CM at Risk
A project delivery method where a construction manager is hired early in design to provide cost estimating and constructability input, then converts into the general contractor once design is far enough along, holding a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) contract and taking on the risk of delivering within that price.
Why it matters
It combines some of design-build's early contractor involvement with the owner still hiring the architect directly and separately: the CM gives real-time cost feedback during design, then is on the hook, at risk, for actually delivering within the GMP once construction starts.
On a real project
An owner hires a construction manager during schematic design to provide cost estimates as the design develops. Once the design is roughly 60% complete, the CM commits to a guaranteed maximum price and takes over construction, similar to what a general contractor would do.
Who this matters most to
A Preconstruction Manager does much of the early cost-estimating work that makes CM at Risk valuable to the owner, refining budgets as the design develops. A Project Manager then manages actually delivering the project within the GMP once construction starts, since going over that number becomes the CM's own cost to absorb.
Where this goes wrong
A CM at Risk commits to a guaranteed maximum price based on a design that's still only 50% complete, assuming the remaining design details won't move the number much. The finished design ends up requiring significantly more expensive systems than assumed, and the CM has to absorb the difference themselves rather than passing it on to the owner, since the GMP was already locked in.