Design / Build
The team approach is the best approach.
Design / Build harkens back to the time before the architect-contractor relationship became so adversarial. In a design/build relationship the architect is a team-member of the contractor and they rely upon each other to deliver the right project to the client.
ACG has provided design-build services to a number of general contractors, often contractors with whom we have worked with before in a more traditional design-bid-build delivery method, which speaks volumes on how we operate.
The key to success is grounded in a mutual respect for what both the architect and the contractor do, neither job is easy and we each need the other to perform. Contractors hire us for our unique design skills, our ability to work well with others, and our understanding of the goals of the contractor to stay on-time and on budget. This knowledge helps us to select the right materials and to ask the contractor the right questions to help their efforts.