Brad Leavitt Podcast

Tankersley Construction: Applying Commercial Construction Principles to Midsize Residential Properties with Heather Tankersley

May 2, 2021

57:32

Heather is also a project manager at Amstar Construction Services, a service-disabled veteran-owned general contracting firm specializing in government and agency projects.

Prior to her current role at Tankersley Construction, Heather managed complex electrical projects for some of the largest electrical contractors in the United States.

Her prior project experience includes new student housing at Sacramento State University, new six story classrooms for UC Hastings, medical facility expansion at Folsom State Prison, and multiple VA and healthcare projects throughout Northern California.

Sponsors:

Sub-Zero, Wolf, & Cove

Pella Windows & Doors

Topics Discussed:

[01:48] How Heather’s commercial background informs her current residential projects
[04:16] Heather and Steve’s history and why they started their own company
[08:14] Building the pipeline
[11:41] Tankersley’s pre-construction process
[16:41] Creating project timeframes and setting client expectations
[19:57] Working with trade partners
[20:53] Tankersley’s Personal Service Agreements (PSA)
[24:09] Creating the first budget and how it transforms over the course of the project
[30:55] How often Tankersley’s clients use the owner portal
[33:13] How Tankersley chooses its designers
[35:55] Staying on the same page with trade partners throughout the project
[37:41] Setting up the job site binders and what they entail
[38:34] Tankersley’s management process and dealing with scope changes
[43:28] Managing Work In Progress (WIP)
[47:12] Conducting an audit with the project manager
[48:23] Lump sum versus cost plus and dealing with unknowns
[51:26] Tankersley’s approach to deposits
[55:46] What’s next for Tankersley?

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Key Quotes from Episode:

We’ve really built a network in our area with local designers just by asking what’s a pain point for them and what’s a pain point for us.
Hats off to you if you do cost plus. I did it back in my day and you never can capture all the time. It’s inevitable. Give me the lump sum all day.