Every package blames the next one.
Design, structure, MEP and fit-out let separately, with nobody owning the gaps.
General Contracting & Design-Build From an empty plot to the keys, run by one team on site.
We build as main contractor and as design-and-build contractor: structure, MEP and fit-out, planned in 4D, inspected at every hold point, and run on a site plan that moves with the programme.
AIM United · In short
What is design-build contracting?
Design-build puts the design and the construction under one contract with one contractor. AIM United works as main contractor and as design-build contractor from its Jeddah HQ, running structure, MEP and fit-out from one BIM model, with procurement, logistics, safety and quality managed on site. We build across Saudi Arabia.
Five contractors, five excuses. One building late.
The delivery arrives before the crane.
Materials on site with nowhere to put them, or crews waiting for materials.
Defects found after the ceiling closes.
No inspection before work is covered, so it gets opened up again.
Safety is a poster at the gate.
Permits, inductions and lifting plans that exist on paper only.
Stage 1 · Walk the build in 4D
Eight stages on site, one programme behind them.
Step through the build of Office block B02, a five-storey frame of 459 model elements. Each element is linked to the activity that builds it, so the model rises with the programme. Every stage stops at its hold points: the next activity starts only when the inspection is signed.
Stage 1 of 8Site set-up
The whole build plays once, then each stage rebuilds in detail as you scroll on.
Week 30
Week 52
- Built
- In progress
- Behind plan
- Not started
- Hold or witness point
- Baseline
- Current
- Critical
- Total float
Hold and witness points · this stageInspecting
Trades on site
Click a bar to isolate its elements, or click an element on the model to find its activity. The yellow pins are this stage's inspections: click one for its record.
Stage 2 · Progress against plan
Planned, actual, and the gap between them, on the model.
Every week the site is captured with a 360° walk and a drone flight, and each element is marked built or not against the model. Switch between the building the programme planned, the building on site, and the variance between the two.
Week 30
Week 52
- Built
- In progress
- Behind plan
- Not started
- On plan
- Ahead of plan
- Behind plan
- Not started
Site capture : 360° walk and drone scan, compared with the model by element.
0%Planned
0%Actual
Progress is weighted by each activity's share of the works, measured from the elements built, not estimated. The same figures go into the weekly report.
Stage 3 · Site logistics
The site plan moves with the programme.
The crane, laydown areas, gate, traffic route, welfare and exclusion zones are planned against the same weeks as the work. The site at week 10 is not the site at week 30: lifts, pours and deliveries are booked to the plan of that week.
Week 30
Week 52
Layers
Permits to work live this week
Crane TC-01 is modelled with a 36 m working radius. Loads are picked from the lift zone between the laydown areas, and nobody stands under a load: the exclusion zone follows the hook.
Stage 4 · Inspections and quality on the model
Every hold point, witness point and NCR, pinned to what it inspects.
The inspection and test plans set where work stops for a signature. Each inspection request and each non-conformance report is raised against a model element and its activity, so the register shows what is holding the programme, not just what is open.
Week 30
Week 52
Type
Status
H: hold point, the work stops until the inspection is signed. W: witness point, the inspector is notified and the work goes on if they do not attend. R: review of a document or record. NCR: non-conformance report, closed when the repair is inspected.
One contract, one team, from design to handover.
Design and build
One contract for the design and the construction. Our engineers and our site team work from the same model.
Structural works
Foundations, concrete frames and steel, sequenced floor by floor.
MEP works
Mechanical, electrical and plumbing installation from coordinated shop drawings, tested and commissioned.
Fit-out
Commercial, retail, entertainment and laboratory interiors, finished to the approved specification.
Procurement and logistics
Packages let, long-lead items ordered and deliveries booked to the crane and the hoist.
Subcontractor coordination
Trades sequenced floor by floor, with daily coordination and clear interfaces.
On-site project management
A site team that runs the programme, the records and the client reporting.
HSE and QA/QC
Permits, inductions and lifting plans; inspection and test plans with hold points.
Health, safety and environment
Our sites run to our HSE manual (AIM-HSE-001) and an occupational health and safety system certified to ISO 45001:2018, alongside ISO 9001 for quality and ISO 14001 for the environment.
- ISO 45001:2018Occupational health and safety
- AIM-HSE-001HSE manual
- ISO 9001 · ISO 14001Quality · environment
What a design-build contractor owns
One contract, one point of responsibility.
Under design and build, the employer's requirements say what the building must do, and the contractor takes on both the design and the construction to meet them. One party answers for the result, so a gap between the drawings and the site is not a dispute between two firms: it is ours to close.
| Area | We own |
|---|---|
| Design | The design we provide, to the standard the contract sets, coordinated across disciplines in one model.You get design submissions for approval, then shop drawings from the coordinated model. |
| Interfaces | The gaps between packages: structure to façade, MEP to ceilings, fit-out to commissioning.You get written scopes with the interfaces listed, and one coordination model. |
| Programme | The critical path, the look-ahead and the site logistics that serve them.You get a baselined programme, updated every week in 4D. |
| Quality | Inspection and test plans, hold points and NCR close-out.You get the inspection register, signed on the common data environment. |
| Safety | The site, under our ISO 45001:2018 system and HSE manual AIM-HSE-001.You get permits, inductions, lifting plans and inspections on record. |
We also build as main contractor to the client's own design. The design liability then stays where the contract puts it, and the site control is the same: the programme, the inspections and the interfaces are run by one team.
How we run a site
One team owns the gaps between the packages.
Design-build puts the design and the construction under one contractor, so the interfaces between packages become ours to manage. AIM United builds from its Jeddah headquarters, is registered with the Saudi Contractors Authority, and runs its sites with the site team and the BIM team working from the same coordinated model.
