When planning a construction project, it is important to understand the difference between a general contractor and a specialty contractor. The two serve very different roles, and understanding that difference can help you determine what kind of help your project needs.
A specialty contractor is responsible for one specific trade or aspect of construction. A general contractor is responsible for the project as a whole.
That distinction becomes increasingly important as a project gets larger and more complicated.
At Warren Construction Group, we regularly work with a wide range of specialty contractors while managing the overall construction process. We also self-perform a significant amount of work with our own carpenters, finish carpenters, cabinet makers, roofers, and other skilled employees.
From our perspective, the biggest difference isn’t simply who performs the work. It is who is responsible for making all of the work come together.
What Is a Specialty Contractor?
A specialty contractor focuses on a particular trade or type of work.
Examples include:
- Electricians
- Plumbers
- HVAC contractors
- Drywall installers and finishers
- Tile contractors
- Painters
- Masonry contractors
- Roofing contractors
- Flooring contractors
- Landscape contractors
A specialty contractor brings specific skills, experience, equipment, and knowledge to their portion of a project.
For example, if you hire a painting contractor to paint the exterior of your house, their responsibility is generally focused on preparing and painting the surfaces. If you hire an electrician, their responsibility is the electrical installation.
There may be only a handful of specialty contractors involved in a small project, while a large addition, commercial project, or custom home could involve a couple of dozen different trades and subcontractors.
The more trades involved, the more coordination is required.
What Is a General Contractor?
A general contractor is responsible for the entire construction project.
Rather than focusing on one particular trade, the general contractor manages the people, information, schedule, budget, contracts, materials, and coordination necessary to bring the project together.
The general contractor acts as the conduit through which information and decisions flow between the owner, architect, design team, and specialty contractors.
Ultimately, the general contractor is responsible for delivering the project according to the agreed-upon schedule, specifications, budget, and design intent.
There is generally only one general contractor on a project, even when there may be a dozen or more specialty contractors working on it.
The General Contractor Is Managing the Connections Between Trades
The easiest way to understand the difference is to think about what happens between the individual trades.
Hiring a plumber is relatively straightforward if all you need is a plumber. But what happens when you are building an addition?The plumber needs to know when the framing will be complete. The electrician needs to coordinate with the plumber. The HVAC contractor needs to know where ductwork will run. The insulation contractor needs to know when the rough mechanical work is complete. The drywall contractor needs to know when everything behind the walls has been inspected and approved.
Every trade depends on work performed by someone else.
That is where the general contractor becomes valuable.
Why Construction Scheduling Is More Complicated Than It Looks
A construction schedule isn’t simply a list of contractors with dates next to their names.
The work has to happen in the correct sequence.
For example, a plumber shouldn’t show up to install toilets simply because the toilets were scheduled for that day if the tile floor underneath them hasn’t been installed and grouted.
Sometimes the schedule changes because of circumstances outside anyone’s control. Perhaps the rough framing and plumbing inspection was pushed forward because the inspector will be away for two weeks.
Now the schedule needs to change.
Someone has to recognize the impact, communicate the change to everyone involved, and adjust the work that follows.
That’s part of the general contractor’s job.
The General Contractor Is Managing Hundreds of Details
There are hundreds of things that can go wrong on a construction project.
An inspection can be missed.
A material can arrive late.
A subcontractor can finish their work but leave something incomplete that the next trade needs.
An electrical box can be installed in the wrong location.
A wall can be closed up before an important component is documented.
A plumber can arrive before the area is ready.
These may seem like small issues individually, but small problems can quickly compound when they affect the work of several other trades.
A good general contractor is constantly looking ahead to identify these issues before they become problems.
What Does Warren Construction Group Bring to a Project?
At Warren Construction Group, we bring a wide breadth of knowledge to every project we are involved with.
That knowledge comes from the entire team, including our carpenters, job site superintendents, project managers, and project finance team.
On every project, clients have an experienced team working alongside them from beginning to end.
