Cost overruns and project delays are two of the most common challenges projects face, especially when it comes to the lighting phase. Unfortunately, many project stakeholders underestimate the importance of setting a building-wide standard, dismissing it entirely without understanding the significant benefits of it. When owners don’t set a building-wide standard, they run the risk of experiencing a string of overrun budgets and project delays for all their projects.
Whether for a single building or a portfolio of buildings, setting a standard for products used can go a long way in adding value.
Here we have outlined 5 benefits to establishing building standards for the lighting and lighting control products purchased for your project.
Benefits of Building Standards
1. Ability to leverage the overall spend to negotiate lower prices
Without building standards, companies won’t have the chance to benefit from the total volume of products they purchase. Prices will have to be negotiated for every purchase, whether for each project or different regions. Ultimately, this will increase the total cost of ownership, putting the project budget at risk in other areas.
However, with a standard set of products, building owners will be able to leverage their overall spend when negotiating with vendors. They will be able to negotiate lower prices for the designated lighting product, instead of being priced project by project. By establishing a standard pricing for each line item, building owners and stakeholders will pay the same low price anytime, anywhere.
2. Guarantee that all products will meet the project timeline
An unstandardized set of products can derail the project timeline. Since each product has its own lead time, combining different products into one project causes delays that could have been avoided.
When a building-wide standard is set, project stakeholders will have access to accurate information on the lead times of the standard product. Based on the information, project stakeholders will be able to create an accurate project timeline and make informed decisions to keep the project going forward. In addition, there won’t be any time wasted value engineering on future projects since the set products already offer the best value possible.
3. Simplified bidding process for electricians
Without building standards, electricians, and other bidders, will face difficulty during bidding process. Quite often, electricians don’t receive the pricing for lighting products until just before their bids are due. Worse yet, each electrician is receiving a different price for the same bill of material. This makes it very difficult for an electrician to prepare an accurate quote, and very difficult for a general contractor to accurately compare competing bids.
On the other hand, building standards simplify the bidding process for electricians. In addition to a standardized price, electricians who do repeat work in a building will be familiar with the products, making it easier and more cost effective for them to bid.
4. Simplified ongoing maintenance work
Different lighting systems within a building, or within different rooms, creates a challenge for building engineers who are trying to support the building. Building engineers will be forced to learn how to support all the different products, thus costing the building owners more time and money.
By having a standard set of lighting products, building engineers will be able to fix any problems and improve the building with ease. They will be familiar with the products used, making it easier for building engineers to improve the building’s infrastructure.
5. A centralized lighting control system
A lack of a central lighting control system creates inefficiencies for building owners and engineers. Building engineers must physically go to each location to fix and maintain any lighting problems, which generate unnecessary costs that could have been avoided.
Therefore, having a single networked lighting control system can be extremely beneficial, saving owners time and money. Building engineers will be able to control and maintain everything from a single console, effectively making it easier for them to manage the entire building.
Working with Monterey Lighting Solutions to set building standards can save owners and stakeholders up to 40% on lighting costs. We work as an extension of your team by engaging directly to value engineer products, ensuring we deliver the best possible value available in the market. Ready to take the frustration out of sourcing lighting for your project? Take the first step with Monterey Lighting Solutions today.