Every week starts with a look-ahead programme and every day with a coordination meeting. Work follows approved method statements and inspection and test plans, with hold points that stop the next activity until the inspection is signed. Non-conformance reports are closed on record, and the site's redlines go back into the model, so the as-built is ready when the keys are.
Field BIM ties the two together: shop drawings from the LOD 400 model on tablets on site, setting-out taken from the model, clashes resolved in BIM coordination before the trades arrive, and progress reported against the 4D programme. Safety runs to our ISO 45001:2018 system and HSE manual AIM-HSE-001.
Every day
Coordination and site records
A start-of-day coordination meeting, permits issued, inspections requested, and the work installed recorded against the model.
Every week
Look-ahead and progress report
The three-week look-ahead, progress against the baseline by package and floor, open inspections and NCRs, safety statistics, site photos and the 360° capture.
Every month
Progress report
The programme trend and forecast, the risk register, the status of long-lead items, and the quality and HSE summaries.
At handover
As-built and O&M
The as-built model and drawings from the site's redlines, O&M manuals, warranties, test certificates and operator training.
From tender to keys, in five steps.
- 01
Tender and design
The employer's requirements read, the design developed in one coordinated model, and buildability and logistics checked before the price.
- 02
Plan and procure
A baselined programme, a site logistics plan for each phase, packages let with written interfaces, long-lead items ordered.
- 03
Build
Method statements approved, a look-ahead every week, daily coordination, and lifts and pours booked to the plan.
- 04
Inspect and record
ITPs with hold and witness points, inspection requests on the CDE, NCRs closed on record, redlines into the model.
- 05
Hand over
Testing and commissioning witnessed, authority inspections, the as-built model and O&M manuals, and operator training.
Building in Saudi Arabia
Saudi codes, Saudi approvals, Saudi summers.
AIM United is registered with the Saudi Contractors Authority and builds across the Kingdom from its Jeddah headquarters. Design and works follow the Saudi Building Code and the project specification, and the inspection plans are written so the records an approval needs exist before the inspection, not after it.
- Saudi Building Code (SBC)Design and works to the SBC and the project specification, checked in design review and in the ITPs.
- Civil DefenseFire and life-safety systems installed from approved drawings and tested with the records the Civil Defense approval needs.
- Saudi Contractors AuthorityAIM United is registered with the Authority as a contractor.
- ISO 45001:2018A certified site safety system, with the HSE manual AIM-HSE-001, permits to work and lifting plans.
The programme carries the local calendar too: reduced working hours in Ramadan, and the summer ban on midday outdoor work, planned into the frame and façade sequence so the hours lost are known in advance.
Built by us, as main contractor.
- Bin DawoodMakkah · commercial complexMain contractorDesign and buildA commercial complex of about 4,800 m², designed and built by AIM United as main contractor, with the planning and progress reporting run by our own team.Projects →
- Heraa MallJeddah · entertainment hallMain contractorProcurement and installationA 2,400 m² entertainment hall: vendor coordination, procurement and installation.Projects →
- Al Hakim LabsJeddah and Makkah · laboratoriesDesign and buildFit-outDesign-and-build fit-out of laboratories: MEP, architecture and interior design.Projects →
- 250+engineers, from the BIM team to the site team
- ISO 45001certified occupational health and safety system
- ISO 9001 · 14001certified quality and environmental systems
- Registeredwith the Saudi Contractors Authority
FAQ
What is design and build?
One contractor is responsible for both the design and the construction under a single contract. You deal with one party, and the interfaces between design and site are ours to manage.
Do you act as main contractor?
Yes. We have delivered projects as main contractor, including Bin Dawood in Makkah and Heraa Mall in Jeddah, managing the subcontractors, procurement and site.
Are you registered with the Saudi Contractors Authority?
Yes. AIM United is registered with the Saudi Contractors Authority and builds across Saudi Arabia from its Jeddah headquarters.
Which works do you self-deliver?
We manage the whole site and deliver structural, MEP and fit-out works, bringing in specialist subcontractors where a package needs them, under our coordination.
How do you manage safety on site?
Every site runs to our HSE manual and our ISO 45001-certified system: inductions, permits to work, lifting plans, method statements and regular inspections.
How do you plan site logistics?
With the programme. The crane position and radius, laydown areas, gate, traffic route, welfare and exclusion zones are planned for each phase of the build, so lifts, pours and deliveries are booked to the plan of that week, and the plan changes when the crane comes down or the hoist goes up.
What is a hold point?
A point in an inspection and test plan where the work stops until the inspection is done and signed, for example before a concrete pour. A witness point gives the inspector notice to attend, and the work goes on if they do not. Both are set in the ITP before the work starts.
How do you report progress to the client?
Weekly, against the baseline programme: work done by package and by floor, the critical path, the look-ahead for the next weeks, open inspections and non-conformances, and safety statistics, with site photos. A monthly report adds the cost position and the risk register.
How do you compare progress with the plan?
Each week the site is captured with a 360° walk and a drone scan and compared with the model element by element. The report shows planned against actual by package and floor, the variance on the model, and the effect on the critical path.
Who carries design liability under design and build?
The design-build contractor takes responsibility for the design it provides, to the standard the contract sets, for example reasonable skill and care or fitness for purpose. The employer's requirements define what has to be achieved. We agree the standard and the interfaces with the employer's own designers at tender.
Can you take over a stalled or part-built site?
Yes. We start with a condition survey of the works in place, often with a laser scan, then review the contract, the approved drawings and the open items before we re-plan and price the remaining work.
How do you control subcontractor interfaces?
Each package has a written scope with its interfaces listed, coordinated shop drawings from the same model, and a place in the look-ahead programme. Daily coordination and hold points catch the gaps before work is covered.