Cost, quality and time

What each one means

• Cost is not just the price of construction. It includes fees, furniture, equipment, taxes, financing, and the cost of running and maintaining the building over its life.
• Quality is not just fine finishes. It means a building that works for its use, is safe and comfortable, lasts, and looks right.
• Time is not only how long the building takes to build. It includes briefing, design, approvals, tender, construction and moving in, as well as how early a building starts to earn or serve.

They pull on each other

• Faster usually costs more. Overlapping stages, extra labour and early orders raise prices and increase risk.
• Cheaper often means slower, or lower quality. Simplifying the design or choosing cheaper materials can save money now and cost more later.
• Higher quality needs time and money. Good detail, craft and testing take both.

There are exceptions: good design, clear decisions and early planning can improve all three, because a well-organised project wastes less. Most problems come from late changes, unclear briefs and rushed decisions.

There are exceptions: good design, clear decisions and early planning can improve all three, because a well-organised project wastes less.

Decide early what matters most

Tell the team your priorities, honestly. For a hospital that must open on a date, time may come first. For a family home that will last generations, quality may. For a developer with a fixed budget, cost may. Everyone can work better if the order is clear, and trade-offs are easier. See also How to write a good brief.

Think about the whole life

The cheapest building to build is often not the cheapest to own. Durable materials, efficient systems and good detail can cost more at first and save a great deal over decades. We compare options by their cost over time as well as at the start. See also Embodied carbon in plain language.

Change is expensive, and cheaper early

A change on paper costs little. The same change on site can cost a great deal. That is why the early stages matter so much: they are cheap, and they decide most of the outcome. Taking time to get the brief and concept right is usually the best use of time. See also From sketch to site.

Be honest about risk

Every project has risks: ground conditions, approvals, supply, weather, costs that rise. We identify them early, put a sensible allowance in the budget and the programme, and plan how to deal with them. A programme with no room for risk is a hope, not a plan.

Protect what is essential

When the budget is tight, the temptation is to cut across the board. A better method is to agree which parts of the design are essential, such as the key spaces, the main materials and the quality of the details people touch, and where savings can be found without harm. See also From sketch to site.

Work with your team

A cost consultant, a project manager and the design team can help you test options and make decisions with evidence. See also Cost consultancy and Project management.

In short

• Cost, quality and time pull on each other.
• Decide what matters most, and say so.
• Think about the whole life of the building.
• Spend time early, when changes are cheap.
• Plan for risk.
• Protect what is essential.

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