Am I right in thinking they are often just a normal part of the schedule now? (if nothing else, presumably you want to have them planned in advance so you have access to all the personnel, equipment, and locations you’re likely to need?)

Over the years I‘ve had far too many conversations with people who seem to think film editing is basically the director sitting in the suite & saying "Now cut… here! And here! Here!" while snapping his fingers. Film-making generally suffers from a ridiculous number of misconceptions.