What Does a General Contractor Do?

Headwaters Construction Inc. - What does a general contractor do?

Headwaters Construction Inc. - What does a general contractor do?You may be considering hiring a general contractor if you are planning a major renovation of your home or commercial property. If you are in doubt regarding how to go about the process of selecting a general contractor, or you are even doubtful about the necessity of this professional, this article will help you get some answers to your questions.

Who Is a General Contractor?

A general contractor is a professional who takes full control of a construction project. A general contractor could be a company, such as Headwaters Construction Inc., or it can be an individual.

If your project is a major one and you are unable to take on some of the tasks, it may be worthwhile to hire a local contractor. Whether you hire a professional or a company, they will be responsible for hiring labor, ensuring that the necessary approved plans are in place, and every other aspect of the project is in order.

What Are the Roles of a General Contractor?

While the specific roles or tasks of a general contractor could vary from one project to another, Sacramento construction company experts reveal that those tasks normally include many of the following;

  • Procures all the materials that are required for the execution of the project.
  • Provides or hires all the labor required to complete the project.
  • Provides all the tools, vehicles, and equipment needed for the construction project.
  • Hires all the subcontractors that are deemed necessary for the work of the project.
  • Makes sure that all the work done is of the required quality and it is done within the timelines set for the project.
  • Monitors project cash flows, timelines, and payments.
  • Keeps all the records of the project.
  • Takes responsibility for ensuring that safety protocols and systems are upheld during the execution of the construction project.

How Does One Become a General Contractor?

There may be no specific education requirements that one must have to become a general contractor, but professionals at a leading Sacramento construction company explain that one needs to have a combination of experience, training, and education for them to execute their duties competently.

Some jurisdiction has requirements that general contractors must meet to be licensed. For example, some states may require these professionals to pass a written exam before they are allowed to work as general contractors. It is therefore advisable for you to cross-check and find out whether your area has any formal requirements that general contractors must meet.

Can I Manage My Own Project?

You can act as a general contractor during the execution of your renovation or construction project. However, you must meet all the requirements expected for one to become a general contractor in your area.

Being a general contractor yourself will allow you to save some money on the project. To benefit, you’ll need to plan the project and hire subcontractors where necessary. Headwaters Construction Inc. suggests that you hire a professional to manage your project because it can save you from paying for your mistakes down the road.

What Are the Advantages of Hiring a General Contractor?

When you hire a general contractor, you don’t have to worry about anything since this professional will be in charge of every aspect of your construction or renovation project.

You also have the liberty to negotiate with the general contractor on the details of the project as well as the costs associated with the project.

Headwaters Construction Inc. experts also say that you are safer if you hire a general contractor because they are insured, licensed and has lots of experience. This works in your favor because you have some recourse if anything goes wrong. 

What Are the Cons of Working With a General Contractor?

One of the biggest drawbacks of working with a general contractor is that they could be expensive if your renovation or construction project is small.

The general contractor doesn’t have the expertise to execute all the aspects of the project, so this individual or company will end up hiring subcontractors, and you will foot the tab.

When you hire a general contractor, you have no say regarding the details of how the work is done if you provided specifications and handed over authority to the general contractor.

How Does a General Contractor Differ from a Subcontractor?

While you directly hire the general contractor, the subcontractor is hired by and reports directly to the general contractor. This means that you, the project owner, has no say regarding who is hired as a subcontractor.

Additionally, a subcontractor’s competence is in a narrow field, and this individual or company only execute that aspect of the work. For example, one subcontractor may be hired by a general contractor in Sacramento to do the plumbing while another subcontractor will come in to do all the electrical work on the project. The general contractor will oversee all these subcontractors.

However, since subcontractors are generally more affordable than general contractors, it is less costly for you to hire and work with them directly instead of going through a general contractor.

The options are for you to either hire a local contractor or opt for subcontractors to work directly under you during the execution of your construction or renovation project. Assess your needs and abilities and then make an appropriate decision regarding which of these professionals is most suitable for your needs.

