Co Design&Build
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With more than 100,000 m² of work in progress, OpenBox strengthens its team: we welcome two new experienced employees, Jean-Christian FRAGNAUD as Project Manager and Frédéric LAMBLOT as Studies Manager. They both capitalise a great experience in our industry.
A look at the collaboration between OpenBox and GLD with Pascal Dominois, Director of Operations at GLD
Why did you choose OpenBox? When consultation began at the beginning of 2016, it seemed to us that OpenBox, as a company, was too young and was not, therefore, a credible option for us. But OpenBox insisted on delivering an offer, they were extremely motivated! For our part, we wanted to assess the proposal of the contractor with whom we were already working. We were surprised by the gap between both prices. The determination of the team, indeed its obligation to succeed in the operation, convinced us. We decided to trust them. And we have no regrets! How would you describe your experience with Co Design&Build? The Co Design&Build meetings were very reassuring and they enabled us to move forward with the project together as a whole. Reports on accounting, planning, costs, everything was reviewed each month. A completely different way of working. We were able to see that the OpenBox strategy didn’t involve margin recovery but was more concerned with information sharing and collaboration. When issues arose (which inevitably occur on such projects), they were discussed and resolved. Everything was done progressively as we moved forward, in a collaborative way. When you don’t discover things too late, you can’t suspect a hidden agenda. So tensions are quickly dissipated. Given the highly competitive circumstances and the consensual efforts made during the negotiation, the “shared savings” at the end of the operation were limited, but the transparency was a reality that made the offer unique. Objectively, this transparency and collaboration allowed us to conduct this operation in a relaxed and constructive way, until the snagging list was resolved. Throughout the entire project, we felt supported. Are you satisfied? Of course, because the timing and the price were kept in check and the building is consistent with what we wanted! Our new 24,000 m² tool means we can work with large industrial clients, who are careful about the handling of their goods (like Rolls-Royce Civil Nuclear, Hager, etc.). We offer them tailored solutions for storage, procurement, industrial packaging and transportation. Whatever the sector (pharmaceutical, food, energy, mass distribution), our expertise in logistics and our set-up are the hallmark of our reputation, but our warehouses are a definite advantage: now when we tour the warehouses with our clients, the design quality wins them over. The building is also scalable, as demonstrated by the 25-tonne-capacity overhead travelling crane, which are already being installed for our industrial packing and handling operations for large volumes. We will therefore be able to offer integrated solutions under the same roof, in a high-end environment. With more than 100,000 m² of logistics work in progress, OpenBox is diversifying into commercial buildings and the industrial sector. OpenBox has been awarded the contract to construct the new storage building for France Machines Outils, a specialist in new and used machine tools.
The France Machines Outils group is currently positioned as one of the major alternative solutions suppliers of equipement for sheet metal and mechanical engineering production. Established in 1987 in Vaulx-en-Velin, Lyon Machines Outils has decided to expand and move to Meyzieu to strengthen its operations in the Rhône-Alpes region. Construction is due to start in the summer of 2018 on the new premises, which will extend over 2300 m² and include a work area equipped with a 25-tonne bridge crane and 375 m² of offices/common areas. The new building, which is ideally located in the centre of road and motorway traffic routes and integrated into a European-wide logistics area, will enable the BBL Group to house its three companies under one roof and to enhance performance and quality. The building will extend over 18,000 m² and include 2 logistics units, 1 parcels unit, 1600 m² of offices and common areas on 3 floors. It will be certified BREEAM Good for its environmental performance. The premises were acquired prior to completion of construction (VEFA) by AEW.
One of the key challenges involved was to ensure that BBL Group's shipping customers continued to receive the same level of high-quality service as they had previously enjoyed. OpenBox won the tender based on its competitiveness and strong commitments, especially in terms of financial guarantees and lead times. The company was able to support its customer's real estate strategy and take the necessary risks to successfully complete the project. Co Design&Build customarily enables project savings to be shared between OpenBox and its customer. For this project, Pierre Charvin requested that OpenBox substitute the sharing of savings for the refurbishment of the group's current building before the end of its lease. And this deserves some explanation! In June 2017, OpenBox delivered Jadéo's e-commerce platform: deguisetoi.fr. After a few months, its financial statements were prepared and certified. From the beginning, Jadéo had decided to construct its building with Co Design&Build, an innovative collaborative method: information and decisions are transparent and shared throughout construction, and savings made during the project's design/build are shared according to a pre-determined distribution chart. Jadéo has already received the first instalment of the savings and the second will arrive in the autumn.
