How to be design smart and cost smart

Your budget is allocated. Your concept is approved. Yet by the time the physical delivery of your structure begins, prices have gone up – again. There’s intense pressure from your stakeholders to meet the existing project budget. But your suppliers aren’t so accommodating. What do you do?

Rising costs, rising pressure.

This year we’ve found ourselves re-quoting jobs more than ever before. It’s a tell-tale sign that cost risk continues to be one of the most pressing challenges facing clients, contractors and suppliers. It’s also entirely unsurprising.

According to HIA and ABS figures*, the price of building materials in Australia increased by a hefty 12% in 2021. It was the biggest annual increase since 1981 – and with inflation, interest rates and fuel costs all on the rise, 2022 is trending to be even worse.

*Source: PropTrack. Producer Price Index, Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Embracing a ‘cost smart’ design mindset.

While you can’t always stop prices from going up, you can take steps to help ease the impact. Top of this list is planning ahead and using practical design smarts for your outdoor structures. This means finding clever solutions that deliver against your original brief and design vision while minimising your exposure to potential cost blowouts.

“The design process simply can’t happen in a vacuum,” says Fleetwood Design Lead, Mark Jol. “For us, it’s all about working hand-in-hand with our creative partners, inhouse estimating team and project engineers, and exploring options and materials that will lead to a less volatile/more economical build – without compromising on the end result. It isn’t easy, but it can definitely make a difference when you bring a resourceful mindset and a little design flexibility.”

Time means (more) money.

Program delays are another area that can prove very costly in the current inflationary environment. Engaging your key project partners earlier and locking in concepts – and therefore contracts – sooner can really help to minimise the need for variations or supplier re-negotiations down the track.

Doing this may require modifications to your current internal approval processes, but from our experience it could be well worth it through the savings it delivers to you and your project stakeholders.

Looking for a ‘cost smart’ design solution for your next project?