Using Value Engineering Effectively
Value engineering achieves maximum benefits when applied early in the building process. Changing a preliminary design is simpler than changing final construction documents, and change orders during construction are much more expensive than design changes. The project owner and VE team can also accept suggestions from bidding contractors, but these must be included in the design documents before starting construction.
- Value engineering is much less effective in a project that has already started construction. At this point, the cost of major changes is likely higher than the benefit achieved.
- Some changes may still be cost-effective at this point, even if they involve rework. However, they will still increase the project budget, something that can be avoided by using value engineering from the start.
In theory, value engineering can be carried out by the project’s design team. However, this can be difficult because they must think outside the box, while judging their own work. Peer review brings an unbiased professional opinion, which is external and independent from the project. This generates more design options, allowing the best one to be chosen.
Value engineering and peer review can be combined with advanced design tools, achieving greater benefits. For example, if value engineering is applied during a building retrofit, it can be combined with energy modeling software. This allows value analysis for multiple scenarios, and the building owner can maximize the energy savings per dollar invested. Following a similar approach, NYC buildings subject to emissions limits (Local Law 97 of 2019) can maximize the emissions saved per dollar invested.