1 London Road, Alderley Edge, Cheshire, SK9 7JU info@kiif.co.uk01625 830714 HomeAboutServicesBuilding ContractorsOne contract for the whole buildNew BuildBespoke homes and developmentsRenovationWhole-house renovation programmesRefurbishment & RestorationPeriod buildings brought up to dateLandscapingExternal works and hard landscapingPlasteringSkimming, rendering and lime workJoineryStructural carpentry and fitted joineryRoofingNew roofs, re-roofing and repairsGroundworksFoundations, drainage and site works View all services Areas We CoverCounties & Regions - Alderley EdgeOur home village: office and yard on London Road. - CheshireCounty-wide building work from our Alderley Edge base. - ManchesterPeriod refurbishment and commercial fit-out in South Manchester. - LancashireNew builds and conversions north of the Cheshire border. - YorkshireStone-built property and rural schemes across the county. - MerseysideCommercial conversions and coastal refurbishment work. Towns - WilmslowTwo miles from base: extensions, refurbishment and conversions. - KnutsfordTown centre period property and rural barn conversions. - MacclesfieldStone terraces, hillside sites and retaining structures. - PrestburyHigh-specification homes delivered discreetly. - StockportResidential, commercial and industrial work across the borough. - BramhallSuburban extensions and remodelling on close-packed plots. View all areas we cover Our WorkReviewsContact01625 830714Request an Estimate - Home - Services - Building ContractorsMain contracting # Cheshire Building ContractorsWho Run The Whole JobUnder One Contract Most projects do not fail because a single trade is poor. They fail because nobody is responsible for the gaps between trades: the programme, the deliveries, the engineer's instructions, the site rules everyone is supposed to follow. KIIF acts as main contractor and principal contractor on projects of all sizes, employing much of the workforce directly so the coordination sits inside one firm rather than being assumed by whoever happens to be on site that week. Request an Estimate01625 830714 Family-run in Alderley Edge with more than 40 years in construction. No obligation site visit, you speak to the people who will run the job. 40+ years Experience running residential, commercial and industrial contracts. Directly employed Joiners, bricklayers, plasterers and groundworkers on our own books. In-house support Estimating, procurement, administration and site management under one roof. Family-run Keep It In Family, led by David Cain with Victoria Kennedy on project management and design. The service ## What KIIF does as main contractor A main contractor takes on a single contract for the whole build and is responsible for delivering it: pricing the work, sequencing the trades, ordering materials, running the site and answering for the outcome. That sounds obvious until you have dealt with a project split across separate trade contracts, where each firm is only accountable for its own scope and nobody owns the space between a bricklayer finishing and a joiner starting. KIIF takes on main contractor and, where required, principal contractor duties under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations, meaning we plan, manage and monitor the construction phase, coordinate health and safety across all trades on site, and hold the paperwork that proves it was done properly. On larger or more complex projects this role is not optional; it is a legal requirement, and it needs to sit with a contractor who is actually running the site day to day. Because a large part of our workforce is directly employed rather than assembled fresh for each job, the estimating, procurement and site management functions are used to working together. An estimator who has priced a hundred similar projects flags a buildability issue before it becomes a variation; a site manager who has run dozens of programmes knows which deliveries need chasing three weeks early rather than three days early. This service sits underneath most of what we do. Whether the underlying project is a new build, an extension, a conversion or a refurbishment, someone still has to run it as a whole: estimate it accurately, procure the right materials at the right time, coordinate structural engineers and M&E consultants, manage the site day to day and answer to you when something needs a decision. That is the role described on this page. ### Who this is for - Private clients who want a single point of responsibility for a multi-trade project - Developers and landowners who need a principal contractor appointed under CDM - Architects and design teams looking for a main contractor to price and deliver their drawings - Commercial and industrial clients needing a contractor to run works around live operations - Clients who have been let down by a fragmented, subcontractor-only delivery model before What poor delivery costs ## What happens without a proper main contractor Most of the disputes and delays we are called in to fix started as a small gap in responsibility that nobody closed. These are the patterns that recur most often. ### No one owns the programme When each trade is contracted separately, the programme is a suggestion rather than a commitment. Delays cascade because no single firm has the authority, or the incentive, to keep the whole sequence moving. ### CDM duties left unassigned On notifiable projects a principal contractor must be appointed to manage health and safety across the site. Where this is skipped or handled informally, the client carries risk and exposure they may not realise they have. ### Procurement