What Is Tilt-Up Construction?

What is tilt-up construction - Headwaters Construction Inc.

What is tilt-up construction - Headwaters Construction Inc.Don’t imagine that the world of construction has gone crazy if you observe buildings “going up in weeks.” Chances are those swiftly constructed buildings are benefiting from a style of construction called “tilt-up” construction. But what exactly is tilt-up, how recent is it, and how does it compare with other construction methods? Headwaters Construction Inc., a leading Sacramento construction company, gives you the answers to all those questions, and more.

What Exactly is Tilt-Up Construction?

Tilt-up construction refers to a construction method in which the walls of a building are precast horizontally. Tilt construction consists of lifting equipment using a crane, which hoists the panels into their position at the building site.

Headwaters development experts explain that a slab that will form the floor of the building is first completed before the precast walls are lifted into position around that slab. After that, the Sacramento construction company connects the adjacent wall panels and seals the joints between them so that the structure is weathertight.

The sides of the tilt-up panels facing outward are a “blank canvas.” The interior and exterior walls can be used in any desired way.

How Are the Tilt-Up Panels Made?

As is the case with other concreting projects, forms are made horizontally. Rebar is cut to the size of the tilt-up panels that the Headwaters building and contracting firm has been contracted to make. Premix concrete is then poured either directly from the truck’s chute or by use of a concrete pump before the panels are troweled and cured. These panels can be piled on top of each other to optimize space.

A Brief History of Tilt-Up Construction

Tilt-up construction has been around for nearly a century. For example, the barns of decades ago were lifted using the tilt-up method.

The construction boom after World War II made the popularity of this method to skyrocket since there was a shortage of labor. The recent advances in computer-aided design, as well as strides inaccurate project estimation, have made tilt-up construction almost a no-brainer for the projects where it can be used.

Is Tilt-Up Construction Catered for in Existing Building Codes?

Sacramento tilt-up construction is covered in the reinforced concrete section of the International Building Code (IBC). The Tilt-Up Construction Association (TCA) also has design guides which licensed structural engineers can refer to when designing buildings of different dimensions. You should, therefore, have no worries that your building will not be built to any existing building code.

Can Tilt-Up Construction Be Used to Build a Single-Family Home?

The advances in computer-aided design referred to earlier also mean that the greater design flexibility now allows structural engineers to design structures as small as single-family homes without making them look like a big box. Curved panels and other design features for your small home are possible with tilt-up construction.

Gilmore Heating, Air, and Plumbing, who offers residential ac services in Placerville, adds that the availability of smaller cranes has eased the task of using tilt-up construction to build single-family homes. Previously, it was too expensive and sometimes impossible to get a large crane onto a small lot in order to lift the panels into position.

How Are Doors and Other Building Openings Catered For?

You don’t have to cut openings for windows, doors or other uses after the tilt-up walls have been lifted into position. These features are built into the panels right from the design stage of your home or commercial building. In fact, provisions are made in the tilt-up panels for all electrical, plumbing and other building systems.

What Are the Alternatives to Tilt-Up Construction?

The Sacramento construction company that you hire can choose from a number of construction methods aside from tilt-up construction. These include;

  • Steel frame construction. This construction method is ideal for high-rise buildings. However, it involves a time-consuming, multi-step process.
  • Precast concrete construction. In this method, concrete walls are precast at an offsite location (a concrete manufacturing facility), and the completed panels are transported to the construction site. Standardization of the panels is possible, just as is the case with tilt-up panels. The only downside is the added complexity and cost of transporting the large and heavy panels to the construction site.
  • Wood frame construction. This is an alternative to steel frame construction, but this option makes a building vulnerable to fire and insect attacks.

As you can see, many options are available if you are considering putting up a new structure. Let our experts at Headwaters Construction, Inc. discuss all the available options, and if tilt-up construction is ideal for your project, then the details of the project will be presented to you by our competent team.