The Design-Build Difference: How ARCO is Helping Owners Move Beyond Traditional Construction Methods

The traditional design-bid-build method (often called plan-and-spec) remains the default for many projects: hire an architect, collect contractor bids, and choose one to build the facility. While familiar, this linear process frequently results in inefficiencies, budget overruns, and schedule delays. ARCO National Construction offers an alternative: a design-build delivery method that integrates design, budgeting, and construction from the outset to deliver tailored, cost-effective solutions.

Owners who shift to ARCO’s design-build approach gain clear advantages in cost, operations, and scheduling. Our integrated team streamlines decision-making by prioritizing constructability and cost-efficiency, reducing the need for costly redesigns and change orders. Rather than applying a one-size-fits-all approach and bidding drawings as is, we customize every facility to the client’s operational needs, leveraging early subcontractor input to optimize layouts and structural systems. We also provide firm lump-sum pricing early in the process, giving owners cost certainty as long as the project scope remains unchanged.

Many owners come to ARCO after encountering the limitations of traditional delivery methods. Our design-build approach consistently delivers greater value in cost, efficiency, and speed – regardless of industry, complexity, or scale. From cold storage and food and beverage facilities to distribution, manufacturing, and commercial facilities, our  design-build process delivers superior outcomes for all projects.

Initial Challenges with Traditional Construction

Prior to choosing ARCO, the user engaged a development manager to oversee the entitlement and design process. While achievable, the resulting plan did not present the best possible solution.

The Design-Build Alternative

When ARCO was invited to provide pricing, we declined to bid the existing plan set and instead proposed a fully integrated design-build solution tailored specifically for the user’s needs.

ARCO’s team developed a purpose-built design that included features to maximize both cost and operational efficiency. The redesign also increased the allowable top-of-product storage height from 35.5 feet to 40 feet, enabling the client to increase overall pallet capacity.

Key advantages of ARCO’s design-build approach included:

– Lower total cost compared to all other bidders
– A purpose-built facility that increased overall capacity
– A proposed accelerated schedule to complete the project two months faster than other bidders

ARCO was ultimately awarded the project because our solution provided lower overall costs, increased operational capacity, and a shorter construction schedule.

In today’s competitive environment, the success of a project depends on more than just getting a building completed – it depends on delivering the right solution, at the right cost, and on the right timeline. ARCO’s design-build approach empowers owners to achieve that by integrating design and construction into one seamless process. The result is greater cost certainty, faster delivery, and facilities that are truly built around business needs.

In traditional construction, owners manage separate contracts with the architect and the general contractor. Under the design-build approach, ARCO assumes full responsibility for both design and construction. This single-source accountability removes barriers between the design and construction teams and creates a direct, transparent line of communication. Owners gain a true partner who manages every phase, from project concept to completion.

One of the biggest limitations of traditional construction methods is determining the true cost of a project only after design completion. If bids exceed owner budget expectations, redesigns and rebidding can delay schedules by months and add unnecessary costs.

Through design-build, ARCO incorporates real-time cost feedback into the design process. Our design and construction teams collaborate to validate budgets as the design evolves. Once the scope is defined, we provide firm lump-sum pricing in the proposal phase, giving owners cost certainty before construction begins. This approach prevents costly redesigns and change orders from the start.

The traditional design-bid-build process forces each phase – design, bidding, and construction – to occur sequentially. Design-build allows them to overlap strategically.

At ARCO, our teams begin permitting and early construction activities, such as sitework or foundations, while final design packages are being completed. This parallel workflow compresses the schedule and can bring facilities online months sooner, reducing costs and accelerating return on investment.

In many traditional projects, the facility’s layout or systems are designed without full understanding of how the user’s operations will function inside it. That disconnect can lead to inefficiencies that persist for years.

In the design-build model, ARCO’s works collaboratively with owners and operators to design facilities around workflow, equipment, and future growth. This means structural systems, MEP design, and site layout are tailored to actual operations, not just a set of drawings. The result is a building that performs better from day one and supports long-term business goals.

ARCO National Construction is a premier, full-service design-build general contractor with more than 30 years of experience providing clients with complete project delivery throughout the United States. Our professional, qualified team of engineers, project managers, superintendents, and architects is capable of designing and building the most demanding construction projects anywhere in the country. We pride ourselves in offering the best, most cost-effective, single-source, turnkey solutions and adding value to every project.