Quality Construction Monitoring and Project Management in Melbourne

CONSTRUCTION PROCUREMENT

Akiitech can help you achieve the most successful outcome for your project and provide the necessary guidance and support to help minimise risks and cost overruns. We help agencies achieve successful project outcomes by providing guidance and support to help minimise risks and cost overruns, assisting agencies and their advisers to apply appropriate levels of discipline to procurement, and by providing a consistent basis for managing the interface between organisations or individuals and the construction industry.

Specifically, Akiitech can provide assistance with the following:

Selection of appropriate procurement and contracting strategies, and nomination of an appropriate principal in contracts
Preparation of tender documents and contracts based on standard forms
Selection of contractors and consultants with proven performance records
Effective management of contracts, including clause commentaries, sample letters and checklists
Maintenance of an effective performance management system through monitoring and reporting
Resolution of contractual claims and disputes.
Advice on appropriate procurement and contracting strategies, tendering and preparation of tender documents, selection of consultants and contractors, contract administration, and
How to avoid disputes.

CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION + SUPERINTENDANCY

Once the building contract with the right mix of features has been selected for your project, Akiitech can assist you to ensure that your construction contract is executed in accordance with the terms of the contract. The duties of the contract administrator flow form both the construction contract itself and may include the tender stage and the post-construction stage. Whatever the case, we will work with all parties to assist ensure that the contract is followed.

Akiitech provides independent, proactive and objective Superintendency and construction monitoring. We assist in ensuring that contract conditions are met by overseeing all aspects of construction identified within the due diligence phase. We provide reports, updates and advice to give you complete project control so that the project has the best chance of being a success.

BUILDING DISPUTES + VCAT EXPERT ADVICE

In situations where building disputes cannot be resolved, one of the parties may seek recourse through legal means, and may take the matter to the VCAT Tribunal. In such cases, an expert opinion relevant to the issues may be required to support the application. Akii.tech can support an argument by providing expert evidence in the following ways:

Written Report
VCAT may rely on expert evidence to form an opinion about specific issues relating to the matter. It may be presented to the tribunal in the form of a written report. This is recommended by the Tribunal as a method of presenting evidence. Akii.tech can prepare a detailed VCAT compliant legal document, outlining the defect/s in dispute, stating the facts and including an expert opinion about the matter.

Expert Witness
If an expert witness is required to attend your hearing at VCAT, our inspectors have the specialised qualifications, knowledge and experience to present evidence to the Tribunal. Note that as an expert witness, we have an obligation to provide fair and unbiased advise and we cannot act as an advocate for one of the parties. Our knowledge, training and experience can be invaluable in supporting an argument

VALUE MANAGEMENT

The benefits of a value management review are often perceived in terms of improved quality and reduced cost. However, the ‘invisible’ benefits can be just as valuable. Consensus and mutual understanding between stakeholders, clear objectives, reduced risk of changes in scope and improved communications will help ensure that the project meets the objectives of the client and is delivered within the relevant parameters.

Our value management processes include development of the following:

A clear definition of what the owners and end users mean by value, thus providing a precise basis for making decisions throughout the project.
A tool for optimising the balance between differing stakeholder needs and expectations.
A basis for creating a clear project brief that reflects the project sponsorâ€™s priorities and expectations, expressed on the basis of value and function. This improves communication between all the stakeholders so that each can understand and respect the otherâ€™s constraints, expectations and requirements.
A basis for ensuring the project is the most effective way of delivering business benefits and satisfying business needs.

A functional basis for embellishing and refining the case for the project, by addressing both the monetary and non-monetary benefits.
A functional basis for design development and management, through improved communications, mutual learning and enhanced collaborative working, leading to better technical solutions with enhanced performance and quality and often, through innovative solutions.
A functional mechanism to measure value, taking into account monetary and non-monetary benefits and thus demonstrating value for money.

Value management can be a very low-cost,

high-benefit exercise. When integrated into the project management methodology early in the project life cycle, the cost may become almost negligible because of the reduced need for subsequent reviews and opportunities for substituting value management for some of the routine appraisals and quality audits that are always necessary.

Value management is a team based approach used to define the client’s objectives and ensure best value, whole-life solutions are selected to satisfy those objectives. It is not necessarily about cost cutting.

To achieve maximum benefit, value management should be carried out from the very early stages of a project, not simply introduced when problems occur. The process of value management includes value engineering, which is a more systematic approach to ensuring specific functions are satisfied to the required standard for the least cost. It assess a range of possible solutions against the values required by the client.

Value management exercises can also be used to recover cost divergence (costs diverging from the budget) that may become apparent when design reports are prepared. Under these circumstances, the client may have to choose priorities, or decide to increase the budget.
It may be possible to:

Identify items that can be omitted.
Identify items that can have their specification changed.
Identify items that could be re-instigated later in the program if the budget allows.
Identify enabling works that can be incorporated into the design, allowing elements to be added during later phases of construction.

The client and the full consultant team should take part in the process.

BODY CORPORATE BUILDING AUDITS

Carrying out a regular building inspection on a strata property is the best way to maintain the fabric of the building. Regularly attending to the upkeep of this major asset ensures the value of the building is protected for its owners and it ensures the owners corporation fulfils its statutory obligations to keep the property in a reasonable state of repair. The priority for many strata-title property owners is understandably their own domain and the four walls of their own apartment, with few noting the exterior or the common areas until something goes wrong or starts to look unsightly. However protecting the investment made in a strata property doesn’t stop at the owner’s front door, it starts at the property boundary. This is where a building inspection is a valuable tool, which when performed regularly can identify any areas that could result in costly problems down the track.

Ideally an inspection should be carried out at least every three years, and the inspection and reporting should always be undertaken by a specialist professional. Seek out a specialist in strata buildings and make sure they have a certified Quality Assurance system in place. That way you’ll get a professional who really knows what they are doing. A building inspector will look to ensure that the building fabric is adequately protected. This means checking that the exterior paint, protective coatings and sealants are in good condition, he or she will then be guided by what they discover. Common issues The external elements are often the things that the inspectors may look at first. For example if the property is near a beach, the inspector will look to see what corrosion may have occurred from the effects of the salt and sand. They’ll also look at the age of building and the type of materials used in its construction. The most common issues inspectors find are cracking brickwork, displacement of gutters, deteriorating timber and corrosion on elements such as window and door frames. Concrete balustrade corrosion is also a common issue. The item that needs the most regular maintenance is often the paint and protective coatings.

Once all the issues have been identified and documented by a building inspector then the undertaking of any required remedial work can be properly costed. The bottom line in all this is the willingness of the owners corporation to pro-actively look after its asset. Regular maintenance ensures the value of the asset is protected over the long term, and while there is often concern about special levies and sinking funds, there is no doubt that in the long term, property values are higher when the lot is situated within a well maintained building.

SIGNAGE + WAYFINDING AUDITS

Preparing signage and access reports are fundamental to developing wayfinding strategies. Akiitech can provide you with an in depth illustrated analysis which you can use as an evaluation tool to determine sign types and to address problematic signage that is not consistent with your design intent.

Akiitech can provide a holistic site overview and audit, identifying existing cognitive markers and planned wayfinding identifiers, as well as a design and movement study for application to the developed design and wayfinding strategy. Existing building and precinct signage audits will include a full schedule and plan locations of directional and information signage. We can also provide and a case by case management study of wear and deliberate damage to signage. Information from audits can then be used to fully develop the wayfinding strategy.