Design and Build Large Pergola at Local High School

Project Requirements and Evaluation Criteria

Kevin Barry, the chief executive of Perfect Pergolas, was requested by the principal of the local high school, Mr Archibald, to provide a quote to design and build a large pergola on the school oval. Kevin asked Mr Archibald what size and type of pergola he needed, when he wanted work to commence, and when he wanted it completed.

Mr Archibald told him that he required a large pergola, big enough to shade the school orchestra when playing outdoor events/concerts, and also to enable outdoor meetings. 

He also specified that the pergola must have power, water and adjustable shades or blinds. He requested that the pergola be made of high quality materials, because he had been advised that poor materials could cost the school dearly over the years in repairs. Mr Archibald wanted work to commence in 6 weeks’ time, the beginning of the school summer holidays, and would like the job completed no more than 3 weeks after that so that he could get the required sound system installed prior to the new school year.

Mr Archibald asked Kevin to come up with a design and quote to build the pergola, and to present them to him at a meeting at the school in two weeks’ time. He told Kevin that he was obtaining three quotes from three different builders, and that he would select his preferred builder based on four key criteria. These were quality, the ability to start and – in particular - finish on time, and cost.

Mr Archibald said he wanted to spend no more than $80,000 on the pergola, as there were additional expenses associated with it before it was ready for the orchestra, but would consider alternate proposals that were a little higher in price if they could exceed his minimum evaluation criteria.

As soon as Kevin hung up the phone began to consider the different activities required to win the job and complete the project. Having built many pergolas before, he was confident he had the project management skills to build a pergola that met Mr Archibald’s criteria.

First of all, Kevin knew he would have to come up with a winning design, so he would need to put his designer, Marilyn, on the job of coming up with some innovative designs. Kevin would also have to source high quality building materials, to give him an advantage in meeting Mr Archibald’s evaluation criteria over his two competitors.

Design Planning and Material Sourcing

Kevin also knew that he would need to plan the human resources necessary to complete the job in the timeframe required. Some of his other construction projects were nearing completion, so it would not be too much of a problem getting some of his construction workers to start in 6 weeks’ time. However, Kevin was not sure about the availability of his subcontractors – electrical, water, and interior design, because they were all very busy.

If he was successful in winning the contract, Kevin knew that there would still be lots of work to be done. After signing the contract, he would need to submit a Development Application and construction certificate to the local council and await their approval. Mr Archibald’s final selections for colour and style of pergola materials, and the shades/blinds, would need to be finalised and a deposit received prior to commencing work.

Once all that had been done, Kevin and his team would have to prepare the site for construction. This would involve underground cable service checks, and perhaps contracting a surveyor to assess local building rules as the pergola would be overlooking some adjacent houses. The site would need to be cleared, temporary site facilities such as a toilet, site fencing, power and water would have to be established, the site set out and the formwork built. Following this, the site would be excavated.

While the excavation was taking place, Kevin would need to remember to book a council inspection for the formwork prior to concreting, as well as booking the concrete truck, a date for the pergola materials to be delivered, a date for the pergola installation team to put the pergola into place, and dates for his subcontractors to come and install power and water.

After pouring the concrete and finish, his team would need to strip the formwork. At this time Kevin could invoice Mr Archibald for a progress payment as this represented a milestone in the project. Following this the pergola materials could be delivered and the pergola assembled/installed.   The electrician could install the power – Kevin would need to check exactly what power-points were required, and where, the plumber could connect the water and the interior designer could organise the shades/blinds. While they were busy doing that, Kevin and his team could start clearing the site, removing any rubbish and the temporary site amenities.

Once all these tasks were done, the job would be at practical completion. Kevin would then meet with Mr Archibald, and present him with a final bill. Kevin smiled to himself feeling confident that he would beat his two competitors to the job and thinking that he would soon have another satisfied customer.