What We Offer
Preconstruction Services
Almost every expensive surprise in commercial construction was knowable earlier. Preconstruction is the work of finding those things while they are still cheap to fix.
Site evaluation, programming, budgeting and approvals work, done before a commitment is made.
Hayco runs a defined process from understanding requirements through owner occupancy.
Zoning, utility and permitting experience across NC, SC, Virginia, Tennessee and Georgia.
The decisions that cost the most are made first
By the time drawings are complete, most of a project's cost is already locked. The site is chosen, the size is set, the systems approach is fixed. Preconstruction is the only phase where those are still open, and it is the cheapest phase to spend money in.
- Site feasibility beats site preference. Zoning, utility capacity, traffic and access decide whether a site works. A site that fails one of those does not get better with a bigger budget.
- Programming turns a wish into a footprint. Translating how an operation actually runs into required space, adjacency and capacity, before an architect draws a line.
- A budget is a range until it is tested. Early cost modeling against real constraints is what prevents a project being redesigned after bid because the number came back wrong.
- Approvals have their own calendar. Planning, zoning and permitting bodies meet when they meet. Mapping that against your occupancy date early is often the difference between a schedule and a hope.
What preconstruction includes
These services can be engaged on their own, or as the front end of a design-build or general construction project.
Requirements definition
What the building has to do, who occupies it, how the operation runs and what it cannot tolerate. Everything downstream is derived from this.
Site selection and acquisition
Identifying and evaluating candidate sites against the operational requirement, and supporting acquisition once one is chosen.
Site options and evaluation
Comparative assessment of shortlisted sites, including the constraints that are far cheaper to discover now than after purchase.
Facility and site programming
Translating the operational requirement into space, adjacency and capacity so the design starts from something real.
Planning and zoning review
What the jurisdiction permits, what it requires and what it will take to change, mapped against the schedule.
Utilities and traffic assessment
Utility capacity and connection routes, plus access and traffic implications that frequently drive both cost and approval timelines.
Budget development
Cost modeling against the actual constraints, so the budget survives contact with a drawing set.
Schedule and approvals mapping
Permitting and review cycles built into a schedule rather than assumed away, working backwards from the date you need to occupy.
How preconstruction runs
The first four stages of Hayco's published nine-stage process are preconstruction. They exist to make the remaining five predictable.
Understanding requirements
The conversation about what the building is for. Done properly it removes more cost than any value engineering exercise later.
Site options and evaluations
Candidate sites assessed against the requirement, including existing buildings where reuse is on the table.
Planning and zoning
What the jurisdiction allows and what the approval path looks like, with the review calendar mapped against your date.
Utilities and traffic
Capacity, connection and access. These are the two areas most likely to make an otherwise good site unworkable.
Budget and schedule validation
A tested budget and a schedule built backwards from occupancy, carried through all four stages so the decision to proceed is made on real numbers. It runs alongside the stages rather than following them.
When to engage preconstruction
Engage preconstruction when
- You are choosing between sites, or deciding whether to build or reuse.
- You have a budget from somewhere and want to know whether it is real.
- Your occupancy date is fixed and you need to know if it is achievable.
- The jurisdiction is unfamiliar and the approval path is unclear.
- You need a defensible number before taking a project to a board or a lender.
You may not need it when
- The site is owned, the design is complete and permitted, and the budget is set. Go to general construction.
- The work is interior only inside a shell you already occupy. That is a commercial upfit.
- Your own developer or owner's rep has already completed this work.
What you get at the end
Preconstruction should end with a decision, not a document nobody reads. The output is a site recommendation you can defend, a program that reflects how your operation actually works, a budget tested against real constraints, and a schedule that accounts for the approval bodies rather than assuming them away.
If the answer is that the project does not work as conceived, that is a successful preconstruction outcome. It is considerably cheaper to learn it here.
From there the project usually continues as design-build, with Hayco carrying the design team, or as general construction if you are holding the design contract yourself.
Common questions
Can we engage preconstruction without committing to build with you?
Yes. Site selection, programming, budget development and approvals mapping can be engaged on their own. Many owners use preconstruction precisely to decide whether and how to proceed.
How early should we involve a contractor?
Before the site is fixed, if you can. Zoning, utility capacity and access decide feasibility, and those are the questions that are cheapest to answer before an acquisition rather than after.
Do you help with site acquisition?
Hayco offers site selection and acquisition support, evaluating candidate sites against the operational requirement and the constraints that determine what can actually be built there.
What if preconstruction shows the project does not work?
Then it has done its job. Finding out at this stage costs a fraction of finding out after purchase, design or mobilization.
Not sure yet whether the project works?
That is exactly the right moment to call. Tell us the requirement, the sites you are considering and the date you need to occupy.
Request a quote