A significant portion of our expertise comes into play before construction even begins.
The General Contractor’s Role Starts Before Construction
We are often brought into projects during the preconstruction phase.
This is when some of the most important decisions can be made.
During preconstruction, we work with owners, architects, engineers, and designers to develop and discuss:
- Project budgets
- Construction schedules
- Constructability
- Material selections
- Phasing
- Coordination between trades
- Alternative approaches
- Potential cost savings
- Potential schedule savings
- Building-envelope considerations
- Existing building conditions
For example, something as simple as determining how a basement bathroom will connect to the existing plumbing can have a significant impact on the project.
The earlier those questions are addressed, the more options you generally have.
Preconstruction Can Prevent Expensive Problems
One of the advantages of involving a general contractor early is the ability to identify potential problems while there is still time to address them.
On one recent project, the owner and architect were balancing several options: building new, restoring an existing farmhouse, or combining the two.
We were able to work with the design team to identify potential costs and construction issues during the planning process.
During that process, we identified that the existing stone rubble foundation was old and should not have additional structural loads placed on it.
That information helped guide the design process.
The issue wasn’t simply about fixing a problem. It was about identifying the problem early enough that the owner, architect, and construction team could make an informed decision about the direction of the project.
That is one of the reasons we believe bringing a general contractor into the process early can be so valuable.
General Contractors Can Bring Constructability Experience to the Design
Architects and engineers bring tremendous expertise to a project, but they don’t necessarily build every detail they design.
A general contractor brings a different perspective.
We are constantly thinking about how something will actually be built.
Can the material be sourced?
Can it be installed as designed?
How will the different trades work together?
What happens before this work?
What happens afterward?
Is there a better way to accomplish the same design intent?
Could a different material save time or money without compromising the design?
These questions are part of constructability.
A General Contractor May Also Self-Perform Work
Not every general contractor performs construction work themselves.
At Warren Construction Group, one of our significant advantages is that we can self-perform a substantial amount of the work.
We have teams of carpenters, finish carpenters, cabinet makers, roofers, and skilled individuals who can work across several trades.
This provides flexibility that can be particularly valuable on complicated projects.
Self-performing work allows us to maintain greater control over quality, scheduling, and coordination. It also means we can step in when needed rather than relying entirely on outside subcontractors for every portion of the project.
A Real Example: A Small Detail That Required a Lot of Coordination
One project that illustrates the value of general contracting involved a relatively small feature within a much larger residential project.
The design called for a simple but very elegant stone-clad built-in BBQ, trellis structure, and patio.
The design intent was for the trellis structure to appear to “float” approximately four inches above the patio and BBQ area.
It sounds relatively straightforward. It wasn’t!
Before construction even started, we worked closely with the owner, architect, and engineer to determine what was possible, how the finished feature should look, and what materials and finishes would be used.
The trellis had steel supports that needed to pass through very large, two-inch-thick stone pavers. Those steel supports then carried multiple wood fins that formed the legs of the trellis.
The first challenge was finding someone capable of cutting a two-inch by five-inch slot into a single piece of stone without breaking it.
Then came the coordination.
The project required communication and sequencing between:
- The BBQ manufacturer
- Mason
- Landscaper
- Electrician
- Carpenters
- Painters
- Steel fabricator
- Stone fabricator and cutter
Each trade had a specific role, and the work had to happen in a specific order.
There were multiple planned trips for individual trades, along with trips to different fabrication shops to make the components.
Because the design had very little room for error, Warren Construction Group worked closely with everyone involved and also performed some of the work ourselves.
The finished feature may look simple and elegant.
But getting there required a significant amount of planning and coordination.
That is a good example of the difference between hiring individual specialty contractors and having a general contractor responsible for the project as a whole.
Can a Homeowner Be Their Own General Contractor?
Yes.
A homeowner can act as their own general contractor, but that doesn’t mean it is the right choice for every project.
Before taking on that responsibility, I would consider several questions:
- How large is the project?
