This article isabout the General Contractors Duties and Responsibilities. For more info, Call: (281) 751-6345.

1. Title: General Contractors: Duties and Responsibilities
Article Summary:
A general contractor is the one in-charge for the whole supervision of the construction process. He is the
one responsible for the overall production of the whole construction project.
The specific duties of a general contractor includes: plan implementation, payroll functions, purchasing
of materials, acquisition of permits and licenses, law reviews, proper budget allocation and
implementation of changes.
Article Body:
A general contractor is responsible for the overall production and supervision of a construction project.
He is bound to meet the expectation of the client constructing the project according to the designer’s
plans and specifications following the conditions, price and time frame set in the contract. Careful
Planning, proper coordination, and maintaining an effective system of communication is also the
responsibility of a general contractor. He also needs to carry out all the processes needed for the
construction of the project starting from planning to maintenance. Quality of work and safety of workers
should not be sacrificed in the course of the project construction.
Specific Duties of a General Contractor
Implementation of plans
To ensure that the construction is done in a timely manner, a general contractor needs to implement a
plan that extends in hiring workers to establishing a step-by-step timeline or time frame which will serve
as a guide from the start of the construction to finish.
Engage in payroll functions
The general contractor is also responsible for hiring, supervising and sometimes firing employees who
do no good in the project. Since it is his responsibility to hire, he must also engage in payroll functions
since workers need to be paid and compensated.
Purchasing and obtaining materials
A general contractor is also responsible for producing and obtaining the materials needed for the
construction. Acquiring the necessary materials for the project is in the hands of the general contractor.
This entails proper coordination to various suppliers.
Acquisition of permits and licenses
It is the responsibility of the general contractor to get necessary licenses and permits from authorities
and relevant entities before the construction begins to ensure that problems in the construction site,
internal and external problems will not arise. This includes building permits and zoning permits that are
necessary to ensure that the construction will not destroy the environment and will provide no hazards
to the community.
Law reviews and regulation research
The contractor must also do his research on the rules, regulation and laws that are relevant and
significant to the construction process. There are laws that limit building in certain areas, from location

2. to the environment hazards. These laws must be taken into consideration to have an assurance that the
construction is dine through a law-abiding manner.
Proper Budget use and Allocation
The general contractor should ensure that all spending and costs are within the working budget. This
allows the construction process to mobilize in a co-efficient manner. Instituting and following the
budget allocation should be taken seriously to ensure that the construction will be done according to
how it is suppose to finish.
Implementing changes
If changes are necessary, it is the responsibility of the general contractor to implement them. Since they
are responsible for the whole supervision and monitoring of the project, it is within their scope to
implement changes if necessary for the betterment and productivity of the construction.
Deal with emergency
Unavoidable circumstances permit the cause of emergency cases. It is the responsibility of the
contractor to deal with the problems and consult his client for possible solutions and suggestions. The
general contractor is in-charge of the totality of the project; he is the one accountable for any
emergency or casualty issues.
Traits of a General Contractor
Good Decision Maker
General contractors should be decisive; he needs to be a good decision maker as he will be dealing with
the totality of the project from planning with the client, coordination to maintenance. Important
decisions need to be made any time so he has to know how to act on certain issues.
Highly Experienced
General contractors should have established experience. Dealing on a project in which you are not
expert of makes you unproductive. Having enough experience help the contractor to perform his job in a
timely and effective manner.
Good Leader
General contractors should have leadership skills. Many individuals and entities will count on the
general contractor so he needs to possess leadership skills to be able to show them the way to solve
problems and make all works accomplished.
Problem Solver
General contractors should be able to solve problems in a quick and speedy manner. They should be a
good problem solver to provide necessary solutions. Since the construction follows a time frame, a
delay in one area of the construction can affect all production. One mistake may to the holdback of the
whole construction so a general contractor must be able to provide possible solutions immediately.