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Project Managementaka: preconstruction phaseaka: pre-con

Preconstruction

In Plain English

The planning phase before construction starts where the contractor helps the team design within budget and schedule.

Definition

Preconstruction is the project phase before construction begins during which the contractor provides services such as estimating, scheduling, constructability review, subcontractor prequalification, and value engineering in collaboration with the design team and owner. Preconstruction services are common in CM at Risk and GMP contracts and allow early identification of cost and schedule risks before the design is finalized.

Why It Matters in Bidding

Preconstruction is where a contractor's estimating and procurement strategy is actually won, since it lets the team set the budget, identify long-lead items, and prequalify subs before the design is locked. On CM at Risk and GMP jobs, the quality of preconstruction directly determines the accuracy of the guaranteed price and how much contingency the contractor must carry against incomplete drawings.

Example

During preconstruction, the CM at Risk team ran three pricing iterations as the design progressed and used early subcontractor input to swap a specified curtain wall for a unitized system that hit the owner's budget.

Related Terms

Construction ManagerValue EngineeringDesign PhaseNotice to Proceed

Frequently Asked Questions

Typical outputs include progressively detailed estimates tied to each design milestone, a project schedule, a constructability and value-engineering log, a procurement and long-lead plan, and a prequalified subcontractor list. On GMP jobs, preconstruction culminates in the guaranteed maximum price along with its qualifications, exclusions, allowances, and contingency amounts.
Hard-bid estimating prices a complete set of documents once. Preconstruction estimating prices an evolving design across multiple milestones, so estimators rely more on assemblies, historical unit costs, and allowances, then refine those numbers as drawings mature. This iterative approach lets the team steer cost decisions before the design is finalized.
Usually yes. On negotiated delivery methods like CM at Risk and design-build, preconstruction is often a separate fee or a defined services agreement paid before the construction contract is executed. Paying for it gives the owner early cost certainty and risk identification, which typically reduces change orders once construction begins.

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