Finishes and other key design elements are important for both the project owner and architect. A contractor providing preconstruction services must focus on protecting these throughout the design-development process.  

If a contractor is only providing basic estimating services throughout design-development, this is what happens:

30% - Budget looks good across the board and everyone is happy.

60% - Budget increases in critical systems including structural and MEP force value-engineering into the finishes because the design is too far along to cost-effectively make changes elsewhere.  

90% - Budget for finishes is often cut further than the project owner or architect would like but there are few choices left.  

The solution is rigorously managed weekly design meetings facilitated by the contractor and focusing on value-engineering each system throughout the whole design-development process. Compare the Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) to the Design-Bid-Build (DBB) process: CMAR vs DBB Process.  

This is just as critical as protecting the overall budget and cash flow of the project.