This demonstrates that parties' interests can be reconciled, and that positive synergies can be established between the builder and the customer. Everyone wins with Co Design&Build! Europe's leading supplier of fancy dress costumes and the first company to place their trust in OpenBox, Jadéo and their teams moved to their new logistics platform in August 2017. The platform's two logistics units for receipts and despatches, together with three picking levels to ensure a fully mechanised order-preparation process, are set to significantly increase productivity for DeguiseToi.fr and the group's other e-commerce sites. Today, the platform handles almost 40,000 items. The building also includes a showroom, a photographic studio as well as offices and staff areas.
Now that the project has been delivered and all reserves lifted, it's time for Bertrand Chabanne and Sylvain Ferreira, CEO of Jadéo, to start tallying the figures. When you build based on a Co Design&Build model, you get to share in the savings achieved over the lifetime of the project, on the basis of certified accounts. In this case, OpenBox is about to write their customer a six-figure cheque. Transparency and collaboration are the new values that OpenBox will be promoting in order to establish relationships of trust and a new way of working. For Laurent Charrier, who supervised the project and has worked in the design and construction of commercial buildings for more than 20 years, the best way to ensure rapid progress is to establish a working relationship based on a harmonious and constructive approach. Everyone stands to benefit. Together they will be moving into brand new premises at the Chesnes Ouest urban development zone in Saint-Quentin-Fallavier where they will get to share over 18,000 m² of building space, including 1,600 m² of office space. Interview with Pierre Charvin, managing director of Transports CharvinWhat was the goal of this new project for your two companies? Transports Charvin joined the BBL Transports group in 2016. BBL operates an integrated multimodal logistics network that spans right across Europe. BBL wanted to extend its reach both in France and in Europe and to expand its range of services. Transports Charvin are specialists in the transport of sensitive products along France's north/south corridor, particularly for the mass retail sector and key accounts. Together, we now benefit from more comprehensive national coverage, not to mention new expertise in the area of logistics management. At Saint-Quentin-Fallavier, our two companies had a number of logistics platforms with accompanying office space. It made sense to group our teams together and build a new shared platform capable of accommodating the increase in volumes. We stand to benefit in terms of efficiency and performance. Why did you choose OpenBox? I had known Bertrand Chabanne for many years. And during our discussions during the tendering phase, I had the opportunity to experience Laurent Charrier's professionalism first hand. I had also asked advisors with expertise in the area to verify the solidity of the commitments that had been made by OpenBox and backed up by BEG Ingénierie. I made my decision without any hesitation. Clearly, their proposal was very competitive. However, their "Co Design&Build" methodology was also a decisive factor. Constructing a logistics building, which in our line of business is essential to the work we do, is no trivial matter. It should be viewed as a business project that involves a certain amount of risk – risk that needs to be managed. In particular, it's important to ensure that the final outcome is in keeping with our original expectations. We want to know what is going to be done, and how it is going be done. With the "Co Design&Build" methodology, we can track the progress of our building project from start to finish, which brings great peace of mind. How does it work on a practical level? During the monthly "Co Design&Build" meetings, we are provided with all of the relevant information and have the opportunity to share our opinions, discuss options, find out about purchase prices, get a better understanding of what companies are offering, review the schedule, etc. We are actively involved in the project, which means that misunderstandings and unpleasant surprises are avoided. It makes for a healthier working relationship. We are co-creating our own building, which is a very effective way of really understanding the issues involved. Of course, we don't always agree, but we have all of the information we need to get a true understanding of the issues involved, so we can avoid negative fallout from unilateral decisions and have the opportunity to create really constructive solutions together. I was also able to use the savings that were achieved during the project to fund the completion of additional work. To safeguard the deadline, I also asked OpenBox to begin work even though there were outstanding issues yet to be clarified. In both cases, OpenBox agreed to my request in a matter of seconds. It was clear to me at that point that I was dealing with business owners that were capable of showing great flexibility in the way they made decisions and managed risk. For more information: Collaboration in action 28 June 2017, Villard-Bonnot, Francis Gimbert (President of Grésivaudan), Pierre Béguery (Deputy-President of Grésivaudan), Daniel Chavand (Mayor of Villard-Bonnot), Patrick Goffi (founder and managing director of GLD), and Bertrand Chabanne (founder and managing director of OpenBox) laying the cornerstone of this 24,500 m² logistics platform.
