Dave Mahoney describes how the design-build project delivery method is ideal for creating innovative project solutions and why strong partnerships are key to the method's success.
www.dewberry.com
Design-build has become a go-to delivery method for design-build projects, because over the years, it's proven to be an effective process for delivering major infrastructure projects, with bringing innovation, reducing project schedules, and overall saving the owner's money. And also, design-build has evolved to the point where there's different methodologies of that delivery, be it progressive design-build, two step best value design-build. There's also the P3 model where the private sector brings the funds to the project on behalf of the owner. So that delivery method has continued to evolve to the point where it's anticipated that 50% of all construction put in place in the future is going to be under this design-build model in one of the various forms. So the other reason that it's such a key to the owners, I'd say, with the schedule and the various aspects I just mentioned, is it really drives innovation during that procurement cycle. That innovation can come in a variety of forms, which, ultimately, leads to the owner seeing those savings in time and money.
Some of the innovations that we share, project to project, as we really have advanced design-build from the Mid-Atlantic, where we started doing it primarily, up into our Northeast group and now Southeast, and even more recently, all the way to the West Coast. On behalf of the organization, we look at the innovation across all disciplines that we're involved in, be it hydraulics, the roadway alignments, the bridge design, the sequence of construction.
We have found innovations that have won the project where we've minimized the number of storm auto management facilities and saved millions of dollars in that regard. We found interchange reconfigurations on one of our projects in Maryland that saved over $90 million in the procurement phase.
Some of the keys to a successful design-build project delivery could really be summarized by considering the life cycle of the project. So right at the beginning, as we pursue and win the project, we enter into the agreement. We have to have the right agreement in place with our partner and that right contract in place with a partner includes things like exactly what our schedule is, exactly what our scope of work is. It also includes some very key items, like limitational liability.
The next step of it is really execution and it's our people internally at Dewberry, who've done a terrific job of realizing that design-build is a little bit different than conventional design bid build. We're working with the contractor. Time is money to these folks. So we really have to have people who understand the delivery of design-build, what the options may be, that we may have early packages, that the contractor's going to have comments on what we're doing.
They're going to want to find ways to save money. Even after we win the job, they're going to be looking for new ideas. And some of the other keys, if you look at it, is our contracting partner. Our success throughout the years, where other designers have really struggled, our success has been in finding contractors who are good partners, who we've done many projects with. We don't want once and done. We want long-term partners. So we look for the partners and we look for owners that are going to help us reach that target of success on a project.