Construction Administration
Keeping construction aligned with the design you approved
Construction brings questions, changes, and field conditions that the design team may need to address. Colman Engineering provides construction administration for projects across Virginia, staying involved during construction to help the built result reflect the approved design. We answer contractor questions, review submittals, and help resolve the issues that come up in the field.
Benefits
Construction Administration
Continuity from design to dirt
The team that designed your project stays engaged as it's built. That continuity helps the field work reflect the design intent rather than drifting from it.
Faster answers in the field
Responsive engineering support helps answer field questions quickly and reduce avoidable delays and misunderstandings.
Problems caught early
Staying involved lets us spot issues before they become expensive to fix. Addressing them in real time protects both budget and schedule.
Engineering support through the construction phase
Our construction-phase involvement is scoped to your project by agreement and can span the full arc of construction. Before bidding, we can attend the pre-bid meeting and bid opening, issue addenda and clarifications, and provide bid award and bid analysis support. We issue construction plans that integrate any accepted addenda or value engineering, respond to requests for information (RFIs), and revise plans as needed to resolve issues that arise in the field. We review and approve shop drawings, submittals, and mockups, coordinate with the survey team on stakeout plans, and handle SWPPP administration. We participate in regular meetings as requested and perform site visits to verify progress milestones, including the substantial completion and final completion visits. The level of involvement is set with you rather than fixed to a single package.
Use Cases
Construction administration matters most when keeping the build true to the design is important to you.
01
Your project is heading into construction
Design is complete and building is about to begin. Construction administration keeps your engineer engaged through the build.
02
The project is complex or high-stakes
The site is complicated or the margin for error is small. Ongoing engineering involvement helps manage that risk.
03
You want a single point of continuity
You'd rather not hand off to a disconnected party during construction. Keeping your design engineer involved provides that continuity.
Tips and FAQs
The scope of construction administration is flexible and set by agreement, ranging from bid-phase support through progress meetings, RFIs, submittal review, and substantial and final completion visits. It's a professional service supporting the design intent, not on-site supervision of means and methods, which remain the contractor's responsibility. Clarifying the level of involvement up front helps everyone share the same expectations once construction is underway.
Is construction administration the same as inspection?
Not exactly. It's engineering support during construction, submittal review, responding to questions, periodic observation, rather than continuous on-site inspection or supervision of the contractor's methods.
What activities does construction administration typically include?
It varies by agreement, but can include attending the pre-bid meeting and bid opening, issuing addenda and construction plans, responding to RFIs, reviewing and approving shop drawings and submittals, coordinating stakeout with the survey team, administering the SWPPP, and performing site visits for milestones like substantial and final completion.
How much involvement do I need?
It depends on the project's complexity and your comfort level. We can scope anything from on-call support to regular site observations.
Who's responsible for the contractor's work?
The contractor remains responsible for means, methods, and the quality of their work. Our role is to support the design intent and help resolve issues that arise.
