Episode 115 - CDM Principal Designer

This week we will be expanding more on the role of the CDM Principal Designer. This episode content meets PC1 - Professionalism & PC2 - Clients, Users & Delivery of Services of the Part 3 Criteria.

Resources from today's episode:

Book:

• Principal Designer’s Handbook and a Guide to the CDM 2015 Regulations

Website:

• https://www.hse.gov.uk/construction/cdm/2015/principal-designers.htm

Thank you for listening! Please follow me on Instagram @part3withme for weekly content and updates. 

Join me next week for more Part3 With Me time.

If you liked this episode please give it a rating to help reach more fellow Part3er's!

Transcript

Episode 115:

Hello and Welcome to the Part3 with me podcast. 

The show that helps part 3 students jump-start into their careers as qualified architects and also provides refresher episodes for practising architects. I am your host Maria Skoutari and this week I will be expanding more on the role of the CDM Principal Designer. Today’s episode meets PC1&2 of the Part 3 Criteria.

I briefly covered the role of the CDM Principal Designer back in Episode 4 where simply touched on some of the key duties the CDM PD offers and we also discussed it with Max & Connor in episode 62. On today’s episode, I will be seeking to dive deeper into the role and expand on the responsibilities, appointment and key duties of the CDM Principal Designer. 

Let’s start by looking at who can take on the role of CDM Principal Designer:

Where there is likely to be more than one Contractor at work on a project at any time, a CDM PD must then to be appointed in writing by the client.

The Principal Designer must be, either one of the design organisations or sole practitioner Designers designing the project and have relevant design experience appropriate to the project, or a separate Designer or design organisation not part of the team designing the project.

The Lead Designer for example could undertake the role of Principal Designer in addition to being the Lead Designer. If the Lead Designer, however, does not feel capable of delivering the health and safety services required of a Principal Designer, then two choices are available:

• The Lead Designer can accept the Principal Designer appointment, but subcontract the Principal Designer role to a suitably experienced consultant; in this scenario, the appointed Principal Designer retains the full legal responsibility for the Principal Designer service their consultant, 
• Or, the Client can appoint a separate design organisation individual as Principal Designer.

What is the process of appointing a CDM Principal Designer:

It is recommended for the Principal Designer to be appointed as early as possible in the design process in order to assist the client in matters such as pulling together the Pre-Construction Information and giving the Principal Designer enough time to carry out their duties. The duration of the Principal Designer’s appointment should take into account any design work that may continue into the Construction Phase, or any issues that may arise during construction involving the need to make suitable modifications to the designs.

So, once the member of the design team has been identified to undertake the role, then the consultant will need to have a discussion about the role and duties of the Principal Designer with the client and any possible services that the client may require that should be included as part of the agreement.  The appointed principal designer should also inform the client of their duties under CDM. 

A Brief for the role of Principal Designer should be agreed with the Client. This will be based on the Client Brief. If no written client brief is forthcoming, it is recommended that a Client Brief is provided by the Principal Designer recording the briefing discussions with the Client in writing.

Once the role and services have been agreed with the client, it is recommended to use a standard APS Form of Appointment as Principal Designer which is the industry standard, or if you are an architect undertaking the role of Principal Designer, it is recommended to use the Principal Designer Professional Services Contract. A schedule of services should then be agreed and included within the chosen appointment form. 

It is important to note that when acting as both Lead Designer and Principal Designer to identify the services being provided for the Principal Designer role, and the period in the project programme during which these services are required since these may differ from the Lead Designer arrangements. This is where separate forms of appointment or bespoke appointment letters should be used which clearly set out the services being provided and the fees being charged for these services.

So when determining the fee for the role of Principal Designer the resources and time it will take to fulfil the role should be established, bearing in mind what must be legally provided to the Client over and above the requirements for a Designer. CDM 2015 also requires by law sufficient resources to be provided to enable the Principal Designer to fulfil their duties, and this will need to be demonstrated to the client. 

The Principal Designer should also check any liability issues with their professional indemnity insurance first before taking on the role. 

The fee should, therefore, take into consideration and include for:

• Staff time
• Additional resources that may be required, including specialists
• Overheads
• Travel time and expenses for site visits and attendance at design/project team meetings
• And assisting the Client in providing the Pre-Construction Information and the delivery of documents, such as drawings, reports, any Designer deliverables and the Health and Safety File(s)

If the project is a domestic project, then the designer is advised to provide their client with a fee for both the design services and for undertaking the Principal Designer duties to ensure they have sufficient resources allocated to discharge their roles. It is, therefore, advisable for the designer to make a record within their fees of the resource allocated to each service they are providing, in order to be able to demonstrate that they have made adequate provision. 

Another potential scenario is, if the project is using the design and build procurement route, there are two routes to be followed. Before the Design and Build contractor is appointed, the client should appoint a Principal Designer for this early design work. Now if the designer appointed as Principal Designer is to be novated to the contractor once they come on board, then they can no longer fulfil the Principal Designer role and the client must appoint a new Principal Designer. 

