All-trades execution for architects, your project delivered turnkey

The all-trades scope for a French commercial office commonly comprises 15 work packages, sometimes more on a complex site: partitions, flooring, ceilings, electrical, HVAC, plumbing, low-voltage systems, building management systems (BMS), interior joinery, signage, integrated furniture, painting, metalwork, glazing, final cleaning.

Kytom brings management in-house and contracts the selected companies directly, with no hidden subcontracting layer.

• Technical framing before signing each package, based on your DCE.
• Compliance review package by package, cross-checked against your EXE (execution design) plans and technical specifications (CCTP).
• Phase-by-phase tracking with a single site contact, no chain of emails to arbitrate.
• Package-by-package acceptance before overall acceptance, consolidated pre-acceptance inspection (OPR).

Kytom branches pool a network of Qualibat-certified companies. Each package is contractually traced between Kytom and the holding company. Phasing by floor plate frees up buffer zones to maintain occupancy on an occupied site; on a 1,000 sq m floor plate, our experience generally places this timeframe at around twelve weeks.

A contrarian position on the general-contractor orthodoxy. The profession often presents the general contractor and coordinated all-trades management as two equivalent models to choose between. Our reading differs: on fit-out commercial work, the general contractor adds a margin of 8 to 12% on the packages it subcontracts anyway, whereas all-trades management with direct contracting returns that margin to the budget. That said, the single all-trades contract is not universal.

When the single all-trades contract is not the right answer. All-trades management loses its value on small-floor-area operations with a limited number of packages: the coordination premium then exceeds the time gained. On a project where the firm has an already-staffed internal project-coordination (OPC) unit, the duplication creates a contractual grey area. On operations with a strong structural or facade component, where the building trades represent less than 40% of the budget, a general-contractor arrangement remains more straightforward.

Acoustics compliant with regulatory requirements on acoustic correction in workplaces, with traced compliance

For the lead firm, the documentary burden is the real responsibility issue. In the event of a later inspection or a dispute over a specification, it is the operations and maintenance file (DOE) and the time-stamped environmental product declarations (FDES) that protect the architect, not the site report. Kytom does not hand this burden back to the design project manager: the technical unit verifies every regulatory assumption before execution, then processes the residual authorisations (prior declaration, work authorisation for category-five public-access buildings (ERP), accessibility file for persons with reduced mobility (PMR)). The management of acoustic and dust nuisances is governed by a protocol signed with the end client, which avoids decisions being referred back to the firm during execution.

Reference standards applied on architect-partner operations:

1. Acoustics of workspaces. Interior joinery between closed offices or meeting rooms reaches Rw greater than or equal to 32 dB at standard level, Rw greater than or equal to 38 dB in direction, in line with the target values adopted for the standard and high-performance levels.
2. Regulatory framework Title I R4211 to R4217 for lighting, ventilation, workplace safety.
3. RE2020 on applicable operations, with FDES traced by material.

Fire classifications are archived, the DOE delivered complete at handover, within the timeframes contractually agreed with the lead firm. The final file enables your firm to justify specification choices in the event of an inspection.

Documentary limit. The consolidated Kytom DOE does not replace the subsequent intervention file (DIUO) or the modified permit file if the nature of the works triggers it: on a category-one to category-four ERP operation, or in the event of a modification to the load-bearing structure, the regulatory processing remains carried by the lead firm. The acoustic nuisance protocol also loses its relevance on a fully vacated site: it is calibrated for the occupied site.

APD or frozen DCE, two engagement modes with your signature preserved

For the partner firm, the question is not Kytom vs a competitor: it is design assist vs strict execution. The right choice of partnership mode determines budget control far more than the choice of contractor. Kytom never bypasses the lead architect. Your design approvals remain contractual, your firm’s OPC respected where it exists, your site reports signed off. Your firm’s remuneration is not a matter for negotiation: Kytom never invoices the end client by circumventing your assignment.

Two partnership modes coexist.

• Design assist during the APD phase. You bring us in before the DCE is frozen. Kytom provides a cost-schedule-feasibility reading on technical decisions, which secures the budget envelope before the works contract. Your specifications remain your specifications.
• Strict execution on a finalised DCE. The file is closed, Kytom responds, contracts and executes without renegotiating the intent. Any variants go through your approval.

The branch network covers France and Spain, which makes it possible to align a local lead with the head office of your multi-site client. The right reflex is to bring Kytom in during the APD phase, to secure budget and schedule before the file is frozen.

When design assist is not relevant. Contrary to the widespread view that presents design assist as universally preferable, our reading is more nuanced: the mode becomes counterproductive if the firm has already completed its APD with an internal cost-estimating unit or an independent engineering office (BET). Replaying the decisions creates friction with no budgetary gain. It also loses its value in a formalised public competition, where competitive tendering rules prohibit any prior association of the execution company. In both cases, strict execution on a finalised DCE remains the standard mode. The length of relationship with our recurring partner firms exceeds six years on average, reflecting a collaboration built to last.