What is a Principal Designer?
The Construction Design and Management Regulations (CDM) coordinator’s role was removed under the 2015 guidelines and succeeded by the Principal Designer role. Thus, all projects with more than one contractor are now required to have a Principal Designer rather than a CDM Coordinator post-2015.
The official definition of a Principal Designer under CDM is
a designer who is an organisation or individual (on smaller projects) appointed by the client to take control of the pre-construction phase of any project involving more than one contractor.
Principal Designers are required to have a comprehensive understanding of the work being undertaken and the pre-construction and design phases to ensure they can fully manage and coordinate the project. Additionally, they are important for influencing how risks to health and safety are managed throughout a project. Design decisions made during the pre-construction phase have a significant influence in ensuring the project is delivered in a way that secures the health and safety of everyone affected by the work.
When is a Prinicpal Designer Required?
Under CDM 2015, any domestic or commercial project with more than one contractor must have a Principal Designer involved from the start of the project. The regulations apply to all construction work and are a legal requirement. Every construction project must comply with CDM, and that includes appointing the necessary CDM duty holders.
Previously, duty holder appointments such as the Principal Contractor did not need to be made on domestic projects. Domestic projects being construction work carried out on one’s own home, or that of a family member, not connected with a business. Additionally, these appointments did not need to be made on non-notifiable projects (projects that didn’t need to be notified to the HSE). However, since 2015 Principal Designers need to be appointed on both domestic projects and non-notifiable projects.
What are the Responsibilities of a Principal Designer?
The duties of a Principal Designer, according to the 2015 update, were designed to mirror those of the existing Principal Contractor role, before construction starts. However, the responsibilities of this role do not end once construction starts.
According to the HSE, Principal Designers must:
- Plan, manage, monitor and coordinate health and safety in the pre-construction phase. In doing so they must take account of relevant information (such as an existing health and safety file) that might affect design work carried out both before and after the construction phase has started.
- Help and advise the client in bringing together pre-construction information, and provide the information designers and contractors need to carry out their duties.
- Work with any other designers on the project to eliminate foreseeable health and safety risks to anyone affected by the work and, where that is not possible, take steps to reduce or control those risks.
- Ensure that everyone involved in the pre-construction phase communicates and cooperates, coordinating their work wherever required.
- Liaise with the principal contractor, keeping them informed of any risks that need to be controlled during the construction phase.
If you’re in the market for a Prinicpal Designer, we’ve got your covered. Head over to our Prinicpal Designer website for more information on how we can help you keep you and your construction project legal!