Now, generally on all projects, in the case of a late appointment, the Principal Designer will need to inform the Client of any significant health and safety implications, which can include:

• The time required to enable Pre-Construction Information to be obtained and provided to Designers
• Time for checks that management arrangements are in place to enable satisfactory planning, managing and monitoring of the Pre-Construction Phase, and the coordination of all relevant matters
• Time required to enable the Principal Designer to revisit design work to check suitability and compatibility of designs
• Time for cooperation with the Principal Contractors to ensure they have all the relevant information they need to proceed
• Missed opportunities to eliminate, reduce and manage risk and reduce whole-life costs
• Failure to take into account the General Principles of Prevention.

So once the CDM PD’s appointment and services have been determined, what does their role and responsibilities entail:

The Principal Designer is expected to have the skills, knowledge and experience relevant to the construction, maintenance and use of the project. The Principal Designer must also have knowledge of and the skill to apply the principles of Design Risk Management and have knowledge of the CDM 2015 Regulations. And they are expected to plan, manage and monitor the Pre-Construction Phase, and coordinate construction health and safety during this phase to ensure that the project is carried out without risk to health and safety, so far as is reasonably practicable, as it is not possible to ensure that construction work is carried out without risk.

Initially, they will assist the client in preparation of the Pre-Construction Information at the start of the project and identify any gaps that the client will need to instruct including further investigations and studies during the initial design phases. It is then the CDM PD’s duty to pass on this information to designers and contractors and continue to gather and identify gaps of information as the design progresses and share it with all relevant parties. During the Pre-Construction Phase, the Principal Designer must also start preparing the Health and Safety File and keep it updated throughout the pre-construction and construction phases. The Principal Designer should tailor their approach according to the size and type of project and is responsible for passing the Health and Safety File to the Client unless the Principal Designer's appointment ends before the conclusion of the project. In these circumstances, the Principal Designer must pass the partially completed Health and Safety File to the Principal Contractor for completion and handover to the Client, and advise the client that this has been done.

Once the project is on-site, then it’s the Principal contractor’s duty to ensure the CDM regulations are being met on site. At this stage, however, the Principal Designer should remain involved in considering the health and safety implications of all design work on the project, including design undertaken during the Construction Phase, which also covers temporary works. The Principal Designer also has a duty to liaise with the Principal Contractor for the duration of their appointment, and this includes liaison regarding design development during the Construction Phase, and the coordination of health and safety during the Construction Phase. The Principal Contractor should, therefore, let the Principal Designer know which design will be used and how they are proposing to plan, manage, monitor and coordinate the packages. The Principal Designer should then use progress meetings and continuing liaison with the Principal Contractor to remain on top of design development and identify where closer coordination between Designers may be needed. Even if they cannot attend all these meetings, they should receive the minutes and periodic coordinated design drawings.

Other key responsibilities and services the principal designer must undertake include identifying, eliminating or controlling foreseeable risks to health and safety and having the necessary skills, knowledge and experience for the size and type of structure they are appointed on and working with all Designers to identify risk issues to those who construct, use and maintain the structure. Cooperation is, therefore, key between all those involved in a project. The Principal Designer is responsible for ensuring the Design Risk Management process is being undertaken by Designers and

for collating the results. Designers do not have to eliminate all risks, but if they let them remain they do need to justify this. They must identify foreseeable significant residual risks and communicate these clearly to others. The Principal Designer should ask questions and prompt the Designers to comply with good Design Risk Management and the intentions of CDM 2015.

Now, if a Designer believes they don’t have the necessary skills, knowledge and experience, and organisational capability, relevant to the project then they must not accept the appointment.

That’s why it’s essential that designers offering services as Principal Designers will need to consider how to establish their organisation’s ability and resources to offer the Principal Designer service. Those without previous CDM experience will need to undertake training in order to demonstrate skills and knowledge sufficient to understand and deliver the Principal Designer role.

A key distinction to highlight is that on commercial projects if a client fails to appoint a Principal Designer, the obligation to fulfil the Principal Designer's duties falls to the client by default. If it’s a domestic project, then the designer in control of the pre-construction phase becomes the principal designer by default.

On Commercial Projects there are some responsibilities which fall outside the Principal Designer’s role, which include:

• Submitting the F10 notification to the Health and Safety Executive or check that the Client has done so
• Checking the skills and experience of the Designers or Contractors unless they are appointing them directly
• Advising the Client on their appointment of Designers and including their skills, knowledge and experience
• Advising the Client on their health and safety arrangements for the project, including welfare facilities
• Reviewing or approve the Construction Phase plan or check that it has been implemented
• Appoint the Principal Contractor
• Reviewing or approving health arrangements on site, including method statements
• Taking on overall design responsibility for the project – the Principal Designer role is only to manage health and safety during the Pre-Construction 
• Supervising or monitoring health and safety on site – this is the responsibility of the Principal Contractor
• Checking or approving designs; the Principal Designer role involves the review of health and safety risks emanating from the design process.

