Co Design&Build
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In early 2017, OpenBox constructed warehouses extending over an area of 24,000 m² on behalf of GLD, a leading logistics provider in the French city of Grenoble. Pascal Dominois, operations manager at GLD, selected OpenBox because of their pricing and their unique advantages. What are your goals for this commercial real estate project? Our core client base is predominantly made up of large industrial companies based in the greater Grenoble area. In this region, real estate is a scarce resource that can jeopardise the performance of the entire supply chain. This shortage of available land for building has led to a dearth of modern logistics facilities, which play an essential role in the development of local economic activity and the creation of employment. Next-generation logistics platforms facilitate freight consolidation within transport hubs, reducing the financial and environmental cost of transportation. Moreover, having such a platform at our disposal will allow us to expand our logistics, transport and industrial packaging services within an infrastructure that is capable of meeting the demands of even the most challenging business sectors. By locating this new platform in close proximity to the greater Grenoble area, we are consolidating our position as a regional market leader and can offer our existing and prospective customers a viable, flexible and high-quality solution. Our logistics hub, extending over a single 60,000 m² site, is the only one of its kind in Grenoble. This hub is vital for us as a means of achieving our growth objectives; it's vital for our customers as a means of securing their long-term future in the region; and it's vital for greater Grenoble as a whole as a means of increasing and securing employment opportunities. In your opinion, how does the "Co Design&Build" offering differ from the other design and construction solutions on the market? From the first point of contact, we felt that we were dealing with a clear, transparent offering. As we were satisfied with the result of a previous construction project completed with the help of a general contractor, we did not want to invest time in providing a detailed description of our requirements followed by a thorough assessment of proposals. The collaborative process allowed us to make sure that we would quickly come to an agreement on the type of building to be constructed. With the "Co Design&Build" model, we can easily access key information whenever we need it, including the technical solutions proposed and implemented to meet our needs, the firm performance obligations we have agreed on, the list of companies that took part in the tendering process, and the current status of the schedule. Knowing the actual building costs and sharing any savings achieved also brings significant benefits in terms of reducing our own costs. Why did you select OpenBox for your project? In all honesty, and despite the numerous advantages offered by the "Co Design&Build" model, our original intention was to renew our partnership with the general contractor that we had worked with previously. However, OpenBox's competitive offering and extensive expertise led us to reconsider our decision within a few short weeks. Given the solution's solid technical, legal and financial credentials, it made no sense not to opt for the benefits of a solution that was more transparent, collaborative and cost-effective. For more information on this project, go to "Collaboration in action This e-commerce pure player was won over by OpenBox's offering. Sylvain Ferreira, CEO of parent company Jadéo, explains why he decided to entrust his distribution centre project to OpenBox, and describes the way in which he collaborates with our teams. What are your goals for this commercial real estate project? As a pure player in the e-commerce sector, logistics has always had a strategic focus for Jadéo – it's one of the cornerstones underpinning customer satisfaction. For this reason, we had never even considered outsourcing logistics before, because it's of such vital importance to our company. Similarly, we felt it was important to retain control of our real estate to ensure that it was optimally adapted to both our business sector and our growth targets. Since starting the project, there has been an increase in the scope of our business and in our sales volumes, due in particular to an acquisition in Germany. Our new platform will handle all despatches in Europe. In your opinion, how does the "Co Design&Build" offering differ from the other design and construction solutions on the market? Before now, we had never been involved in managing construction projects. Therefore, our first task was to gain an understanding of the different offerings in the sector, the positioning of the various market players and the potential solutions available. Again, we wanted to retain full control of all information and decisions. For this reason, we invested a lot of time in the tendering phase. I should mention that we were approached by a large number of companies. Several of them tried to impose their own schedule and conditions on us, based on their knowledge of the market, the legislation, the other players, etc... The "Co Design&Build" proposal was different to all the other proposals we received. The OpenBox team was on our side from the word go, and we held all the cards when it came to decision-making. They provided us with all of the information available to them, including details of the technical solutions and their pricing – but also the actual costs involved. Building our working relationship on this basis meant that all of the key steps in the process were carried out in a spirit of constructive dialogue. We have now adopted a project-based approach, with everyone pulling together, especially during "Co Design&Build" meetings where we are updated on company pricing, technical alternatives, works contracts, expected savings, etc. Nonetheless, our relationship is clear: we are the customer, and OpenBox are bound by certain performance obligations as specified in the real-estate development contract. Why did you select OpenBox for your project? The relationship of trust was built up gradually in the tendering phase. OpenBox understood our requirements perfectly and proposed solutions that were tailored to our needs. As they were a young company, however, we at first assigned them a project management assistance task so that we could gauge the quality of their work. During this phase, we had the opportunity to witness their commitment and their ability to protect our interests. When we compared them with general contractors, the "Co Design&Build" model proved considerably more competitive yet provided the same guarantees. As we were very impressed with OpenBox's working methods and collaborative approach, the choice was obvious. For more information on this project, go to : Collaboration in action Launched in December 2015 at SIMI, the French trade fair for commercial real estate, the "Co Design&Build" model was quick to win over numerous users and investors in the real estate sector. Why was this?
