2nd May 2022

West City Council

Head of Project Control Group

Vlad.Wichowski@innerwest.nsw.gov.au

architectureforsydney.com Dear Vlad Wichowski and Project Control Group,
Joel Sawyer
NSW ARN 0008
Re: Architectural Services, Procurement
T 0405168490
E Joel@Architectureforsydney.com Overview:
We are very pleased to see the development of the five sports facilities over the
327 Marrickville Road,
Marrickville NSW 2204
past few weeks. The design of the pavilions is moving along nicely with great
attention to community and budget. Our team is ready to package the design
ABN 24635320242 into a DA in the next several weeks.

Procurement:
Over the cause of recent PCG meetings, the topic of procurement has arisen
with various ideas floating around, such as Peter Stubbtoe’s insightful input
on alternative procurement methods. I’ve composed this letter detailing three
procurement methods for bringing about the Sports Park pavilions, consisting
of;

Lump-sum contract
Cost-plus contract
Design and construct contract

Architecture for Sydney has a wide experience with various procurement

methods. We recommend these three methods as the most suitable. We
naturally lean towards traditional architect, client and contractor procurement of
our residential projects. And we are not foreign to non-traditional methods, as
we have worked with various types of procurements over the years in practice.
Within this outline, I’ll comment on the effectiveness of each procurement with
the opportunities and challenges that may arise.

West City Council

Park Pavilions

Procurement
By Architecture For Sydney

2nd May - Autumn 2022

11502 Practice: Finance and Project
Management - Autumn 2022
Joel Sawyer - 12554667
Subject Coordinator - Walter Brindle
Tutor - Ella Lochhead-Sperling -
Ella.Lochhead-Sperling@uts.edu.au
 Lump-sum contract
A lump-sum procurement is a contract with a single lump-sum price for all of the works,
whereby the contractor is responsible for completing the project with. A lump-sum
contract also typically has a set date for practical completion, so both cost and time are
set in the contract and are adjusted through the various mechanisms of the contract.

architectureforsydney.com
Joel Timothy Sawyer to submit competing lump-sum contract documents.
NSW ARN 0008
T 0405168490
E joel@architectureforsydney.com
320 Marrickville Road,
Marrickville NSW 2204
ABN 24635320242
Opportunities:
Lump-sum provokes a competitive tendering of the project, allowing multiple builders
Establishes a fixed contract price and time, which will have been determined at the
time of contract signing.
Lump-sum has a clear contractual mechanism for varying the contract as the building
works are executed.
Challenges:
Creates volatility on project price and the starting date as the price and timeframe
won’t be known until the completion of the tender period.
Can be volatile to market conditions, with consultants’ prices fluctuating situationally
with the current economy and work conditions.
May find a lack of transparency with contractors, as hidden amounts are built into a
lump-sum price to cover their risk in potential under-quoting.
Lump-sum tendering can occur late in the process with minimal overlap with design
and construction.

Cost-plus contract
A cost-plus procurement is a contract where a contractor performs and obtains materials
and services throughout the stages of the building process and costs are passed to the
owners, with an agreed margin to cover overheads and profits. Also referred to as an
open book process.

Opportunities:
Contract documentation is substantially or fully completed and a management fee
covering overheads and profit is negotiated with one or more selected contractors.
The early involvement of the contractor helps with pricing, as they can provide input
throughout the documentation.
Early contractor involvement means we can schedule a start date well ahead of time
while documenting the project

Challenges:
Requires a contractor that builds the project using in-house and sub-contracted
labour.
This process fluctuates in intensity and is not for all types of clients. A client with a
large capacity would be preferred.
Pricing does increase significantly as the builder is given information at multiple
stages, going from a DA set to a very detailed documentation set.

Design and construct

A design and construct procurement is a contract made up of two different contracts.
The client enters into one contract for the design and another for the construction
of a building or project with an organisation. A fixed price is negotiated between the
contractor and the client.

Opportunities:
Fixed pricing system, a guaranteed price at the end.
If a company provides both design and building services, there is an opportunity for
smoother operation.
The contractor’s project priorities are economically efficient in providing minimum cost
and in a short time span.

Challenges:
The construction client’s profit margins are often in conflict with the client’s priorities
within the project.
The process lacks independent assessment or monitoring and the architect is often
unable to deal directly with the client or user.
Dependent on the complexity of the project, the design and construct project can
provide little assurance of clients’ satisfaction with the quality of the product in the
end.

architectureforsydney.com
Joel Sawyer Deliberate consideration for choosing an adequate construction consultant should be of
NSW ARN 0008
T 0405168490
E Joel@Architectureforsydney.com
327 Marrickville Road,
Marrickville NSW 2204
ABN 24635320242
Sequence and scope of architectural services:
Concerning the procurement methods above, all could be implemented for the Sports
Park project. However, various alterations would be needed to allow for such changes.
For the traditional procurement methods (Lump Sum + Cost Plus), the sequence of
the project and scope would be adjusted to fit. The relationship between WCC and
Architecture for Sydney would be maintained with the additional consultants supporting
construction. Our fee structure will remain the same as per our established contract.
the utmost priority.
In relation to a non-traditional procurement method (Design and Construct), the project
sequence and scope would be altered to fit its constraints. Initially an establishment of
a maximum cost of the project by WCC will be needed for subsequent actions to occur.
A risk assessment will be made by all parties and both the design and construction
will need to be tailored to fit within the guaranteed price. The design component of the
project will continue between WCC and Architecture for Sydney, with several variations
administered relating to our established contact. But, this could be arranged once a final
decision is made. Then WCC will establish an additional contract with a construction
company.
Conclusion
Knowing that these procurement methods have various pros and cons, we would advise
WCC to collaborate among board members.
Please feel free to contact us with any questions that you may have.
We are flexible with the direction you’d like to take on procurement and have established
this scope into our workload to begin these services immediately. Please advise in writing
of whichever proposal meets your approval to proceed.
Thank you for the opportunity to work with WWC. We look forward to working with you
further and continuing these important services.
Yours sincerely,
Nominated Architect,
Joel Sawyer