Quality building materials are durable with long life expectancies and less frequent maintenance, repair and replacement cycles. Specifying quality building materials assures that the least amount of waste is sent to the landfill over the life of the home. For example, a metal roof will generally last three times as long as a composition shingle roof with less maintenance required over its lifespan. Fiber-cement siding is resistant to pests, fire and weather damage, and brick and stone claddings are durable for the life of the building, as well as reusable or recyclable at the end of that useful life.
Building specifications should not only cover materials, but also the quality of work that is expected in installations. Products will only perform as well as they are installed. Specifying a durable house wrap to act as a rain screen is only as effective as the quality with which all the seams are taped, capper nails are used and penetrations are sealed. You should address quality expectations in the written scope of work provided to each trade contractor, as this is equally important for every product and material installed on your project.
Additionally, it is important that your builder check the references of all the subcontractors submitting bids for the various contracts to build the house. There is no substitute for experience and training, so make sure that all of the trades have credentials that indicate they are professionals. This is as important when it comes to proper installation procedures as it is for new products and technologies.
Remember that in some areas of the US, the only thing required to become even a general contractor is a pulse – and that requirement can be waived in the case of many subcontractors and technicians. In many areas of the country, no inspections of any kind are performed during construction. Building failures are often the result of poor craftsmanship, and most manufacturers’ warranties are void if products are not properly installed. What a waste of resources to have to throw it all away and do it again because it wasn’t done right the first time! It’s unfortunate that we have seen this happen more than once.
Your commissioning agent should guide you in defining these specifications and to inspect the installations throughout the construction of your home. This might mean revising the construction schedule to accommodate the best series of installation practices. Performance testing is the only true way to assure you are getting the quality that you should be. The increase in performance over the life of the house will far exceed the cost of this investment.
Many builders prefer turnkey bids, where the subcontractor provides both materials and labor for the type of work he does. If materials are short, it’s up to the trade contractor to buy more in order to get the job done, and he is not able to raise the total job price to the builder. Trade contractors typically pad their bids for material shortages in these instances, but they are also much more efficient with the materials that they do use in the construction, because it’s their dime. So, when it comes to using materials efficiently, it’s not likely that the framing crew will cut into a full length 2 x 10 for a short piece of blocking. They will have been better trained by their crew leader.
On the flip side, labor-only trades are more likely to waste beams and lumber because it’s not their money and it might make their job go faster. The faster they finish, the higher wage per hour they make, since their total bid is spread over fewer hours. However, by paying crews labor only, the builder has more control over how much material is purchased, and by staging purchases and specifying waste penalties in their subcontractor agreements, significant net cost savings (and material waste reduction) can be achieved.
