What type of construction project are you working on? This is an important question for a whole host of legal, safety, and payment-related issues. In fact, determining the project type is an essential part of starting any new job. But it’s not exactly a straightforward question to answer. There are actually several different ways to classify construction projects: by building type, by fire safety, and by the type of owner.

In this article, we’ll look at some of the ways that construction projects are categorized, and why it matters.

Construction Projects by Sector

For many folks in the construction industry, the “type” of construction project refers to the actual facility being constructed. These are simply:

• Building construction
• Industrial construction
• Heavy civil construction

Building construction includes both residential (single and multi-family houses) and commercial (office buildings and warehouses). Industrial construction refers to energy facilities (oil and gas, solar fields), factories, distilleries, and other large-scale production facilities. Infrastructure construction, also known as civil construction, includes public works projects like roads, bridges, airports, and sewer systems.

However, there isn’t much benefit to classifying projects this way, because it doesn’t really tell you anything about the actual construction. Yes, they require different levels of construction knowledge and equipment, and it might tell you about the function of the facility, but there are more helpful ways to classify projects that help everyone involved in the project understand the requirements, laws, and risks involved.

Construction Projects By Owner Type

Perhaps the most important way to categorize construction is based on who owns the project or property. Why? Because that’s what state and federal laws care about when it comes to contracts, payments, and the amount of risk that contractors and suppliers will carry on the project.

Laws aren’t concerned with the facility you’re working on, and whether it’s industrial or heavy civil. Instead, they set requirements based on who owns the project. Just look at and pretty much any other law that affects a contractor’s right to payment on a job.

Broadly speaking, construction project are either public or private — but those are further broken down into 4 types:

1. Private residential projects
2. Private commercial projects
3. State construction projects
4. Federal construction projects

These categories are determined by who owns the property where the construction project is taking place. This is important because the property owner will determine what type of payment security contractors and suppliers have on the job.