Why contractor?

Construction projects are notoriously difficult. There are many different trades and professional disciplines required to work together in order to erect whatever structure is being made. To have this work there needs to be one person responsible for orchestrating all these different parts. That’s what a general contractor is in construction project management.

A general contractor (GC) is a construction professional who provides all the services that a project owner needs to deliver the project successfully. A general contractor can be an individual or a company, but either way they’re the one who manages the day-to-day operations at the jobsite. They build the building.

While the general contractor will usually have a project manager, construction superintendent and even their own laborers and carpenters working under them, they also almost always hire subcontractors to do the majority of the work. In that capacity, the general contractor is sort of the project manager to those subcontractors and bridges the communications between them and the project owner, architect and engineer.

In terms of payment, general contractors tend to work with the project owner under a lump sum or stipulated sum contract. Therefore, the general contractor will be invited to bid on the job by the project owner. This process includes the general contractor reviewing and analyzing the drawings, scope of work and requirements of the project. They will collect their own quotes from subcontractors, add their overhead costs and submit a quote to the project owner.

If the owner accepts the bid, the general contractor is contracted to deliver the project as agreed for the price quoted. Therefore, any savings is more profit for the general contractor.