiring one entity. Churches receive an all-in-one experience that eases the burden of overseeing the project, promotes a more organized team effort, streamlines communication, and keeps the project within the specified budget.
The design-build process provides a more accurate picture of project costs upfront and makes it easier to stay within your budget, timeline, and vision for the project.
Valuable Benefits of the Design-Build Process
Churches love that the design-build process saves them time, money, and hassles compared to the design-bid-build method. These are a few of the most attractive benefits of choosing a design-build company for your church construction project:
- Accountability — The project falls under one single source of responsibility (the design-builder), making it easier to solve problems and reduce finger-pointing.
- Communication — Streamlined communication and coordination ensure everyone is on the same page, improving the overall quality of the project.
- Cost-Effectiveness — One company coordinates the design, materials, and labor, leading to significant and proven cost savings.
- Timeliness — By eliminating wasted time communicating between the architect, engineer, and construction team, the project is completed in a much timelier fashion.
- Less Responsibility — The owner is not responsible for coordinating the building project, allowing them to focus on other ministry-building job functions.
- Transparency — The owner has more knowledge about the project’s cost before the project begins, instead of later when it’s too late to back out.
- Teamwork — The design-builder continually reviews the work throughout the process to minimize mistakes and eliminate costly change orders.
Straightforward Steps in the Design-Build Process
The design-build process is much more straightforward than the design-bid-build method. Here are the simple steps you can follow for hassle-free construction.
- Step #1 — Interview and hire a design-build contractor to manage your building project.
- Step #2 — Collaborate with the design-builder to create a project plan according to your vision, budget, and timeline.
- Step #3 — Allow the team to create a preliminary design for your building.
- Step #4 — Establish the cost, so there will be no surprises after construction starts.
- Step #5 — Finalize the design, and then watch construction begin!
- Step #6 — See your design-build project get completed in less time and with no surprise costs thanks to the collaboration and coordination of a design-build team.
Example of a Design-Build Project: Church on the Move in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma
Church on the Move’s South Broken Arrow campus desperately needed more parking and kids’ classrooms. When they found an available 24,000-square-foot space in a shopping center — they knew it was the perfect opportunity to expand their ministry!
Church on the Move had handled their own construction projects in the past, but this time, they saw the value of investing in the cost-effective, collaborative design-build process with Churches by Daniels. During design, we helped Church on the Move create a multipurpose space that fulfilled their ministry vision while overcoming local zoning compliance.
Church on the Move had a functional, bright, and welcoming facility to enjoy after we finished building in just seven months. We also helped them save on unnecessary costs by reusing functional fixtures, like lighting and plumbing, that were a part of the existing space.
Trust a Nationally Acclaimed Design-Build Team for Your Church Construction Project
If you are exploring options available for a church building project, we hope this information has helped you understand the value of investing in the design-build process with a reputable company like Churches by Daniels.
Churches by Daniels is not here just to make money. We’re a team of believers with a heart for ministry. Since 1980, we’ve been helping pastors build their ministry facilities — and we would love to help you, too, with our expert design-build process! Schedule a consultation today.
