If your agency or department manages buildings, schools, or public facilities, you already know construction or renovation projects can eat up tons of time. Even small jobs often require drawn‑out bidding processes, layered approvals, and months of delays before work begins.

That’s where Job Order Contracting (JOC) comes in. More and more agencies, municipalities, and school systems are turning to this method to speed up projects, reduce administrative headaches, and make sure money is spent efficiently.

Here’s a clear look at what JOC is, how it works, and why it can save your agency time and money.

The Traditional Playbook: “The Low-Bid Grind”

This is the process most public agencies are stuck with. It is linear, sequential, and filled with potential friction at every step.

1. The Design Phase. Your agency identifies a need. You must then hire (or assign) an architect or engineer to create a full set of detailed specifications and construction drawings. (Timeline: Weeks to Months)
2. The Public Bid Phase. With specs in hand, you advertise the project for public bid. You wait for contractors to review the documents, ask questions, and submit their sealed bids. (Timeline: Weeks to Months)
3. The Award Phase. You open the bids and, in most cases, are legally required to award the contract to the lowest responsive bidder. (Timeline: Weeks)
4. The Contract & Mobilization Phase. You execute contracts, wait for the contractor to provide bonds and insurance, and then wait for them to schedule your project and mobilize their team. (Timeline: Weeks to Months)

The Inherent Problems with this Play:

• It’s Incredibly Slow. From start to finish, even a simple project can take the better part of a year.
• It Can Be Adversarial. The relationship is built on a single transaction, not a partnership. The contractor’s goal is to complete this project as profitably as possible.
• “Low Bid” Doesn’t Always Mean “Best Value.” The lowest price can sometimes come at the cost of quality, communication, or an over-reliance on change orders for anything not explicitly detailed in the original specs.
• It’s Inefficient for Small Projects. The administrative burden of this entire process is often disproportionately high for small to medium-sized repair and renovation jobs.

The JOC Playbook: “The Partnership Advantage”

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Job Order Contracting completely redesigns the process. It is a procurement method that establishes a long-term, competitively awarded partnership with a qualified general contractor.

How it Works (The Setup):

First, a single, competitive procurement process is used to award a multi-year JOC contract. This contract includes a Construction Task Catalog® (CTC) or Unit Price Book—a comprehensive catalog of thousands of common construction tasks (e.g., install one square foot of drywall, run one linear foot of conduit) with pre-set, locally sourced prices.

Once this master contract is in place, you can execute an unlimited number of individual projects quickly and efficiently.

Here’s what the new play looks like when a need arises:

1. The Collaborative Site Visit. You call your JOC partner (like TF Harper). We meet you on-site, often the very next day—to walk the job together. There is no long, formal design phase. We discuss your goals and help define the scope as a team. (Timeline: Days)
2. The Transparent Proposal. Using the pre-priced Construction Task Catalog, we build a detailed, line-item proposal for the project. Every price is already established in the master contract. There is no haggling or guesswork. (Timeline: Days to a Week)
3. The Simple Work Order. You approve the proposal and issue a simple purchase order or work order against the master JOC contract. (Timeline: Days)
4. Immediate Mobilization. Because we are your long-term partner, we are ready to go. We can begin work almost immediately, getting your project completed while others would still be in the bidding phase. (Timeline: Work starts within weeks)

The Scoreboard: A Head-to-Head Comparison

Factor: The Traditional Low-Bid, The Job Order Contracting Advantage

1. Speed: Project timelines are measured in months or even years, Individual projects are launched and completed in weeks.
2. Relationship: Transactional & Adversarial. Focused on a single project and price, Focused on long-term success and teamwork.
3. Cost: “Low bid” upfront, but high risk of costly change orders and delays, Prices are set from the pre-priced catalog.
4. Quality: Quality can be a concern with the focus solely on the lowest price, The contractor is invested in providing high quality.
5. Efficiency: Extremely high administrative burden for staff on a per-project basis, Reduced workload; about 90% of the procurement work is done once upfront.

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Job Order Contracting is more than just a different way to buy construction; it’s a fundamental shift in how you manage your facilities. It allows you to clear your backlog of deferred maintenance, respond quickly to emerging needs, and build a trusted, long-term relationship with a contractor who understands your buildings, your people, and your goals. It’s the playbook that lets you get back to focusing on your core mission.

Frequently Asked Questions About JOC

Is Job Order Contracting more expensive than the traditional low-bid process?

This is the most common misconception. While you are not choosing the absolute lowest bidder for every single project, JOC delivers significant savings through speed and efficiency. By drastically reducing project timelines and internal administrative costs, and by eliminating costly change orders, the overall “best value” of JOC is often far superior to the low-bid model. You get higher quality work, done faster, with far fewer headaches.

Is JOC only for small repair projects?

No, JOC is highly scalable. While it is incredibly efficient for small and medium-sized projects (typically anything from a few thousand dollars up to a few million), it can also be used for larger, more complex renovations and new construction. The core principle of a pre-priced catalog and a partnership approach works across a wide range of project sizes.

How is the pricing in the Construction Task Catalog determined and kept fair?

The pricing in the catalog (often a licensed system like Gordian’s CTC®) is based on extensive, locally researched data for labor, material, and equipment costs. During the initial competitive proposal process to win the JOC contract, contractors bid a “coefficient” or multiplier on these pre-set prices (e.g., 1.05 or 0.98). This competitively establishes the final pricing for the life of the contract, ensuring it is fair and reflects the local market.

Is JOC a legally compliant method for public procurement?

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Yes, absolutely. JOC has been used by public agencies for decades and is a well-established and legally recognized alternative procurement method in most states, including Texas. It satisfies the requirements for competitive bidding through the initial, open competition to award the master contract.

How would our organization get started with a JOC program?

The first step is to partner with an experienced JOC contractor. We’ll walk you through the process, provide examples of how other agencies have successfully implemented JOC, and help you prepare the initial Request for Proposal (RFP) to establish your own JOC program. It begins with a simple conversation about your long-term facility needs.