As design professionals, often with minimal construction experience, we conceive designs that seem just fine to us but overlook significant elements that may not be constructible. These oversights would be readily apparent to an experienced construction specialist and are the things of which claims or problems during bidding are made. These can be easily overcome with a constructability review, the earlier in the design the better, but for sure before the project is advertised for bidding. Projects that are put out to bid with constructability issues will result at best, in questions during bidding requiring addenda or at worst, claims during construction.
Many firms have seasoned construction observation staff members that can provide the constructability review. Involve them at the preliminary design phase or right from the start. If you don’t have this in-house capability, these services can be obtained from other professionals that offer construction management/observation. Remember to include time and budget for this activity in your planning.