Caribbean

Construction

Planning Guide to building your own home

Written By:

Damar Hutchinson, Architectural Designer

Architectural Plans Online

www.ArchPlansOnline.com

archplansonline@gmail.com

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Table of Contents

Basic Concepts of Construction Planning .............................................................. 3

Things to Consider when Planning ..................................................................... 3

Building Plans ...................................................................................................... 5

Planning Permit ................................................................................................. 7

Construction Drawings ...................................................................................... 8

Choosing a Contractor/Builder ........................................................................... 14

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Construction Planning

Basic Concepts of Construction Planning

Construction planning is a fundamental and challenging activity in the management and execution of all

construction projects. It involves the choice of technology, the definition of work tasks, estimation of the

required resources, duration for individual tasks and the identification of any interactions among the different

work tasks.

A good Construction Plan is the basis for developing your budget and the

schedule for work. This Construction plan will give you an idea of the work

required for your project and can be used when consulting with your local

mortgage institution.

Things to Consider when Planning

Budget Knowing your borrowing limit will generally help you to stay

within budget. During construction other unforeseen events may occur

which may affects your budget. I generally encourage persons to have at

least 30% of the cost of the project in their personal savings before starting

construction.

Land - You should ensure the land you are planning to buy or already own

is fit for a residential building whether single or multi family, according to

local zoning codes. Mountainous lots may require cut and fill civil

engineering work which may be costly. Consult a local Civil Engineer.

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Building Plans - Getting your proposed building layout on paper, this is the basis of your construction

project. These drawings are generally prepared by an Architect or

Draftsman. These drawings are very detailed and contain technical

information required to construct your home.

Planning Permission - This is the stage where you

actually apply for permission to start construction. This

process may take a few weeks base on your local

practice. During the approval process you should start

to interview trusted building contractors; doing this

upon approval would put you in a better position to

commence construction.

Building Contractor (Costing) - This task can be done while you are

waiting for approval from your local authority. This is the stage when

you receive bids from various trusted contractors base on your initial

interview and screening process.

Please note that sometime contractors that bid with the low unrealistic

estimate often cut corners and deliver product of low quality.

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Begin Construction - Up on approval of your building plans you should seek to sign an agreement with

the selected contactors, we recommend getting an attorney to review the agreement before moving

forward.

Finish Construction At this stage you should ensure that your house was properly built and that the

work carried out is up to the local standards, these standards are generally in placed for your safety.

Building Plans/Drawings (explained)

Building plans/ Drawings can be described as a graphical representation and specific guidelines illustrating

how the building should be constructed and what the building should look like after construction.

Before Construction After Construction

Image Source www.constructivemedia.com.au/2013/05/before-and-after

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A full set of building plans consist of various specifications, annotations and visual illustrations if the proposed

building. Building plans are also used when applying for construction permit from your local government

building office.

The creation of a set of building plans starts when an idea and then further developed into detailed

Construction Drawings, These drawings may take up to 12months to be prepared by an Architect base on

design complexity. The cost for building plans typically ranges from 8-15% of the total cost of the construction

cost. Lets break it down; if you are planning to build a house and the total cost to build the house would be

$1,200,000 in total, the Architect fee would be 8-15% of that figure which would be about $96,000 - $180,000.

These rates are flexible and are based on the cost of construction.

Detailed Set of Construction Drawings includes Site, Location plan, Floor Plans, Elevations, Sections, Electrical

Plan, Plumbing/Drainage Plan, Structural Details, Foundation Plan and Other details where necessary.

North Elevation of HD001

archplansonline.com

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Planning Permit

Most Islands within the Caribbean region has implemented and adopt various Building Codes which govern

the quality, usage and location of the building you plan to build. These codes are implemented as a way to

ensure good construction practices and safe homes.

Under the Building Act in most countries, permission is required for any of the following:

1. Construction/Erection of building 2. Demolition of building

3. Additions /alterations and external repairs 4. Temporary building & Farm House

5. Change in use of building from one use (Class to another e.g. Residential to Commercial)

An application of such nature could take approximately four (4) weeks (for residential single family buildings),

while all other application will take approximately 90 working days. The application waiting period solely base

on how efficient your local government building department conduct their duties. (If you are not sure that you

require a permit contact your Local Planning Authority).

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Await approval from your Local Planning Authority before commencing any work!!!

You should consider visiting your local building department to seek more information.

