Ironwood’s General Contracting Services

General contractors work directly with the building owner and design team to bring a construction project to completion. The general contractor (GC) on a project is responsible for overseeing the construction job site’s day-to-day functions, effectively communicating with the project team, and managing vendors, trades and budget throughout the course of a construction project. 

A general contractor’s primary priority is safely leading a construction site to project completion and helping the client to achieve success. Safely leading a construction site to completion directly depends on the GC’s ability to manage subcontractors, meet client goals, effectively communicate with project teams, and seamlessly turn the building over to the client. 

Managing Subcontractors

Upon gaining an in-depth understanding of the construction project from drawings and construction site surveys, the GC develops a construction bid for the project. The clarity in the bid details, scope of work, and accuracy of material needs directly affect the entire project team’s bottom line. The GC manages the bid process to source all project needs, works diligently to secure competitive pricing on all bid items, and generally relies on strong relationships with skilled subcontractors. In some cases, the GC may self-perform work on the job, ultimately benefiting the client by bypassing markups.

Meeting Client Goals

During the course of a construction project, there are many complexities to manage in order to maintain schedule, budget and design intent. The job site is constantly evolving as the project progresses through phases, and it is imperative that the GC be able to accommodate for unforeseen changes to the scope of work or project design. When working as a general contractor on a renovation project, unforeseen changes can be common, and it is important for a GC to manage these changes without affecting the overall project goal. 

Communicating Project Needs to all Parties

In a typical construction project, the owner holds separate contracts with the design team and the construction team. The general contractor must effectively communicate project progress to both of these teams while also managing the on-site subcontractors. The GC leverages an extensive on-site project management team to effectively communicate work progress, manage subcontractors, instill safety procedures, and address any questions or concerns on site. The overall project success hinges on the ability of the GC to quickly communicate project information to all parties to maintain project progress. 

Design/Build is where one entity, the design-builder, enters into a single contract with the owner to provide both design and construction services. In all other project delivery systems, there are separate contracts for design and construction. The single contract for both design and construction is the design/build distinction.

Building Turnover and Post-Construction

The general contractor’s responsibilities extend past the construction phase of the project. When a project is complete there is an extensive amount of education on the operation and mechanics of the new facility as well as the completion of punch list items to ensure finished quality. Education includes detailed building tours, training, and maintenance & operation manuals. Additionally, the GC may also manage the delivery of furniture, furnishing and equipment installation. 

Finally, the general contractor secures final waivers of lien and certificates to fully turn the project over to the client for building occupancy. 

Ironwood Commercial Builders Inc. 

Ironwood is a commercial general contractor certified as an 8(a) Contractor and Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB). Ironwood has extensive experience as a general contractor on a variety of projects, ranging from pavement preservation to military barrack restoration, office updates, and design-build commercial tenant improvements. Specializing in federal government construction, Ironwood’s vast portfolio of federal projects positions the firm as an ideal partner for government projects. 

Self-performing several facets of construction, such as light gauge metal framing and drywall, weather barrier, fireproofing, lath and plaster, and custom interior Venetian and historical plaster, allows the Ironwood team to competitively price projects to exceed client goals.