When you have a major construction project to get done, you may hire in contractors and subcontractors to complete tasks. Since you’re in charge of the project, you will want to be sure that anyone you bring onto the project has the skills and experience needed to get the job done right.
Hiring the wrong person could mean problems later on, especially if their work leads to construction defects on a property. How can you prevent issues?
Talk to your contractors to see if they use subcontractors
The first thing you can do to make your life easier is to get a full understanding of who would be working on a project if you hired a specific contractor. For example, if contractor A has a team of five employees who will work on the project but contractor B has only one partner plus several subcontracted team members, you may find that it’s much harder to verify the subcontractors’ licenses or experience. Even if you can, they don’t report directly to you. In this scenario, working with the first contractor and a team that directly reports to you may be a better choice.
The fact that subcontractors are used shouldn’t be enough to excuse their bid to work on the project, though. You may want to sit down and talk with the contractors you’re looking at hiring and get a feel for what it’s like to work with them and the subcontracted team. Find out about scheduling and how they communicate.
No matter who you hire, you have to prepare for problems
When you hire a contractor onto a project, you always have to prepare for issues. Inspecting their work regularly is a good idea, especially if you haven’t worked with them in the past. Additionally, you may want to spend some time tracking the contractor’s workload and time spent on the project. Too many missed days or delays can hurt a project, so knowing when time has to be made up is important.
Contractors and subcontractors can help your job go smoothly, but they could also hurt it. This is why it’s essential to consider who you work with carefully.
