On a design and build project the contractor takes responsibility for both designing and constructing the works, and the standard JCT Design and Build Contract replaces the traditional contract administrator with an employer’s agent. Acting in that role, we represent your interests throughout: preparing the employer’s requirements, assessing the contractor’s proposals, issuing instructions, certifying payments and confirming completion. In short, we are your professional voice in a procurement route where the contractor otherwise holds most of the technical knowledge.
Design and build can deliver speed and cost certainty, but it shifts design control towards the contractor. If the employer’s requirements are loosely drafted, the contractor is entitled to build to the cheapest compliant interpretation of them. An experienced employer’s agent closes that gap: we define quality standards precisely before tender, scrutinise the contractor’s proposals for departures, and police the contract as the design develops. The earlier we are appointed, the more protection the contract documents can give you.
We start by developing the employer’s requirements with you — the document that fixes scope, performance and quality. We then run the procurement: identifying suitable design and build contractors, issuing tender documents, analysing the returns and advising on appointment. During construction we chair progress meetings, operate the change control procedure, review design information, value the works and issue payment and completion certificates. After handover we monitor the rectification period and certify making good before the final account is agreed.
A full employer’s agent appointment typically covers:
We tailor the scope to each project, and can also provide cost monitoring or fund reporting where a lender or investor requires independent oversight of the scheme.
Our fee reflects the size and duration of the project, the state of the design when we are appointed, the number of contractors to be tendered, and how much reporting your funders or other stakeholders require. A single-building residential scheme demands less time than a phased development with multiple interfaces. Because the role runs from inception to final account, fees are usually agreed as a fixed sum or as staged payments mapped to the project programme, confirmed in writing before we begin.
An employer’s agent must understand design, cost and contract in equal measure — reviewing technical submissions one day and certifying payment the next. Chartered surveyors are trained across all three disciplines and are regulated by the RICS, which requires demonstrated competence, transparent terms of engagement and professional indemnity insurance. When we certify completion or payment on your behalf, you and your lender can rely on the judgement of an accountable, insured professional rather than an unregulated project manager.
Cost certainty on a design and build contract survives only as long as change is disciplined. Every employer variation reopens the price, and contractors understandably charge a premium for late changes. We operate a formal change control procedure: each proposed change is costed, its programme effect assessed and your written approval obtained before any instruction is issued. On London residential schemes, where clients often refine finishes as the build progresses, this discipline is frequently the difference between a controlled budget and an inflated final account.
If you are considering a design and build project and want an experienced professional protecting your position, speak to Notting Hill Surveyors. We can advise on procurement, outline how the employer’s agent role would apply to your scheme and provide a tailored fee proposal.