When you might want extra Beams support
Your builder runs the project day to day, and on the standard service we review the evidence at each milestone on the platform, with a site inspection available if you ask for one. For larger or more complex projects, you can opt in to additional Beams Project Management Support. It adds weekly site visits as standard, hands-on coordination, and proactive support, for 20% of the build cost.
What it adds
The standard service gives you the contract structure, milestone payments, our review of the evidence at each milestone, and a build advisor in the background. You can also ask for a site inspection on the standard service when you want one. Project Management Support puts a Beams person on site regularly and in the detail of the build:
- Weekly site visits from Beams, aligned to the project's progress and risk points. The difference from standard is that they happen as a matter of course rather than when you ask.
- Hands-on coordination alongside your builder, covering sequencing decisions, supplier coordination, and programme oversight.
- Proactive support on issues before they escalate. Many of the issues we see on builds could have been caught two weeks earlier with the right eyes on them. Project Management Support is those eyes.
The fee for Project Management Support is 20% of the build cost.
When it's worth it
Project Management Support tends to make sense when:
- The build is large. A whole home, a major extension, or a project with multiple specialist trades sequencing together.
- You won't be on site much yourself. You're working full-time, you've moved out, or you're abroad, and you'd rather someone from Beams was there regularly without you having to ask each time.
- The project has unusual complexity, like a heritage building, a conservation area, joinery running alongside the build, or structural work that interacts with finishes.
- You want a more managed experience, and you'd rather pay for it than do it yourself.
When the standard service is the right call
The standard service works well when:
- The project is single-room or modest in scope.
- You're around to be involved in the day-to-day yourself, and to see the work as it progresses.
- Your builder is one you've worked with before, or one you trust to communicate well.
- You'd rather keep the cost down, run the relationship directly, and ask for a Beams inspection only on the milestones where you want one.
Most Beams customers run on the standard service, and most of those projects go well. Project Management Support is an upgrade for the situations where the extra structure helps.
What this means for you
Talk to your planner if you're thinking about it. They'll talk through the trade-off: whether your project is the kind that benefits, what the additional fee will look like in your context, and what you'd actually get in practice.