GilbertLanham is adding to its self-perform concrete and structural steel crews. More of the work that sets the pace of our projects will be done by our own carpenters, ironworkers, finishers and laborers, led by our own foremen.
Own the activities that own the schedule
Look at the critical path on almost any building and the structure sits right at the front. Footings, walls, decks and the steel frame decide when the building is dried in, and every trade behind them waits. If a project is going to slip, it often slips here, and the slip carries through every activity that follows.
Self-performing that work puts the critical path under direct control. A superintendent can move a crew to the next deck without negotiating a change order. A second pour shift can be added the day a weather window opens. A steel sequence can be reworked around a late delivery the same afternoon, because the people deciding and the people building answer to one project team.
It also sharpens our numbers. Estimates for self-performed scopes come from our own production records, not from a single number on bid day. That means earlier, more reliable budgets in preconstruction and fewer surprises at buyout.
What is growing
- Concrete crews for foundations, cast-in-place walls, elevated slabs and site concrete.
- Structural steel and miscellaneous metals erection crews working from our own lift plans.
- Owned and maintained forming, shoring and finishing equipment.
- Field leadership grown from within our own craft ranks.
- Training in formwork, rigging and signaling, fall protection and placement quality.
Our VDC team models pour breaks, formwork cycles and erection sequences alongside the design, so each crew starts with a plan already checked against MEP coordination and the site logistics plan.
Every day we shave off the structure is a day every trade behind us gets back. That is why we want our own hands on it.
Self-perform operations lead, GilbertLanham
What it means for partners and owners
This is not a move away from trade partners. Mechanical, electrical, plumbing, envelope and finish scopes will continue to go to qualified specialty contractors, and Rising Trade Partners continues to help emerging firms grow alongside us. The change is focused on the structural work where direct control pays off most.
For owners, it means one accountable team for the work that sets the tempo of the job. If your next project has a structure on the critical path, and most do, let us show you what self-performing it looks like on your schedule.