done too late Long-lead items ordered when they are needed rather than when the programme requires them are the single most common cause of a site standing idle waiting for materials. ### Estimates built on guesswork A quote assembled from unchecked trade prices rather than proper quantity and buildability review tends to grow through the job, with variations appearing at the worst possible moments. ### Design and site drifting apart Where the contractor does not coordinate with the structural engineer or M&E designer, site queries pile up unanswered and work is completed twice: once wrong, once corrected. ### No record of what was agreed Verbal instructions and unrecorded variations are where cost disputes come from. A contractor running proper site administration keeps a written trail so both sides know where they stand. Our process ## A fixed sequence, so you always know what happens next - Step 1 ### Site visit and brief We walk the site with you, review any existing drawings or consultant reports and establish the scope, constraints and any CDM notification requirements before pricing anything. - Step 2 ### Estimating and buildability review Our in-house estimators price the works element by element and flag details that will be slow, costly or need resolving with the design team before the contract is signed. - Step 3 ### Procurement and programme We sequence the whole job, book our own trades against it and order long-lead materials early enough that deliveries drive the programme rather than interrupting it. - Step 4 ### Principal contractor set-up Where required, we take on principal contractor duties: site rules, welfare, inductions, coordination of health and safety across every trade and firm on site. - Step 5 ### Site management and coordination A site manager runs day-to-day delivery, coordinates structural engineers, M&E consultants and specialist subcontractors, and answers design queries before they stall the programme. - Step 6 ### Handover and close-out Snagging is closed out, commissioning and test certificates are collated, and documentation is handed over so you have a complete record of what was built. What you get ## The practical difference a directly employed team makes ### One contract, one liability A single contract for the whole build means one point of accountability. If something goes wrong, there is no argument about which of ten separate contractors caused it. ### Programmes that hold Our own trades are booked against our own programme, which removes the biggest single cause of stalled sites: waiting on a subcontractor who has taken a bigger job elsewhere. ### Costs you can see Element-by-element estimating from an in-house team means you can see where the money sits and interrogate it before work starts, not after. ### CDM handled properly Where principal contractor duties apply, we manage them as a matter of course rather than as an afterthought, with the paperwork to demonstrate it. ### Design queries answered fast Coordination with structural engineers and M&E consultants happens as part of site management, so queries are resolved in days rather than becoming a backlog. ### One relationship, not ten David Cain leads delivery and Victoria Kennedy handles day-to-day project management and client liaison. You have two names and one number, not a directory of trades. Detail ## How we run a main contract The main contractor role covers everything between an agreed design and a finished building. This is the detail behind the service. ### Estimating and procurement Every job we price is broken down by element, so a client can see where the cost sits: groundworks, structure, envelope, services, finishes, externals. That structure matters when specification changes happen later, because the effect is visible on one line rather than a fresh lump sum with no explanation. Procurement is planned against the programme rather than reacted to. Long-lead items such as structural steel, windows, roof coverings and specialist joinery are ordered early enough to arrive when the site is ready for them. - Element-by-element estimating and cost breakdowns - Procurement planning against the build programme - Long-lead item ordering: steel, windows, roof coverings, kitchens - Value engineering where a design can be built more efficiently ### Principal contractor duties under CDM Where a project is notifiable, or where more than one contractor will be working on site, a principal contractor must be appointed to plan, manage and monitor the construction phase. We take this on as standard where it applies: site inductions, welfare facilities, site rules, coordination of health and safety information between designers and contractors, and the construction phase plan itself. This is not paperwork for its own sake. A properly run site with clear rules and coordinated trades is also a faster and cleaner one, because everyone knows where materials go, where deliveries arrive and who is responsible for what. ### Site management and trade coordination A site manager runs the job day to day: sequencing trades, checking work before it is covered up, resolving queries and keeping the programme visible to the client. Because much of our workforce is directly employed, the site manager is coordinating our own people rather than negotiating with subcontractors who answer to someone else first. Structural engineers, M&E consultants and any specialist subcontractors are coordinated through the same site management structure, so a design query raised on site is answered within days rather than sitting in an inbox. ### Project types we