Barbados http://www.townplanning.gov.bb/

Trinidad http://trinidad.co.gov/

Jamaica http://www.ksac.gov.jm/

St. Vincent & G http://www.housing.gov.vc

Belize - http://www.cbabelize.org/

(These website may varies base on your geographic location)

Other useful websites are

http://www.doingbusiness.org/data/exploreeconomies/grenada/dealing-with-construction-permits

Construction Drawings

Construction Drawings: must be drawn to a minimum scale of 1:100 (1:75 for complex drawings, where a

building is too large to fit on a 24x 36paper). All legends & drawings are required to be visible and accurately

labelled. (Generally Applicable in Jamaica, Trinidad & Barbados and other islands)

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Floor Plan- The entire floor layout including existing as well as proposed floor plans (use of rooms, doorways,

windows, openings etc.)

Foundation Plan -shows all structural members including stiffeners, column pad footings etc.

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*Location & Site Plan These drawings are produced to indicate where the building would position on the

land and the setbacks based on values stipulated for the area you choose to build.

Roof plan-shows all structural members (sizes, spacing, types, roof pitch, drainage etc.)

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Electrical Plan - Layout of all electrical components; electrical outlets, lighting fixtures etc.

Sections-a minimum of 2 (1 longitudinal & 1 cross-sectional) sections through a critical part of the building

depicting interior details and showing ground and finish floor levels

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Elevations-label all exterior finishes (Walls, roof material), highlighting ground levels both existing and final

(All elevation details for new development, alterations or extensions).

Structural Details - Include details of all structural components; foundations, columns, beams, footing, lintel,

stiffeners, staircase plan (reinforce and section), roof vent detail, etc.

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*Drainage Details - must include grease trap, trap gully basin, septic tank, absorption pit, tile field, manhole

etc.

*Drainage Plan - The existing and proposed storm water drainage and Plumbing layout. Position of existing

and proposed features such as sanitary drains, septic tanks, absorption pit, soak away pit, tile field,

surface/storm water collection, containment and final disposal point etc.

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Choosing a Contractor/Builder

CHOOSE YOUR CONTRACTOR/BUILDER CAREFULLY

Most construction projects undertaken in the Caribbean; whether a highway or a house extension requires a

professional. Selecting and dealing with a contractor is not always the easiest of tasks. There are numerous

clients who are eager to share horror stories about their experiences with contractors - from financial rip-offs

to piles of unfinished and sub-standard work.

The main purpose of this article is to guide those persons with smaller jobs (simple house construction) in

selecting and dealing with contractors.

When looking for a contractor, the writer recommends one of the following:

1. Builders Association in your country, you could seek advice and recommendation.

2. Institution of Professional Engineers can also recommend suitable contractors.

3. Check someone who has done a similar project to yours.

The main drawback of committing to a contractor in the act of no-turning back, that is why the section process

is so important.

Using one or a combination of the above, select three (3) possible contractors for the job;

Ask them for their credentials, and make sure they are qualified. That may sound like common sense, but

most people take for granted that any contractor can do any job, but this is not necessarily the case.

Each time I am told by owners of their grief with construction projects, I have always enquired of them how

much they pay their doctor or lawyer and how they go about selecting them.

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Typical answer would be "US$500 - US$1,000" (depending on the assignment undertaken) you would not go

hire a real estate lawyer to represent you for a criminal matter, you should get where I am going, same you

could not go to a dermatologist doctor if you have just feeling pain in your head. This is the same approach as

in relates to contractors, check their area of specialisation and get references from your friends. You will be

pleased with this common sense approach, why not take the same approach for the largest investment in your

life - YOUR HOUSE?

So the contractors have now been selected, what next? Set up appointments and get bids on the project, try

to meet with bidders individually, and allowing sufficient time for them to be fully appraised. Note an estimate

is not a bid. An estimate is an approximate cost. It can cost you thousands/hundreds of dollars more when the

project is completed. Ask the three (3) contractors for references relating to their work on a project similar to

yours.

Get three (3) references for each and talk to those customers. If possible, visit the locations to see the

projects. Once you have chosen the contractors, make sure they provide signed itemised bids, including all

taxes, permits etc. If you have to change the scope of the work to be undertaken, make sure it is agreed and

signed-off by both parties before starting.

After all the work is completed, hold on to the final payment, this should be explained in your contract

documents signed by both parties. This is essential to ensure the job is 100% complete. For some jobs, for

example roofing, it is necessary to hold back part of the payment, (called retention) five to ten percent, for up

to six (6) months to allow for defects to show.

The above warning comes in light of the many times that contractors receive all their money and do not return

to finish the project or to correct defects. When this happens, both the owner and the contractors will be in

dispute.

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The owner displaying extreme annoyance and the contractor putting up a stone wall, as there is no interest in

satisfying the owner, since he would have already been fully paid.

Like all other business transactions, knowing a little about the contractor's personality may also help. Like so

many Caribbean business people, some contractors lack financial management and support.

Like I have said to so many persons and organisations; having a hammer, a saw or even owning a

construction company, does not make one into a good contractor.

A good contractor is a trained professional who is able to properly plan and implement projects in a timely

manner and at reasonable cost.

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