01 March 2020
What Is A Principal Contractor?
To say a lot goes on during a construction project is to put things mildly. There are many stages, many people involved – from surveyors to designers to builders to electricians and plenty more – and there are many expected and unexpected complexities to be dealt with and overcome. Sometimes, it’s best to have a capable hand overseeing the entire operation.
And that is where a principal contractor comes in.
In the construction industry, the term ‘principal contractor’ refers to the party appointed by the client to plan, manage, monitor and coordinate health and safety in the construction phase of a project. This role is a legal requirement under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2015 (CDM 2015) in the UK for projects involving more than one contractor.
The principal contractor plays a pivotal role in ensuring that all work is carried out safely and efficiently, meets legal obligations, and is in line with best practices.
To help you fully understand principal contractors, we cover the following in this blog:
- Is a principal contractor the same as a building contractor?
- What does a principal contractor do?
- Can the principal contractor be the principal designer?
- What are the key benefits of a principal contractor?
- How to choose the right principal contractor
Let’s get started.
Is a principal contractor the same as a building contractor?
No, a principal contractor is not the same as a building contractor, though the roles can overlap depending on the project.
- Principal Contractor: Focuses primarily on the overall coordination and management of health and safety during the construction phase. This role is about leadership, compliance, and strategic oversight.
- Building Contractor: Specialises in carrying out the actual construction work. They are responsible for delivering the physical aspects of the project, such as constructing buildings, installing fit outs, or performing renovations or refurbishments.
As mentioned before, projects that involve more than one contractor require a principal contractor to coordinate their activities. While a building contractor may sometimes act as the principal contractor, their duties and scope are distinct unless formally assigned both roles.
What does a principal contractor do?
A principal contractor’s responsibilities include:
- Communicating with stakeholders: This includes liaising with the client and the principal designer to understand the goals of the project.
- Developing a CPP: A construction phase plan is required for every construction project and is essential for planning and organising the project, as well as working together with others to avoid risks to health and safety. This document should be produced as soon as possible prior to setting up a construction site. The CPP should then be updated, reviewed and revised accordingly throughout the project. The Health and Safety Executive provides a comprehensive construction phase plan template.
- Coordinating contractors: Clear communication and cooperation is essential to ensure all parties can complete their tasks effectively while avoiding conflicts, additional costs, and unforeseen delays.
- Monitoring site work: The principal contractor must establish and enforce rules for the construction site. They must also conduct regular inspections to ensure compliance with the CPP and health and safety standards. All site staff must follow the relevant legal requirements.
- Ensuring workforce care: Adequate welfare facilities, such as rest areas and sanitary provisions, must be available for workers. The principal contractor must communicate with workers on matters connected with the project which may affect their health, safety or welfare, and provide relevant site inductions and copies of important information.
- Ensuring public awareness: Adequate precautions and measures must be taken to ensure the public is aware of construction (and its dangers) taking place.
- Access: This should be clearly marked, and where necessary, measures must be taken to restrict access to only key members of the project.
- Health and safety: Measures must be taken to ensure the construction project is carried out with minimal risks to health or safety. This can include the proper use of safety equipment, training, access and asbestos management.
Can the principal contractor be the principal designer?
Yes, in some cases, the principal contractor can also take on the role of the principal designer, provided they have the necessary skills, knowledge, and experience.
- Principal Designer Role: Focuses on the pre-construction phase. They ensure designers carry out their duties while identifying, eliminating or controlling any foreseeable risks.
- Principal Contractor Role: Focuses on the construction phase, with an emphasis on health and safety implementation.
Combining these roles can streamline communication and decision-making, but it requires careful management to ensure that both roles’ responsibilities are fully met. Some principal contractors offer this service as Design and Build contractors.
What are the key benefits of a principal contractor?
The key benefits of appointing a principal contractor in a construction project include:
- Centralised project management: A principal contractor oversees the entire construction phase, coordinating multiple contractors and ensuring the project progresses smoothly and efficiently.
- Health and safety compliance: They are responsible for implementing and enforcing health and safety measures on-site, reducing risks and ensuring compliance with legal requirements.
- Streamlined communication: Acting as a single point of contact for the client and all contractors, the principal contractor ensures clear and consistent communication, minimising misunderstandings and delays.
- Risk management: By identifying and mitigating potential risks during the construction phase, a principal contractor helps avoid costly disruptions and ensures the project’s successful completion.
- Resource coordination: They manage the allocation of labour, materials, and equipment, optimising resources to stay on schedule and within budget.
- Quality assurance: A principal contractor monitors progress and quality throughout the construction phase, ensuring that the project meets the agreed-upon standards and specifications.
- Accountability: Having a principal contractor provides a clear line of accountability, as they are responsible for the overall management and delivery of the construction phase.
How to choose the right principal contractor
In many ways a reflection of the benefits listed above, a successful principal contractor should have the following:
- Lots of experience across multiple sectors in the construction industry
- They should be fully accredited
- Be hands-on
- Have exemplary communication skills (many modern principal contractors, like ourselves, now have work management software to plan projects, with a centralised hub which clients can access to view documents, images, and up-to-date progress reports at any time)
- Be capable of managing a large and varied workforce
- Be fully qualified in health and safety with a significantly high percentage of their jobs completed without incident
- Have a proven track record for completing projects on time and on budget
If you’re planning a complex project and require help, but don’t know where to start, we suggest you check out our guides on what to ask a potential contractor and what to expect from an initial consultation.
Alternatively, you may wish to consider our services. Eden London is a fully accredited principal contractor with over a decade of experience in the construction industry across a wide range of sectors. No project is too big or too small for us. And with our 100% track record for completing projects on time and on budget, we will ensure your project is completed to the highest of quality. Contact us to learn more.
Eden have been incredible from start to finish. They have been entirely transparent on costs, assisted with design and worked extremely hard to meet my tight deadline. I couldn’t recommend them enough and look forward to working with them again on future projects.
– Marnie Swindells, Bronx (Gym Fit-Out)