General Contractor (CG and RG)

A contractor whose services are unlimited as to the type of work which he or she may do.

A general contractor is a group or individual that contracts with another organization or individual (the owner) for the construction, renovation or demolition of a building, road or other structure. A general contractor is defined as such if it is the signatory as the builder of the prime construction contract for the project.

A general contractor is responsible for the means and methods to be used in the construction execution of the project in accordance with the contract documents. Said contract documents usually include the contract agreement including budget, the general and special conditions and the plans and specification of the project that are prepared by a design professional such as an architect.

A general contractor usually is responsible for the supplying of all material, labor, equipment, (engineering vehicles and tools) and services necessary for the construction of the project. To do this it is common for the general contractor to subcontract part of the work to other persons and companies that specialize in these types of work. These are called subcontractors.

General contractors conducting work for government agencies are typically referred to as prime contractors. The responsibilities of a prime contractors working under a contract are essentially identical to those outlined above. In many cases, prime contractors will delegate portions of the contract work to subcontractors.

Most contractors are required to be licensed in each state and may be required to take an oral and written exam. To check for contractor license requirements, you may contact the National Association of State Contractor Licensing Agencies (NASCLA) Association

Contractors are defined in the law by each state and are usually considered those who contract, bid, negotiate a price or offers to construct, supervise, oversee, schedule, direct, alter, repair, install, improve, move, demolish, furnish labor, etc. In addition, there are various types: building (residential and commercial), electrical, plumbing, mechanical, highway, environmental remediation.

An owner or real estate developer would develop a program of their needs and select a site (often with an architect). The Architect assembles a design team of consulting engineers and other experts to design the building and specify the building systems to meet those needs. Today contractors frequently participate in the design team effort by providing pre-design services where they will help in providing more accurate estimation of budget and scheduling during design to improve the over all economy of the project. Otherwise the general contractor is hired just to build the building(s) at the close of the design phase. The owner, architect and general contractor work closely together to meet deadlines and budget. The general contractor then works with subcontractors to ensure quality standards in addition to timeline and budget. Often there will be disagreements between the contractor and the architect over style vs. function. These arguments may lead to lawsuits which most times can prolong or even stop a project.