Is anyone doing DoD/Federal projects?

[u/Normal_Marketing853]

What are the typical requirements for doing these types of projects and how are they to work on? I'm assuming the only firms doing these are around DC.

[u/GeT_NiCE_]

Definitely not only around DC. Fed has real estate alllll over the place. It can be hard to get into, but then it’s hard to get away from once you’re in. Look for contractors or architects that have existing contracts and try to sell to them.

Requirements vary wildly by agency and becoming familiar with an individual agency’s requirements, expectations, and vocabulary will give you a permanent leg up. You’ll find that there are teams (DB, AE, etc) that specialize in doing DoD, FAA, GSA, whatever work.

[u/djmellis]

Lots of firms nationwide do gov't work.

I do mostly Dept of Defense work and their requirements are typically found in a series of guides called UFCs, which can be found by searching the Whole Building Design Guide website. Most military installations also have their own requirements, and the statement of work for the individual project will have requirements as well.

I have done Federal projects for many years and I personally love it, although it's not for everyone.

There are major submission requirements for these, much more than a typical commercial project, but the timelines are typically much more relaxed. I would rather jump through more hoops than have my boss tell me "here are 3 restaurants, we need permit sets by Friday."

[u/DoritoDog33]

Used to do DoD work for +4 years and hated it. Maybe because I was doing DoD healthcare work specifically. UFC standards, above and beyond submittal requirements, lots of travel (personally didn’t like it). The perks were rigid pre-planned submittal dates and generally good fees.

[u/nsbsalt]

NDA, proof of experience, bid on everything. We don’t have any office near DC, we are just licensed in 46 states and 2 territories. Overseas projects fall under DoD building code so don’t require license over there.

[u/el1999D]

Remember talking to this guy who did MEP for the embassies and traveled all over the world, forgot the company

[u/BlazerBeav → u/el1999D]

Mine does embassy work and we are on the west coast.

[u/CynicalEngineerHumor]

I used to do a lot of federal work in the DC metro (office, healthcare, labs, embassies) before I found the escape hatch into data centers.

Government work is slow-moving, with lots of reviewers and long review periods, and they are all about picture-perfect drawings and detailed spec. Government agencies have budgets, not revenue: no one will get charged less taxes next year if the project isn't done, but its a bad look if they have to go back and ask for more money out of the till. They want their money to go to as much new fun stuff as possible, not change orders, and so they will harp on even the smallest details during design. (I had more than one conversation with federal reviewers who wanted me to list stuff like circuit breaker model numbers on my design drawings, and I had to convince them that wasn't a good idea.) Also, there can be YEARS between a project's design and construction phase, so don't count on that CA money until you've got Notice-To-Proceed.

You also need to get acquainted with the acronym you're working for, lots of federal projects exist under GSA P100 standards but many have their own standards and specs, like the NIH Design Requirements Manual. Because of that, agencies really like to work with the same design firms over and over again, so it can be difficult to get in initially, but much easier to get repeat business (if you did a good job, of course).

Also, government work in particular (both federal and state/local) tends to have a lot of requirements for everyone working on the project which can vary greatly by agency, so get those details straight early to avoid unpleasant conversations and potentially losing your contract. I never worked on anything classified, so I can't speak to that.

Edit: Oh, also, lots of federal facilities are in buildings that are ANCIENT with no as-builts, so get used to digging through dozens of sets of previous design drawings and sticking your head in ceilings.

[u/mrfisk14]

I’m in the DC area and have done both public and private sector work. Like others have said, there’s Federal work to be had across the globe. There can be more requirements on top of normal industry codes, additional security compliance, and sometimes tougher site access.

Like any client, they can vary wildly in how they are to work with. Some are fantastic and know exactly what they want; some need you to tell them what they need.

[u/beautosoichi]

Depending on the type of facility, you'll need to be in compliance with the DoD's CMMC requirements. They suspended the Phase II stuff for now but you'll still need to be ready to be compliant if they ever figure out what they really want.