Faced with an increasing workload and the additional pressure of delivering quality work to their clients, homebuilders are now hiring partner companies to support their workload. This article highlights the ten most important considerations for home builders and home designers that can help them to hire the right partner for their homebuilding design projects.

A reliable partner company can not only ease the workload of homebuilders, but also produce the desired results for them quickly. Such companies are well-equipped with trained design professionals managed by experienced delivery heads, who are involved in Revit or ArchiCAD residential drafting projects. They use powerful software such as ArchiCAD and Revit to produce construction drawing (CD) sets.

The ten most important points to consider when choosing a reliable partner:

1. Homebuilding Design Experience of the Local Market: Different regions of the world follow certain standards and codes while constructing homes. Therefore, the design drawings have to be created in accordance with the required local specifications. Home designers based in a particular region should look for a partner company that has worked for clients in their local market.

2. Software Used In Design Projects: It is essential for home designers to know whether their partner company is using efficient software such as Revit and ArchiCAD in their design projects. The amount of experience and extent of use of such software plays a crucial role in detecting clashes and producing accurate construction drawings.

3. Understanding the Company's Quality Control Process: For accuracy, it is essential to have effective quality control processes in place. The right partner company would be the one that has a quality assurance culture and independent quality checks; perhaps even a separate team of highly skilled and experienced professionals to conduct quality checks and eliminate the need for rework.

4. Portfolio of the Company: A company that has worked with several clients in the local market can be an ideal choice as a partner. Upon going through the portfolio of a potential partner company, home builders can analyse the partner's credibility and make the right hiring decision.

5. Knowledge of Relevant Homebuilding Standards and Codes: Before making the decision to hire a partner, the homebuilder must ensure that the partner has the ability to comply with all applicable codes, laws and regulations. An ideal partner company should be well-versed with all the relevant homebuilding standards and codes.

6. Efficiency of Information Exchange: During a project life cycle, communication plays an important role in keeping all design parties informed about the progress of a project. The team involved in the homebuilding design projects must communicate status of work, important actions that need to be taken and the latest developments in the project effectively and on time.

7. The Company’s Length of Operation: A company that has been in operation for a number of years and has served some of the most prestigious clients is far more reliable than the one which is relatively new. Consultants must consider this aspect before selecting a partner company.

8. Relevant Accreditation: A Graphisoft or Autodesk accreditation, or an ISO certification can also be one of the major factors in determining the reliability of a potential homebuilding design partner as it demonstrates industry recognition by a leading software vendor.

9. Understanding the expertise of the personnel: Homebuilding design projects are completed by teams of skilled and experienced CAD professionals who must have the relevant ArchiCAD and Revit skills to develop accurate construction drawings and deliver the required quality of work to clients. Meeting key personnel in the team would enable homebuilders to ascertain their expertise and determine whether they can produce the desired results within a specific deadline. This is something that can only be achieved with a visit to a partner’s office.

10. Reviewing Sample Construction Drawings: A careful review of construction drawing sets created using ArchiCAD or Revit would be of great help for designers and homebuilders to understand the skills of their partner company's team involved in the homebuilding design projects.

A visit to the partner company’s production facility and meeting the key personnel involved in Revit or ArchiCAD 3D Modelling and residential drafting projects can enable consultants to have a more precise understanding of its skills and expertise. Such visits are typically not considered essential but the importance of the visit cannot be highlighted enough. Of course, in some cases homebuilders will also want to ensure that their teams are also bought in to the relationship and they can therefore also consider inviting key people of the partner company to their offices.

Collectively the above suggestions will help homebuilders to find the right partner. As a great deal of time will be spent on initial relationship development, training and the transfer of knowledge, this is a small price to pay and will be very beneficial for homebuilders.