One of the biggest tasks in setting up a visitor center is dealing with the size of the budget.
I have yet to meet a project launched with an unlimited budget. Well, actually I met one project in Israel that seemed to operate with an unlimited budget - the Anu Museum in Beit Hatfutsot.
All the programs of each visitor center are derived from the amount of the budget while trying to get as much return as possible for the amount nominated for the project.
A construction project for a private house also begins with the question of the budget, and I remember how 10 years ago when we built our own house (in Moshav Nir Galim, by the way) we finished the planning with the contractor, we came to a situation where the budget we had at our disposal was fully used, and we even had to exceed the budget a little in order to realize the plans. Only after we started the actual construction, we came to the understanding that we must hire an inspector, even though the inspection involves additional costs that, for us, were unplanned.
It goes without saying that even though we spent extra money on the supervision, the inspector saved us many costs and prevented significant mistakes that would have also cost us additional unplanned expenses.
Entrepreneurs of many visitor center construction projects make the same mistake when they calculate the construction costs, and it doesn't matter if it is a budget of one million NIS or 10 million.
In recent years, I have come across several cases where the entrepreneurs thought it would be better for them to invest the entire budget in the implementation company, and "save" the money for supervision and professional consulting, because the implementation company are excellent professionals, the plans they presented are excellent, and it would be a shame to give up part of the budget for supervision. In one of the projects for which I am currently advising, the entrepreneur told me the first time we met: "I would be happy to hire a consultant, but I have no free budget left, and I have nowhere to get the money for that."
I would like to share a few examples of visitor centers that I advised, in which the entrepreneurs were saved between 100,000 NIS and over a million NIS, and also in a project that I did not advise (nor any other consultant) in which the entrepreneur was not saved 3.2 million.
Project A - savings of 1.1 million NIS.
When the developer of the center in question contacted me, there was already a production company with which he contracted for the planning and execution of the project. The company had already been working for several months, and the contract between the parties was on the verge of being signed. I was invited to an introductory meeting with the performing company so that they could present the concept and the program to me, and to understand the intended content. The meeting lasted 3 hours, and when we left the meeting I received a WhatsApp from the entrepreneur: "Can we sign the contract already? The operating company is pressing..''
I answered the entrepreneur: "Wait."
After a careful examination of the plans I realized that the costs presented by the executing company were unreasonably high above the accepted costs in the market. Bottom line, the contract was signed a month later, for an amount that was 1.1 million NIS less than the original agreement that the developer intended to sign - if I hadn't stopped him.
Project B - the budget remains - the price increased by NIS 250,000
In the visitor center where I served as the project manager for the client, there was a set budget of 3.5 million NIS. After conducting a quality tender - a tender in which the project budget is known in advance and the competition is for the concept and quality of the content and display means - an excellent production company was chosen that came with good ideas and impressive designs.
After the tender management process and the selection of the winning company, the entrepreneur wanted to sign the execution contract, but this is where I entered the picture and asked to hold another detailed meeting with the execution company to get down to the planning and execution details before signing the final contract.
At that meeting, the company presented us with all the plans, which included, among other things, a content position that explains a complex process and story through texts and illustrative images. It was interesting but not good enough, and after a discussion it was agreed that instead of the texts and pictures, the company would produce a series of videos devoted to the same position. If the videos in question had to be priced, their cost would reach NIS 250,000. So although the entrepreneur's budget remained as originally planned, the return he received for the budget was greater and the final result was much better.
Project C - a waste of NIS 3,200,000.
This is a project in which I was not involved, nor was any other consultant on behalf of the client in the picture. A visitor center in the center of the country established by one of the well-known companies for a sum of 4 million NIS. Apparently, 4 million is not an unusual budget when establishing a visitor center, and even the content presented in the center is quite reasonable. The problem is that the exact same content could be produced at a cost of only NIS 800,000. Which leads to one of two possibilities: either the entrepreneur would have remained with NIS 3.2 million in his pocket, or alternatively, the entrepreneur would have received much better results with the amount of NIS 4 million that he invested in the project.
The conclusion - investing in a good consultant = certain savings
From the experience of many projects, working with a lending consultant who works for the client and protects his interests saves money - always.
Of course, beyond the financial advantage, there are other advantages that are usually even much more significant - achieving good content results, achieving the goals and fulfilling the vision of the entrepreneurs, and many other topics that we will talk about in other posts, such as: improving the visitor experience, planning the accessibility of the service for people with various disabilities, planning maintenance Over the years and more.
Sustainability Visitor Center. Expo 2022. The investment is evident in every corner
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