- How complicated is the project?
- How many specialty contractors will be involved?
- Do you have a network of reliable, vetted trades?
- Do you have the time to manage the project?
- Do you have the bandwidth to deal with problems?
- Do you understand construction sequencing?
- Are you comfortable managing contracts and payments?
- Do you understand the applicable building codes and inspection requirements?
A homeowner managing a painting project is one thing.
A homeowner coordinating twelve contractors during an addition, ADU, or custom home is something entirely different.
The complexity changes dramatically.
Managing Specialty Contractors Is a Job in Itself
As a general contractor, this is what our team does every day.
If we are working with a new trade partner, we know the questions to ask before bringing them onto a project.
Once they are on the job, we are responsible for making sure their work is being performed to a high level and that they are appropriately staffed.
At the same time, we are communicating with all of the other contractors working on the project.
There is a tremendous amount of communication happening behind the scenes.
In many cases, the owner doesn’t see it.
And that’s a good thing.
When everything is working correctly, the project simply keeps moving.
What Happens When Something Goes Wrong?
This is another important distinction between a specialty contractor and a general contractor.
A specialty contractor is responsible for their portion of the work.
A general contractor is responsible for solving problems that affect the project.
Imagine an electrician installs wiring, a plumber installs piping, and the framing contractor builds the wall. Then someone discovers that an electrical location conflicts with the plumbing.
Who moves what?
Who pays for it?
Does the design need to change?
Does the schedule change?
Who communicates the issue to the architect and owner?
The general contractor is typically the person coordinating those conversations and finding a solution.
There are hundreds of these decisions on a complex construction project.
The value of having someone responsible for managing them should not be underestimated.
The Difference Is Ultimately Responsibility
A specialty contractor is responsible for doing their particular job well.
A general contractor is responsible for making sure all of those individual jobs come together into one completed project.
That means managing:
- Preconstruction planning
- Budgeting
- Contracts
- Scheduling
- Procurement
- Trade coordination
- Quality control
- Safety
- Code compliance
- Constructability
- Communication
- Problem-solving
- Coordination with architects and engineers
- Coordination with the owner
- Final project completion
The general contractor is responsible for the big picture while also keeping track of the hundreds of small details that make up the project.
When Is a General Contractor Worth the Cost?
I think the answer comes down primarily to complexity.
If you are hiring one specialty contractor to complete a relatively simple project, you may not need a general contractor.
Hiring a painting contractor to paint the exterior of your house is a good example. There isn’t necessarily a lot of coordination required.
But when a project requires multiple trades working closely together, the value of a general contractor increases significantly.
An addition, ADU, major renovation, or custom home can involve a dozen or more contractors. Each trade needs to know what the others are doing, when they need to be there, and what needs to be completed before they arrive.
That is a different animal.
You Are Hiring a Service and Buying a Finished Project
When you hire a general contractor, you are getting both a service and a good: the service is preconstruction and project management, and the good is the completed project.
The two go hand in hand.
In my opinion, however, it is the service side of the project that has the biggest part to play in how the project will turn out.
A beautifully designed project can still have problems if it isn’t properly planned, scheduled, coordinated, and managed.
The finished building is the result.
The planning and management that happen behind the scenes are what help get you there.
The Bottom Line for Maine Homeowners
For a small project with limited coordination, hiring specialty contractors directly may make sense.
For a larger Maine construction project with multiple trades, complicated sequencing, structural work, or significant design and coordination requirements, a general contractor can be worth their weight in gold.
The question isn’t simply whether you could hire each specialty contractor yourself.
You probably could.
The question is whether you want to take responsibility for coordinating all of them.
At Warren Construction Group, that’s our job.
We bring the experience, systems, relationships, project management, construction knowledge, and skilled people needed to move a project from an idea through preconstruction and into a completed building.
When all of those pieces come together, the homeowner gets something far more valuable than a collection of completed individual trades. They get a completed project.