run as main contractor We act as main contractor across new build houses and developments, extensions and remodelling, conversions, refurbishment and restoration, and standalone groundworks or external works packages. The scale differs but the role is the same: one contract, one programme, one point of accountability. On commercial and industrial projects the constraints change, larger spans, statutory compliance for fire and access, and programmes tied to trading periods or lease dates, but the main contractor role covers them in the same way. Recent work ## General building contracting we have delivered Questions clients ask ## Before you commit to the work What does a main contractor actually do?A main contractor holds a single contract for the whole build and is responsible for pricing it, sequencing the trades, ordering materials, running the site day to day and answering for the outcome. It is the difference between one accountable firm and a collection of separate trade contracts with no one owning the gaps between them. What is a principal contractor and do I need one?Under the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations, a principal contractor must be appointed where a project involves more than one contractor working on site at the same time. They plan, manage and monitor the construction phase and coordinate health and safety across all trades. We take this role on as standard where it applies. Do you use your own trades or subcontractors?Much of our workforce is directly employed: joiners, bricklayers, plasterers and groundworkers. Genuinely specialist work such as mechanical and electrical installation is delivered with trusted engineers we work with repeatedly, coordinated by our own site management. Can you take over a project that has already started?Yes, though we will always want to inspect what has been done before taking on responsibility for it. Where a project has stalled or a previous contractor has left, we can assess the position, price the remaining works and appoint principal contractor duties where required. Can you work from my architect's drawings?Yes, and we prefer to be involved before they are finalised. Reviewing buildability early lets us identify details that will be slow or costly to build while they can still be adjusted on paper, and we coordinate directly with structural engineers and M&E consultants through construction. How is the price broken down?Every job we price is broken down by element: groundworks, structure, envelope, services, finishes and externals. That means you can see where the cost sits and adjust specification with full information rather than being handed a single figure with no explanation. Do you take on both residential and commercial contracts?Yes. We act as main contractor across residential, commercial and industrial projects, and where a scheme mixes uses, apartments above commercial space, for example, the whole of it can sit with one contractor rather than being split. How do you keep a programme on track?Our own trades are booked against our own programme, which removes the most common cause of delay: waiting on a subcontractor who has taken a bigger job elsewhere. Long-lead materials are procured early against the same programme. What happens if there is a design query on site?Our site management coordinates directly with structural engineers and M&E consultants, so queries raised on site are typically resolved within days rather than sitting unanswered while work stalls. Which areas do you work in?We are based at 1 London Road, Alderley Edge and act as main contractor throughout Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Yorkshire and Merseyside, including Wilmslow, Knutsford, Macclesfield and Prestbury. Related work ## Often delivered alongside this ### New Builds Bespoke homes and developments delivered under a single main contract. View service ### Refurbishment & Restoration Multi-trade refurbishment projects run under the same main contractor structure. View service ### External Works & Landscaping Site clearance, drainage and groundworks coordinated as part of the wider contract. View service We deliver this service across Alderley Edge, Wilmslow, Knutsford, Macclesfield and the wider North West. See recent projects, read about the family behind KIIF or return to the homepage. ## Bring us in as yourmain contractor Tell us about the project and the trades already involved. We will visit, review the drawings and constraints, and come back with a breakdown of scope, programme and cost you can question line by line. 01625 830714Request an Estimate - Family-run, over 40 years in construction - Directly employed joiners, bricklayers and groundworkers - In-house estimating and procurement - Site visit with the team who will build it ### Tell us about your project Send the details and we will arrange a site visit at a time that suits you. Keep It In Family. A family-run building contractor in Alderley Edge with over 40 years' experience across residential, commercial and industrial construction. ### Services - Building Contractors - New Build - Renovation - Refurbishment & Restoration - Landscaping - Plastering - Joinery - Roofing - Groundworks ### Areas We Cover - Alderley Edge - Cheshire - Manchester - Lancashire - Yorkshire - Merseyside - Wilmslow - Knutsford - Macclesfield - Prestbury - Stockport - Bramhall ### Get In Touch KIIF Limited1 London Road, Alderley EdgeCheshire, SK9 7JU 01625 830714 info@kiif.co.uk Request an Estimate © 2026 KIIF Limited. All rights reserved. ReviewsCookie PolicyPrivacy PolicyTerms & Conditions Call UsGet Estimate