Why Design-Build Is the Smart Choice for Commercial Remodeling and Tenant Improvements

In a traditional project, the owner hires a designer or architect first. Then that designer puts the project out to bid. The contractor is brought in late, often with limited input. Everyone’s on their own island—and the owner plays referee when things go sideways.

In a design-build project, you bring your builder to the table early—often at the same time as the designer or architect. The result is:

• Unified planning from day one
• One point of accountability
• Faster problem-solving
• Real-world pricing built into the design

This is how we avoid surprises like:

• “That wall can’t be removed—it's structural.”
• “That fire code issue wasn’t accounted for.”
• “We didn’t budget for the utility upgrade.”
• “You need a change order for that finish you picked.”

With design-build, the team works together from day one to anticipate issues—not react to them mid-construction.

1. Speed-to-Market Matters

Whether you're a business owner trying to launch on time or a landlord prepping a space between tenants, time is money. Every delay costs you revenue or rent.

Design-build shaves weeks—or even months—off the timeline because:

• Permitting, estimating, and procurement begin while plans are still being finalized
• Construction feedback influences design from day one
• There’s no lag time between “design complete” and “start construction”
  

2. You Get Real-Time Budget Control

In a bid-build model, the drawings are complete before you find out what the project really costs. That often leads to redesigns, scope cuts, or scope creep.

With design-build:

• We value-engineer from the beginning
• You see accurate pricing as plans develop
• We help you prioritize budget where it makes the most impact
  

3. Fewer Surprises, Fewer Change Orders

Because we collaborate with your design team early, we catch code issues, site constraints, or MEP upgrades before they become expensive problems.

This is especially valuable in:

• Older buildings (hello, Spokane and downtown CDA)
• Occupied remodels with existing systems
• Projects requiring ADA upgrades, egress changes, or health inspections
  

4. One Point of Contact

With The Building Company in a design-build role, you’re not juggling three emails about a flooring issue or playing messenger between the architect and the subs.

You have:

• One accountable lead
• One unified contract
• One clear chain of communication

That means less finger-pointing—and more progress.

A recent client needed a tenant improvement for a medical office space. The original plan called for moving plumbing across three structural beams and trenching through a slab. Our design-build team caught it early and redesigned the layout to work with the existing infrastructure—saving $40K and 4 weeks of timeline.



That’s the power of bringing the builder in before demo day.