Design and construct builders in Sydney
Most building budgets fail in the gap between design and construction. Plans are drawn without a builder’s input, tendered, and priced well above what the client expected. Then the redesign starts. Design and construct closes that gap. Shafbuild takes your project from first brief through design, approvals and construction under one contract, with one team accountable for cost, programme and quality from start to finish.
How our design and construct process works
1 - Brief and feasibility
We test your brief against the site, planning controls and a realistic budget before any drawings are commissioned.
2 - Design
We coordinate the architects, designers, engineers and consultants, and price the design as it develops, so every decision is made with its cost in view.
3 - Approvals
We manage the DA or CDC pathway, consultant reports and certifier liaison through to approval.
4 - Construction & Handover
The team that designed and priced the project builds it, with a fixed scope and a clear programme. Final certification, defects review and a documented handover.
Design and construct vs architect, then tender
In the traditional model you engage an architect, complete the design, then tender it to builders. The builder sees the project only once it is fully designed, so buildability problems and cost overruns surface late, when they are most expensive to fix. If the build goes wrong, responsibility is split between designer and builder. Under design and construct, the builder is involved from day one. Design decisions are tested for cost and buildability before they are locked in, approvals are prepared with construction in mind, and one party answers for the result. Read more: design and construct explained
Design and construct vs architect, then tender
In Leppington, Shafbuild is delivering two standalone homes for an investment development on a full turnkey design and construct model, managing the CDC approvals pathway and coordinating architects, engineers and consultants against the client’s commercial brief. In Wyong, we delivered a whole home remedial renovation under one design and construct contract in 12 weeks, fixing two decades of failed waterproofing and water damage before any cosmetic work began.
What we build
Residential, commercial and strata
The work changes. The way we run it does not. Whether it is a home, a tenancy or a strata building, you get the same team, the same program discipline, and the same person accountable from first drawing to handover.
Residential
Renovations, extensions, duplexes and new builds for owners who care about quality.
Strata and Remedial
Balcony, waterproofing and building fabric works. Class 2 licensed.
Commercial
Fitouts and refurbishments across Sydney metro, delivered around your operating hours.
How it works
Four steps. No surprises.
Most of what goes wrong on a build is decided before anyone picks up a tool. We front load the thinking, so the site work is the easy part.
1
Conversation
We look at the site, the budget and what you actually need before anyone draws anything. If the numbers do not work, you will hear it in the first meeting, not after you have paid for a design you cannot build.
2
Design and approvals
Concept through to consent, coordinated in house. Architecture, engineering and certification move together instead of waiting on each other, and everything is checked against a real build cost as it is drawn.
3
Construction
Fixed scope, a program you can see, and one point of contact for the whole build. You get regular updates without having to ask, and any change is priced and agreed before it happens, never after.
4
Handover
Defects closed before you take possession, not after. You get the manuals, the warranties and the certificates in one handover pack, and we stay contactable long after the last invoice.
Designed, approved and built by one team
One team from concept to completion
Architecture, interiors, approvals and construction handled by the people who'll be on site. Nothing gets lost between disciplines, because there are no handovers.
Approvals managed from day one
CDC and DA pathways mapped early, consultants coordinated, submissions handled while design progresses. Projects move without the usual waiting.
Finish that reflects the thinking
Interiors considered alongside the build, not bolted on afterwards. The finish reflects the care at every stage, not just at handover.
How We Deliver Our Projects
One team, across every stage. From first idea to final build.
Plan
We test what's possible, what it costs, and what it's worth, before you commit.
Design + Approvals
Architecture, interiors, engineering, and the approvals strategy to deliver them, all led in-house.
Build
Residential and commercial construction, delivered to standard by the team who designed it.
A Different Class of Builder
Class 2 Building Practitioner Medium Rise
Apartment & Strata Works
Multi Dwelling
Mixed Use Developments
Shafbuild holds a NSW Class 2 Building Practitioner licence, the registration required to design and build apartment and multi-dwelling residential work under the Design and Building Practitioners Act. It's a credential most builders don't carry, and it reflects how we operate across every project: declared, documented, and personally accountable. Whether it's a home or multi-dwellings or commercial projects, you get a builder the regulator recognises and a standard the law demands.
The Director
Who you will actually be dealing with
Danial Shafei. Licensed Builder. NSW Building Practitioner Class 2.
I started Shafbuild because I got tired of watching good projects get let down by the way they were run.
People come to me knowing what they want but not whether it can be built for what they have. Fourteen years in construction means I can usually answer that in the first conversation, and show you where the money is better spent.
From there my job is to protect the outcome. I look ahead of the work, catch problems while they are still decisions on paper, and hold the standard when nobody is watching. You end up with the project you actually wanted, built properly, without having to fight for it.
Tell us what you are trying to build
Send through your plans, your scope, or just the problem. You will get an honest read on cost, program and whether we are the right builder for it, before anyone asks you to commit to anything.
Design and construct FAQs
What is design and construct?
Design and construct (D&C) is a delivery model where one company is contracted to both design and build your project. Shafbuild manages the full process, from brief and feasibility through design, approvals and construction, under one contract, so there is one party responsible for the outcome.
Will I lose control of the design if the builder runs it?
No. You approve the design at every stage. The difference is that each decision comes with its cost and buildability attached, so you choose with full information rather than discovering the price at tender.
When do I get a fixed price?
Once the design is developed enough to price accurately. Because we cost the design as it progresses, the contract price doesn’t arrive as a surprise; it’s the figure you’ve been tracking throughout.
Is design and construct more expensive?
The model itself doesn’t add cost. The savings come from avoiding the most common budget failure: completing a design, tendering it, and finding it costs far more than planned. Early builder input keeps the design within budget from the start.
Do you handle DA and CDC approvals?
Yes. We assess which pathway suits your project, prepare and lodge the application, coordinate consultant reports, and manage certification through to occupation certificate.
How long does a design and construct project take?
It depends on scope and approval pathway. A CDC is generally faster than a DA. We give you a programme covering design, approvals and construction at the feasibility stage, and report against it throughout.
