At DRA, we believe that key to the successful delivery of a quality project that satisfies the project brief and financial and program requirements is allocation of senior staff members from project initiation.
Our commissions cover a wide range of clients, sectors and delivery methods, however, our approach to each project is the same. The following key principles are adopted on every project;
Understand, challenge and then deliver the client brief.
Deploy capable and qualified staff with access to the best technology.
Collaborate with the project consulting team.
Support the contractor to deliver the project on time and on budget.
Our projects are led by Project Directors who are the first point of contact with the client and lead consultants and who retain responsibility for the project from commission to completion. The Project Director assesses the project scope and then assembles a design team who are best qualified and capable to deliver the project.
Our design approach to all projects is to adopt economical, suitable and sustainable design solutions in the provision of the site infrastructure and buildings.
At the forefront of our design approach, is the mitigation of health & safety risks both during the construction stage and after the development is complete and in use. While preparing Tender designs we are diligent to keep our Design Risk Assessment at the forefront of our thoughts and to implement the Principals of Prevention. Risks identified will be discussed with the Design team and PSDP and designed out where possible.
Similarly, economical design and choice of materials is of utmost priority. To assist in this our engineers constantly keep abreast of advances in materials and products that will help keep construction costs at a minimum.
DRA utilise an internal quality system which has been audited by the NSAI and achieved ISO 9001 accreditation for quality management. All aspects of our company operations fall under our ISO 9001 accredited Quality Management System. This ensures that we can deliver the highest standard of service and deliverables to our clients.
Upon commencing on site, we continuously liaise with the design team and the successful contractor to ensure a smooth flow of information and to ensure that any site based enquiries can be dealt with in a timely fashion. We typically prepare an inspection plan for the civil & structural aspects of the project which feed into the overall project inspection plan.
Cost control and value for money are key considerations for all of the projects we deliver.
Whilst efficient design and documentation can maintain or in some cases reduce costs marginally, effective value management can improve project efficiency markedly. Value Management requires the participation of senior designers/planners who have a good understanding of their discipline, the project brief and the demands on all other players in the project i.e. architect, planners, consultants and the contractor.
Our approach to value engineering engages senior personnel in the project and rigorously tests the options available.
Cost management is achieved by firstly establishing and quantifying any significant risk items on the project, such as in ground works or construction methodology. These items require management throughout the design, updating their status and potential costs.