The elected representatives spoke about the importance of logistics infrastructure to the economic growth of the region. Bertrand Chabanne commended Patrick Goffi's decision to place its trust in OpenBox, a mere 8 months after the company had been established. Patrick Goffi spoke of his satisfaction in relation to the quality of the building and the timeframe in which it was completed. He also attested to the transparency of the "Co Design&Build" solution and the practical benefits of the collaboration between OpenBox and GLD. Goffi praised the expertise of the project team, made up of Martine Worme-Girard, Loïc Thomas and Laurent Charrier. Responding to the thanks he received from Bertrand Chabanne, he recalled how he too, thirty years previously, had received support from other individuals when setting up GLD. In so doing, he summarised the sentiment of the day; a renewed awareness of the role of businesses in the local economy and of the importance of individual responsibility. When people place their trust in entrepreneurs, and elected representatives put in place conditions that are favourable to investment, everyone wins Progress advances at the DeguiseToi.fr e-commerce logistics platform in Vaulx-Milieu in a spirit of collaboration and transparency. Friday 19 May: Jadéo, OpenBox, their partners and construction workers celebrate progress at the site. More information. In the logistics real-estate sector, it was already game, set and match, and the general contractor had emerged the clear victor. Enter an unexpected player: The customer!
Why is project management making such a strong comeback? Do customers really have no option but to choose between the extremes of a project manager and a general contractor? Between risk and lack of transparency? Could "Co Design&Build" be a viable alternative? The back story… In the early 2000s, developer-investors became actively involved in the professionalization of the logistics sector by offering what were referred to at the time as next-generation buildings. Their idea was to move quickly and "conquer" all of Europe by offering high-quality logistics platforms within a short space of time. The platforms were built before securing a tenant, as investors were sure that they would have found one before the work had completed. The challenges facing the few developers of the time were simple:
But then comes the twist… The advent of the financial crisis closely followed by the economic crisis forced investors and tenants to question the existing model. This marked the start of an important shift that was equally influenced by the sharp growth in e-commerce and the rationalisation of logistics costs.
With the right resources at hand to manage risk and achieve savings, the project management model has now become a viable alternative. In recent months, traditional general contractors have been passed over for a number of important projects, and all signs indicate that this is a trend that is set to continue. A difficult dilemma… Ensuring that customers' expectations in terms of quality and schedule continue to be met will still require expertise and effort. Once the tendering phase is complete, the cost of the design phase and subsequent construction phase is pretty comparable whether you're looking at the project management model or the general contractor model. Customers that use both models often confirm this. This can be explained by the purchasing methods of general contractors, the high levels of competitiveness in the market and the minimal provision they make for the risks they take. However, the reality on the ground at the end of the project can often be very different. If a general contractor provides a price guarantee, they often retain any savings achieved over the course of the project solely for their own benefit. Similarly, because of the lack of transparency in their proposals, it can be quite the challenge to manage the changes and adaptations requested by users, who are continuously looking for greater levels of flexibility and efficiency. Against this backdrop, it's easy to understand the frustrations of technical teams on the project owner side. Despite their expertise, they have no say in decisions that are made and often not even shared by the contractor. Project managers that work on the basis of transparency and collaboration will not provide a price guarantee for the entire cost of a project. The customer still has to bear the risk of company insolvencies and unforeseen events on the ground, and they still have to live with the uncertainty of slippage in prices and deadlines until they sign off on each company's final statement of account. There is no one good or one bad solution. There are two very different proposals, and one difficult decision to be made by the project owner. Is this extreme choice the only one available to customers? What if there was another option? One that was...
This is the challenge that the "Co Design&Build" solution is seeking to address – how to combine the benefits of the turnkey solution with the benefits of project management; two options that are perfectly legitimate but require a radical choice. The "Co Design&Build" model provides a compelling alternative. |
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January 2024
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