Informed decisions

Cleveland Clinic in Abu Dhabi.

Gregory Jasmin from Syska Hennesy Group says that the decision-makers who ultimately give the go-ahead for projects in the region often do so not from a technical basis.

This means that if the project in questions in particularly complex, they are unlikely to fully comprehend all the technical aspects – which could have serious implications for what they are prepared to spend, and ultimately what they get in return.

These key financial decision-makers instead base their investment decisions on time, value and whether or not the contractor or consultancy in question is the right partner. However, Jasmin says it is becoming increasingly important for everyone, from management to the actual design and construction team, to understand the technical ramifications.

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With rising investment in, and demand, for complex projects like hospitals and data centres, technical considerations are becoming increasingly important. Jasmin says it is the responsibility of consultants to ensure that their end clients understand this.

If they are investing from $20m $40m in a data centre, for example, they need to be able to make a technically informed decision as to why the larger investment may be more viable in the long run.

A lot of investors attempt to pre-empt project costs by instituting value engineering or cost cutting from the outset. Instead, this is the exact opposite approach to what is required, and will invariably end up costing more, particularly in terms of scalability, efficiency and catering for both future growth and technical advancements.

Investors in a sector like healthcare, for example, need to look closely at what their peers are doing internationally, and what sort of money they should be spending to bring them to a comparable level.

It is no use deciding to invest in leading projects and then not committing to the extra dollars to put you ahead of the pack. Instead you are well behind the industry trend before your project has even been completed.

Even if investors do not understand all the nuts and bolts of complex projects, they must have enough of a feel of the technical side of things to be able to comprehend that you need to spend on technology upfront in order to achieve a comparable lifecycle cost.

Given the rapid pace of technical advancement, it is becoming increasingly necessary for project budgets to keep pace s a result.

A consultancy worth its salt will highlight best practice in Europe and the US, and use these as a benchmark for their clients. The international nature of the region’s construction industry means it is something of a melting pot in terms of standards and technology, so on the one hand it is easier for projects to stay ahead.

Rather than be the first to try out new technology, consultants can advise on tried-and-tested systems from the rest of the world.

Jasmin says that, both as an engineer and as a businessman, his consultancy spends a great deal of time in ensuring that their clients have sufficient information in order to be able to motivate investment decisions properly to their respective boards. Every good business case is underpinned by solid information.