Bad Shell Contractors

As a window consultant, I’m often on site multiple times a month to coordinate complex shell layouts — and I’ve worked with some excellent GCs and shell contractors. But sometimes, it’s a challenge.

On this project, the homeowner approved the window package before selecting a GC. My proposal was sent to 6 contractors on the first round of bidding and 4 or 5 more on the second. The job ended up going to a company I’d never worked with — and they were clearly in over their head with the complexity.

I had to step in repeatedly to adjust beam and column sizing just to make the headers align properly. And yes — that’s a structural column with leaves inside the tie beam pour.

The lowest bid isn’t always the best value — especially when the details matter this much.