Budget Development
- Development an independent ground up development budget, including a detailed hard cost estimate, all aspects of soft costs, professional fees, FFE, OS&E, pre-opening, carry etc.
- Provide an analysis of various hard cost scenarios – budget validation and reconciliation, escalation, risk and contingency analysis, benchmarking.
- Develop cost models for brands and program requirements; provide cost models, typically based on historical data, that can be used for cost control and design management
Soft Cost Validation
- Land Acquisition / Closing
- Entitlement / Permit
- Primarily Consultants (Architect, ID, Engineer(s), Developer / PM)
- Secondary Consultants (IT / AV, Elevators, Acoustic, Façade, Lighting, Traffic, Special Inspections, Expeditor, Procurement etc.)
- Legal – Land Use, Construction, Licenses / Liquor
- FF&E budget at guestrooms, FOH, F+B inclusive of warehouse/delivery/install
- OS&E, art, styling, pre-opening activities
- IT systems (Guestroom technology, MDF / PMS, POS, BOH)
Timeline / Contingency / Escalation
- Evaluate the level of design and the development timeline and its relation to the Hard and Soft Cost budgets. How binding is this development budget and at which line items? How are both market and design risk budgeted and mitigated as the design develops?
- Establish a Contingency structure for hard costs, separate for soft costs and structured based on non-binding risk-based elements.
Schedule Analysis
- Provide an in depth analysis of the CM / GC CPM schedule (in advance of the GMP contract)
- Ensure the critical path is clearly outlined and protects the Owner and outlines the decision-making process commitments. This both informs the Owner of the timeline to finalize core design and the second-tier program elements. When well developed, it will also be a roadmap to protect against delay claims.
- Ensure the Owner and Operator acceptance process is clearly outlined to allow for a more successful Opening Phase.
Design Analysis
- Provide design reviews of test fits, massing models, floor layouts for overall efficiency as well as provide various studies to increase keys or modify the program with the cost implications and analysis.
- Provide key metrics and recommendations in terms of efficiency of keys based on a developed standard or cost model.
Cost Control
- Provide construction phase cost control in terms of finalizing a GMP; structure cost control within the contract; change order reconciliation; claim analysis; contract close out.
Development Management
- Provide various degrees of support to the Development team ranging from complete oversight to specific resolution of gating issues.
- As a resource, provide focus and clarity in terms of the Owners objectives at any phase of a project. This can be applied by observing how the team is performing, identify underlying issues and outline a clear series of actions to be addressed to limit the impact to the budget and schedule.
Distressed Development Analysis
- Provide a cost analysis to support acquisition teams in terms of the Cost to Complete a partial developed or active development that is being considered for potential acquisition. This can include change of use cost impact analysis.
- Provide an analysis in terms of the General Contractor and Subcontractor contract status, change order and claim positions, work in place, warranty scenarios, acceptance and testing status etc.
Permit and Occupancy Certification
- Provide a complete analysis in terms of both the requirements within a specific market and hotel brand compliance, as well as the best approach to phasing the process.
- Provide management to the Owner consultants tied to the permit process that can potentially impact the Owners position in achieving the Occupancy Certification.
- Provide specific project support at this phase in the case of an extended delay or lack of ownership in achieving the Occupancy Certification.
Hotel Opening
- Provide strategic support in terms of the completion of the construction phase, inclusive of an analysis in terms of how the Construction Manager is adhering to the baseline schedule, how the project is cycling, manpower profiles, and delay claim avoidance / documentation.
- Provide support in terms of the Owner obligations during Pre-Opening – FF&E status; OS&E staging, transition to housekeeping and hotel operations etc.
- Provide support in terms of the Owner / Brand / Operator acceptance process (inclusive of punchlist, testing, life safety, IT systems etc. )