What are the benefits for customers? How is it different from existing construction models (project management and turnkey)? What added value does it bring? Three factors underlie its success to date:
1. Financial savings Traditionally, if a builder achieved savings during the course of a contract, they retained those savings. With the "Co Design&Build" model, these savings are shared with the customer. In a highly competitive market, builders are seeing a reduction in their margins. Often, the only way to improve these margins is to withhold information, set fixed financial objectives for the project manager and decide on technical solutions that serve their own best interests. During the construction phase, this approach sets the interests of the builder against those of the customer. By boldly opting for transparency and promoting a collaborative approach with the customer, the "Co Design&Build" model has pushed this logic to its natural extreme by sharing all savings with the customer. Thanks to its unique financial model, coupled with reduced overheads, OpenBox is the only player that has been able to commit to the sharing of savings in this way, based on certified accounts. "Co Design&Build" is a more cost-effective option. 2. End-to-end control of your project Once they have finished defining their requirements, customers with a commercial building project will be faced with a simple question: how can I be assured that fixed objectives will be met and expected performance levels achieved? This concerns pricing, commissioning dates, convenience, productivity and quality. To secure this assurance in regard to the final outcome, or to minimise risk, the customer chooses a builder based on their experience and financial stability. If they so choose, they can take advantage of the performance obligations provided within the legal framework of a French real-estate development contract (CPI = Contrat de Promotion Immobilière). The "Co Design&Build" model is very much in tune with this approach; OpenBox provides performance guarantees through CPI. When you choose the "Co Design&Build" model for your project, you'll also be kept up to date on the precise situation on the ground, right throughout the project – from updates on supplier prices, to technical solutions under consideration, to the current status of the schedule. If amendments need to be made to the contract, they can be defined, processed and implemented more easily and without conflict. "Co Design&Build" is a pragmatic solution that takes into account the complexity of real-estate projects. Transparency, collaboration and shared savings naturally converge in an alignment of interests. With the "Co Design&Build" model, the customer is better informed, which means that they have better control over their project. They no longer have to negotiate with builders for whom the contract is their one and only road map. A road that they too often prefer to travel alone, basing all decisions on what best serves their own interests. 3. Synergies and ability to capitalise on know-how The most efficient teams are those that work in a collaborative way. The "Co Design&Build" model acknowledges the rightful role of the customer's teams, allowing them to play as active a part as they choose in the design and execution of their projects. "Co Design&Build" thus gives team members the opportunity to gain increased insight and autonomy. This method makes it possible to exchange know-how as well as different perspectives. It allows each team member's expertise to be developed and is an important component in a project's overall success. With customer teams retaining full control, transparency and the alignment of interests foster co-creation and co-construction, which serves to benefit the project. OpenBox retains sole responsibility for the technical solutions implemented, giving the customer the full benefit of the guarantees offered by the real-estate development contract. The "Co Design&Build" model has established itself as a highly efficient approach to the management of projects. It lays the groundwork for finding effective solutions and resolving costly conflicts that require a great deal of energy, time and effort. |
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