The "prime contractor" or major contractor, who, under the architect, is the firm in charge of any construction. All subcontractors report to the general contractor except in those cases where the subcontract portion of the project is taken out of the general contract and led by the architect or owner directly. The general contractor is responsible for the completion of all portions of the project which fall under his supervision and bases his bid for all the work under his direction on the bids provided him by the subcontractors. A general contracting firm may do a number of the major items in the job, i.e. masonry, carpentry, etc., but most often asks for bids for the items included in his contract from a number of subcontractors.