Owner: The owner, as can be seen in Fig 1: Construction "Food-Chain" is at the top of the "food-chain". The owner is not only the financier of the entire project, but importantly plays the role of defining the scope of work that needs to be done. Depending on the type of project (Design-Build, Design-Bid-Build, etc. See next section) the owner may opt for any of the following entities that play an essential role in the successful completion of the owner’s project.

Architect/Designer: Once the owner has defined the scope of work (for example, for a 3 bedroom, 2 bathrooms residential home), the owner hires an architect or a designer who is an entity involved in the art of planning, designing and overseeing the construction of buildings, or more generally, the designer of a scheme or plan. The architect/designer molds the owners scope of work into a physical, constructible solution complete with drawings and specifications tailored to the owner’s specifications.

Project Manager: As discussed before, the project manager plans, budgets, co-ordinates, monitors and controls the operational contributions of property professionals, and others, in a project in accordance with a client's objectives in terms of quality, cost and time. The project manager takes over the responsibility of handing over the project to the owner within the deadline giving "time, cost and quality" special importance.

Contractor: A general contractor is defined as such if it is the signatory as the builder of the prime construction contract for the project. A general contractor is responsible for the means and methods to be used in the construction of the project in accordance with the contract documents. These contract documents usually include the contract agreement including budget, the general and special conditions and the plans and specification of the project that are prepared by a design professional (Architect/Designer). A general contractor usually is responsible for the supplying of all material, labor, equipment, (engineering vehicles and tools) and services necessary for the construction of the project. To do this it is common for the general contractor to subcontract part of the work to other persons and companies that specialize in these types of work.

Subcontractor: Subcontractors may be large organizations or small business owners, but they all have one thing in common: work specialization. These entities focus on a certain type of skilled profession ranging from elevators, sprinklers, iron-works, steel fabrication to bathroom tiles, electrical switches and furniture. Once the subcontractor enters a contract, it is the subs job to deliver the end product as specified in the contract with all the necessary close-out documents and deliverables such as include but are not limited to attic stock, special warranties, and keys.