Construction
New-build and major structural works, coordinated with qualified specialists.
- Concept and feasibility
- Project team assembly
- Programme and budget
- Coordination with the licensed project team
- Owner-side supervision
A construction project succeeds where the owner has a clear, single point of contact who is not the contractor.
The office holds that role - quietly, and without conflict of interest.
- 01
Feasibility
The office assesses whether the property, the plot and the permissions support the project.
- 02
Team
A qualified project team is assembled. Licences are handled by the appropriate Spanish professionals.
- 03
Delivery
Owner-side supervision through completion and handover.
Construction is delivered by licensed Spanish contractors and coordinated with the appropriate architects, engineers and technical directors.
What construction means here, and how it differs from renovation
Construction covers new-build houses, major structural works and extensions - the projects where a building is created, substantially altered in its structure, or grown beyond its existing footprint. Renovation, by contrast, works within an existing building's structure and footprint, however extensive the interior changes. The distinction matters because construction carries a different order of technical, structural and permitting complexity from the outset.
In practice the two often meet on the same property - a structural extension coordinated alongside the renovation of the existing rooms - and the office treats them as one continuous programme rather than as separate engagements handled by different teams.
What Cavalma does
The office works with the owner to define what the project needs to achieve - the brief, the budget parameters, the intended use of the finished building - before any professional is appointed. It then sources and appoints the architect, structural engineer and licensed contractor appropriate to the project, and coordinates the preparation and submission of permissions and technical documentation through those qualified professionals, who carry their own professional responsibility for that work.
Once construction is under way, the office supervises progress against the agreed programme, checks quality and workmanship against the specification, tracks cost against the agreed budget, and reports back to the owner in plain language throughout. Where the owner is not resident in Spain, or simply prefers not to manage the project directly, this supervision is carried out on their behalf, with the office as their single point of contact for the duration.
What Cavalma does not do
Cavalma does not perform regulated architectural, structural or building work itself, and does not act as the licensed contractor. Design, structural calculations, technical projects, permitting submissions and construction execution are the responsibility of the independent qualified architects, engineers and licensed contractors appointed to the project, each acting under their own professional responsibility and, where applicable, their own licence.
This distinction is deliberate rather than a limitation: it keeps regulated work with the professionals legally entitled to perform it, while giving the owner a single relationship for everything that connects those professionals to each other and to the owner's decisions.
Controlling budget and programme
A construction project is controlled through the same discipline applied on the office's renovation work: a written scope agreed before pricing, comparable quotations from contractors tendering the same defined scope, a programme with stages reviewed as the works progress, and variations described, priced and approved in writing before they are carried out rather than absorbed silently into the final invoice.
Site visits and progress reporting continue through the build, so that what has actually been completed can be checked against what has been invoiced and against the agreed programme, with issues raised as they appear rather than discovered at handover.
Taking over a project already in progress
Owners sometimes come to Cavalma partway through a construction project already under way with another team - because coordination has broken down, because they are no longer confident in how the project is being managed, or because they need a single point of contact they did not previously have. In these cases, the office first establishes what has actually been built and agreed against what documentation exists, before proposing how to bring the remaining work under one coordinated relationship.
Building on the Costa del Sol has its own general realities worth planning for rather than being surprised by: a distinct wet season that concentrates rainfall into shorter periods, strong sun and salt-laden air that affect material choice and sequencing on exterior work, and a construction market with its own seasonal rhythms around peak tourist months. None of this replaces a project-specific programme agreed with the appointed professionals, but it is context worth an owner understanding from the outset.
- What is the difference between construction and renovation at Cavalma?
- Construction covers new-build, major structural works and extensions that alter a building's structure or footprint. Renovation works within an existing structure and footprint. The two are often coordinated together on one property, as a single programme.
- Does Cavalma hold the building licence for construction work?
- No. Licensed contractors and the qualified professionals responsible for the technical project and permitting hold that responsibility. Cavalma sources and appoints them, coordinates their work and supervises progress on the owner's behalf.
- Can Cavalma take over a construction project that has already started with someone else?
- Yes. The office begins by establishing exactly what has been built and agreed to date, then proposes how the remaining work is brought under one coordinated point of contact.
- How is cost control handled during a construction project?
- Through a written scope, comparable contractor quotations, a reviewed programme and written approval of any variation before it is carried out, with regular reporting so deviations are visible as they happen rather than at the end.