In design-bid-build the owner appoints a designer, tenders the finished drawings to contractors and holds two contracts, so any gap between what was drawn and what can be built becomes the owner's problem, usually as variations. In design and build one contract covers both, and the contractor answers for the drawing being buildable, for the price and for the date. The owner trades a tender on finished drawings for a single point of responsibility and a shorter programme, because design and procurement overlap.
What is the difference between design and build and design-bid-build?
| Question | Design-bid-build | Design and build |
|---|---|---|
| Contracts the owner holds | Two: designer and contractor | One |
| Who answers for a drawing that cannot be built | The owner, between the two | The contractor |
| When the price is known | After the tender, on finished drawings | After design, from the same team |
| Programme | Design, then tender, then build, in series | Design and procurement overlap |
| Variations | Frequent: the builder prices what the drawing missed | Fewer: the drawing is made by those who build it |
| Competition on price | A tender between contractors | Negotiated, or between design-and-build firms at concept stage |
Where does design-bid-build go wrong in a fit-out?
In the space between two sets of responsibilities. The designer draws a ceiling height the ductwork cannot achieve; the contractor prices the drawing, finds the clash on site and issues a variation. Each party is right by its own contract. The owner pays for the difference and loses the weeks.
Fit-out is dense with these clashes. Seven layers above a ceiling, ducts, cable trays, sprinkler mains, drainage, are drawn by different consultants and built by different trades. The fewer the handoffs, the fewer the variations.
When is design-bid-build the better choice?
- When the brand's own architect must design the space, and the owner wants contractors to compete on a complete set of drawings.
- When procurement rules require a public tender on finished documents.
- When the owner has an in-house project team able to manage the designer and the contractor, and hold both to their contracts.
A design-and-build firm can still work to someone else's drawings. When the design arrives complete and approved, we build to it, and the programme shortens by about 2 weeks.
How does the owner keep control of the design in design and build?
- A brief signed before drawing starts: the rooms, the capacities, the budget, the date.
- Design approval at each stage: concept, then developed design, then the drawings for construction.
- A sample board signed by the owner: every finish, in its real material, before anything is ordered.
- A fixed price after design, with written exclusions: the owner sees the cost of each decision before committing to it.
The design half of the job is not a formality inside a construction contract. It is where the room is decided.
Is design and build more expensive?
Not at the finish line. The design fee is on the same order either way; the difference is in the variations. A design-bid-build tender price is low because it prices exactly what is drawn, and what is not drawn arrives later as variations. A design-and-build price includes the coordination the other route leaves to the site.
How we work sets out our stages, and our own trades shows who builds what we draw.
Questions owners ask
Can I use my own designer and still have one contract?
Yes. The designer's drawings become part of the contract, and the contractor develops them into construction drawings and answers for building them.
Do I lose the ability to compare prices?
Not entirely. Compare design-and-build firms at concept stage on their planning range, their programme and their terms, then check the fixed price line by line after design.
What if I do not like the design?
Approval is staged. Nothing is ordered until the owner has signed the design and the sample board, and changes before that point cost drawing time, not materials.
Is design and build common for restaurant and retail fit-outs in Riyadh?
Yes. Where the opening date is fixed by a lease, a single party answering for design, approvals and build is the shorter route.
