Design management is among the most overlooked components of the construction process, and among the most costly to neglect. All too often, an owner provides the design professionals with a concept and then steps back, offering little direction or feedback. Left to fill that void, even highly capable designers proceed on their own assumptions, producing plans and facilities that diverge from the owner’s intent, budget, and purpose. This is seldom the designer’s failing — nor is it the owner’s. Few owners fully understand the design process, nor should they be expected to; it is a specialized discipline in its own right, and managing it effectively is critical to a successful project. This is precisely the gap that Cimarron bridges.
Owners frequently ask why they require Cimarron to manage the design when an architect has already been engaged. The answer reflects the principle that governs all of our work: the design professionals owe a responsibility to their discipline and to the project, whereas Cimarron owes a fiduciary responsibility to the owner. We manage the design process on the owner’s behalf from the two perspectives most easily overlooked by a designer working in isolation — the economic and the functional. Drawing on extensive construction experience, we ensure that the design remains grounded in what can be built, what it will genuinely cost, and how the completed facility will perform for those who use it.
Our objective is straightforward: to deliver the most economical building that satisfies the owner’s needs and provides the greatest return on investment.
How Cimarron Manages Design
- Construction and Cost Experience. Backed by three billion dollars of construction experience, Cimarron understands construction costs and how buildings are built. This insight enables us to guide the design toward buildable, efficient, and economical solutions, and to identify cost and schedule concerns during design rather than in the field.
- Integration with the Owner’s Process. Design progress stalls when decisions fail to align with the owner’s approval, budget, and reporting systems. Cimarron integrates the design process into the owner’s organization, ensuring that decisions are made on schedule and that the design advances in accordance with the owner’s requirements.
- Building-Type Expertise. A hospital, laboratory, or restaurant imposes design and regulatory demands well beyond those of an office or apartment building. Cimarron’s experience spans industrial, government, aerospace, entertainment, biotechnology, hospitality, power generation, multifamily, and office projects, ensuring that the design serves the facility’s intended function.
- Financial Management and Value. Applying estimating, cost management, and financial modeling, Cimarron evaluates every significant design decision against budget and return, challenging cost that does not add value and directing the design toward the most economical solution that meets the owner’s needs.
- Structure for the Creative Process. Design management extends well beyond oversight of the drawings. Cimarron applies project management, strategy, and supply-chain discipline to provide the creative process with direction and structure, from discovery through execution, without constraining the designer’s creativity.
- Technical Oversight. Cimarron does not serve as the project’s technical expert; rather, we possess the breadth of knowledge required to identify and question the areas that warrant further technical evaluation, and we engage the appropriate specialists to resolve them before they become costly.
- Communication and Direction. An absent owner’s voice is, fundamentally, a failure of communication. Cimarron translates the owner’s intent into clear and consistent direction for the design team and maintains the feedback necessary to keep design, budget, and function in alignment.
From initial concept through completion, Cimarron keeps design, budget, and function aligned. Everything we do is undertaken in the owner’s sole interest.
Contact Cimarron Construction Advisors & Construction Managers today to arrange an initial consultation regarding our design management services and how we can support your project.