In construction, an Owner’s Representative (or “Owner’s Rep”) is an industry expert hired by the Owner of a business, a building, facility, or property, to act as an advocate and represent the Owner’s best interests. This can be helpful for projects of all complexities and sizes, however an Owner’s Rep is partially helpful where the Owner has limited knowledge of design and construction, or most importantly lacks the time and resources to effectively fill this role.

Engaging the services of an Owner’s Representative is the most productive way to appropriately manage and mitigate the inherent risks involved in a real estate development process.

An Owner’s Representative keeps the project running smoothly – making sure everything progresses appropriately, team members are engaged at the right time, and parties are meeting their contractual deliverables.

The approach of an Owner’s Representative should be collaborative but also focus on accountability and assurance that all project team members are working towards the Owner’s goals and objectives. The true value of the role of an Owner’s Representative is in providing a process in which the success of all team members is encouraged, not hindered.

Every capital project is unique. Successfully managing the many moving parts involved is a time-consuming process that requires the consideration of many factors and distracts from the day-to-day operations of your organization. Most clients do not have the qualified staff to perform these functions on a specialized project, particularly since the construction of a new facility does not typically occur more than once during a career for a facilities team. Ensuring the process is managed as efficiently as possible requires in-depth knowledge of all phases of capital project development and oversight. This is where an Owner’s Rep comes in. Projects involving an Owner’s Rep will typically reap cost savings in the range of 40%-60%.

Construction Management can be an effective tool in assuring cost and schedule control, but the process typically pertains to the management of the construction phase of the Project only.

Owner’s Rep professionals manage every phase of the process – pre-design and Project visioning, design, construction, and post-occupancy needs. Overall project effectiveness increases by implementing Owner’s Rep services in the early project phases.

An Owner’s Representative works for the best interest of the owner and intervenes and advocates for the Owner’s goals for the project as an extension of the Owner. Project and construction managers oversee their own team’s work for the service they’re offering and would work only for their firm’s benefit and interests. The Owner of a project must interact with the different entities that make the project possible: government agencies, lawyers, engineers, contractors, architects, occupants, etc. An Owner’s Representative is hired to assist with managing these interactions for the benefit of the owner and project. A construction or project manager is solely responsible for their portion of the project.

An Owner’s Representative is the only member of the project team (more so than the GC or CM, architect, or any other vendor or trade) whose one main overriding interest is to execute the Owner’s project goals and objectives. Working together with the Owner, the Owner’s Representative acts on behalf of the Owner on the performance of their duties and responsibilities, ensuring the project stays on track, on schedule and within the approved budget.

An Owner’s Rep will not increase overall project costs, and in most cases will actually reduce costs. As on every project, budget management is paramount. The advantage of Bellwether's presence early in the process is by managing the entire project team, from design through move-in. Bellwether’s 15+ years of experience as Owner Reps provide us with the knowledge to optimize building designs in a way that simplifies construction and saves money. Therefore, the “additional” fee is typically not additional after all and is justified as costs are redistributed with reduced project budgets resulting from a more focused and efficient process.

Among the many roles of an Owner’s Representative, one of the most critical roles is to identify opportunities where money can be saved, and the schedule can be accelerated. This may mean negotiating with vendors, finding cost-saving solutions, and holding vendors accountable. If a project is not on schedule, an Owner’s Representative can easily spot this and require corrective action. There is no doubt that closely managing a project ensures efficiency that will lead to a cost reduction.

The Owner’s Rep serves as the client’s advocate throughout the project, directing all technical issues and providing the client the most control over the project objectives, budget, schedule and quality. While extensive in the possibilities that can be included, main categories of Owner’s Rep services include:

Needs Forecasting

Program Development

Program Validation

Team Selection and Procurement

Permitting and Community Relations Support

Budget Development and Oversight

Value Engineering

Cost Control

Subcontractor Selection/Management

Materials Procurement

Quality Control

Schedule Development and Oversight

Project Phasing and Logistical Planning

Design Management Oversight

Sustainability Management

Constructability and Maintainability Reviews

Construction Management Oversight

Owner Vendor Management

Furniture Fixtures & Equipment (FFE) Procurement

Relocation Management

Commissioning Oversight

Transition/Activation

Facility Maintenance Program Development

Project Closeout and One-Year Warranty

1. The construction process. Your Owner’s Rep should be able to effortlessly navigate and coordinate the process from design to bid to build, and that means they need to know how each stage of the construction process works.

2. The administrative process. To properly administer a project in today’s construction environment, your Owner’s Rep will be managing a great deal of paperwork on your behalf. They need to understand contracts, change orders, RFIs, submittals, and how the bidding process works.

3. The specific type of construction. Different types of facilities require vastly different types of expertise. For instance, hospitals, laboratories, and restaurants are unique and much more complex than office buildings and apartments. Your Owner’s Rep should know the ins and outs of the specific type of project you plan to construct.

4. Up to date construction costs. Today, construction materials and labor costs change on a near-daily basis. To be effective in managing your project’s cost, your Owner’s Rep should be actively engaged in the construction industry and have access to large amounts of real-project cost data, keeping their finger on the pulse of current costs.

5. Value engineering. Construction costs can often be reduced by choosing different materials or construction techniques to accomplish the same end result. Ask your Owner’s Rep for specific examples of value engineering efforts they have provided to past clients, so they can help ensure your project is completed in an efficient and cost-effective manner, without sacrificing quality.

Look for an Owner’s Rep who not only says “yes” to all five categories, but can talk in detail and with confidence about them.

Bellwether can be engaged at any time - either early on during a project’s inception phase or later during any stage of a project such as inception, planning, design, construction, close-out and occupancy. That said, it’s preferable to engage Bellwether during the initial project inception so that we can collaborate with the Owner to establish the fundamentals of the project.