 Mon. June 29, 2009
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J.M. Coull introduced this month a signature service designed to manage and reduce risk to building owners undertaking new construction and renovation projects. The proprietary system, known as StartSmart, capitalizes on the firm’s strength in managing the preconstruction phase of a project to generate best-value solutions.
“We looked at our best projects over the past 25 years and realized we had an approach that could help clients reduce their risk while making sure they were getting the most from their design and construction dollars,” said Andrew Coull, president of J.M. Coull, Inc. “We are using it to address a huge concern of building owners who are trying to move forward with projects in this difficult economy.”
StartSmart represents the standardization of the company’s best practices in preconstruction services, said Coull. It focuses on early, accurate information, efficient decision making, and a streamlined design process that encourages creativity while holding the line on costs. On design-build projects, in which J.M. Coull is responsible for complete, turnkey services, the firm accesses the design expertise of one of its architectural partners. When the client has hired an architect separately, J.M. Coull works with the team to apply the StartSmart principles to the initial phases of the project.
“Now, more than ever, owners need to make sure they achieve the best possible outcome from their construction projects,” said Coull. This means getting the best value for their money and removing financial risk in an inherently risky business. Our StartSmart program has been proven to do both.”
StartSmart is also useful in developing environmentally sustainable solutions for projects because of its focus on the early phases of the process, according to Coull, who is accredited through the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program of the U.S. Green Building Council.
Incorporating sustainable features into projects is entirely in keeping with the mission of StartSmart, according to Tom Dube, vice president for preconstruction and also a LEED accredited professional. While the LEED program (a rating system for varying levels of certification) has been accused of adding cost to a project, the efficiencies that are built into improved systems and materials often have quick paybacks that offset initial expense. |
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