In terms of Domestic projects, these tend to be dealt with slightly differently from commercial projects, as mentioned the client on domestic projects should appoint the CDM Principal Designer and CDM Principal Contractor, if these appointments are not made by the Client, the Designer in control of the Pre-Construction Phase and the Contractor in control of the Construction Phase take on the role of Principal Designer/Principal Contractor by default. All other Client duties are passed to the Principal Contractor, or to the Principal Designer if appointed in writing. On some projects, the Designer may be asked to produce design and construction information but their appointments will be terminated before

procurement of a Contractor, which the Client will take control of. Therefore, it makes sense for the Principal Designer to take on the client’s duties at least until a Principal Contractor is appointed. Taking on the Client’s duties will mean that the Principal Designer takes on the responsibility for providing the Pre-Construction Information and setting out the Client’s arrangements for managing health and safety for the project, and ensuring that these arrangements are described in the tender documentation. The Principal Designer undertaking the Client duties must also ensure, prior to commencement of construction works, that the Principal Contractor produces a sufficiently developed Construction Phase Plan and that suitable welfare facilities are being provided. During the Construction Phase, which may overlap with the Pre-Construction Phase, the Principal Designer undertaking the Client role will also liaise with the Principal Contractor about how the Principal Contractor will maintain the management arrangements during the Construction Phase.

So up to which point does the role of the Principal Designer extend to:

The Principal Designer is expected to liaise with the Principal Contractor for the duration of their appointment. An initial Principal Designer may be appointed to provide a partial service, for example, to undertake the production of drawings and specification only. However, the Client must appoint a Principal Designer for as long as the Pre-Construction Phase lasts. In certain instances:

• If there is no further design or temporary works design when the Pre-Construction Phase has ended, the Principal Designer role can in such cases cease and the Principal Contractor could complete the Health and Safety File.

• If there is continuing design or temporary works design which ceases before the end of the project, a Principal Designer must be appointed while the design continues.

• If the design or the Principal Designer appointment continues to the end of the project, the Pre-Construction Phase is as long as the Construction Phase, and the Principal Designer appointment needs to continue to mirror the Construction Phase for the Principal Designer to deliver the Health and Safety File to the Client at which point the Principal Designers appointment ends once the Health and Safety File is handed over.

• In some instances, the Principal Designer role may be carried out by the Principal Contractor if they have the capability.

It is generally advisable, however, if possible for the Principal Designer role to continue, to avoid the need to pass completion of the Health and Safety File to a different person and to deal with the continuing design that invariably takes place during the Construction Phase on the vast majority of projects.

What does the Principal Designer then have to do and provide at the end of their appointment:

At the end of their appointment, the Principal Designer needs to hand over information for the Client’s use to enable the Client to obtain tender prices and continue with the project. This information should include:

• The drawings and specifications
• The Pre-Construction Information
• The Health and Safety File as developed to that date
• A statement that the Principal Designer role for the project has concluded
• Advice about how to proceed with procurement of a Principal Contractor; the Principal Designer should ensure that the client is made aware that the Principal Contractor needs to demonstrate CDM 2015 capability as well as technical capability and track record

And then, on completion of their role, the Principal Designer should send a letter or email to the Client advising them:

• That the Principal Designer’s role has finished; another Principal Designer should be appointed, or the Principal Designer duties could be carried out by the Principal Contractor. The tendering Contractors, one of whom will be responsible for any design changes during the construction period, should also be advised
• That the Client should ensure that the tendering Contractors can demonstrate Principal Contractor awareness and capability, including:
• track record
• ability to deal with significant risks identified in the Pre-Construction Information
• provision of references from other Clients/Advisers.

To sum up what I discussed today:

• The Principal Designer must be, either one of the design organisations or sole practitioner Designers designing the project and have relevant design experience appropriate to the project or a separate designer or organisation
• The Principal Designer is recommended be appointed as early as possible in the design process to assist the client in matters such as pulling together the Pre-Construction Information
• Once the role and services have been agreed with the client, it is recommended to use a standard APS Form of Appointment as Principal Designer or if you are an architect undertaking the role of Principal Designer to use the Principal Designer Professional Services Contract
• On commercial projects if a client fails to appoint a Principal Designer, the obligation to fulfil the Principal Designer's duties falls to the client by default. If it’s a domestic project, then the designer in control of the pre-construction phase becomes the principal designer by default.
• The Principal Designers duties involve ensuring the client is aware of their duties under CDM 2015. They must then plan, manage, monitor and coordinate health and safety matters to ensure that, so far as is reasonably practicable, the project is carried out without risks to health or safety, consider the General Principles of Prevention/Construction Phase Plan and Health and Safety Files, Identify, eliminate or control, foreseeable risks to the health or safety of any person, Ensure all Designers comply with their duties, Ensure, in relation to the Pre-Construction Phase, all persons cooperate with the Client, Principal Designer and each other, Assist the Client in provision of Pre-Construction Information, Provide Pre-Construction Information, promptly and in a convenient form, to every Designer and Contractor appointed, or being considered for appointment, Liaise with the Principal Contractor and share information relevant to monitoring and coordination of health and safety matters during the Construction Phase, Prepare a Health and Safety File during the Pre-Construction Phase and review, update and revise as necessary.
• Not accept the Principal Designer appointment unless capable