Civil Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Owner-Led Structure
If an owner determines that it has resources for all or nearly all of the necessary disci-
plines, then it generally develops a team with a project manager and some engineering,
financial, procurement, and legal staff. Owners with significant DB experience tend to
staff their project teams with limited outside support. These owners frequently, however,
hire a DB consultant for assistance with procurement, preparation and negotiation of the
DB contract, and with financial decisions. There are many firms that are experienced in
specialty law, owner's advisory consulting, and municipal financial consultation that are
available in the water/wastewater market in the United States.
Design-Build Consultant-Led Structure
If the owner determines that it needs a higher level of outsourced assistance to implement
its DB project, possibly to meet a desired schedule or because of the project's complexity,
the owner can retain the services of a DB consultant in an owner's rep role to lead various
parts of a project, such as the development of the project, the competitive procurement
documents, and the design criteria and performance specifications. The DB consultant
will also coordinate the program with the owner's legal counsel to create a draft DB con-
tract. The services can also include DB contract administration, design review, and con-
struction monitoring.
SELECTING A DESIGN-BUILD CONSULTANT
After the owner has determined the level of assistance needed by the owner's project
team, an RFP to select a DB consultant can be developed.
Defining the Scope for a Design-Build Consultant
The services provided by a DB consultant can range from a few discrete tasks to a broad
program management for the project. The services requested in the RFP for a DB consul-
tant will depend on the owner's internal resources and skill levels, the project's schedule
and complexity, and the extent of the development of the project. For DB projects with
poorly defined technical attributes or features, initial engineering feasibility or technical
evaluations can also be included in the DB consultant services. For program management
(i.e., DB consultant-led) scopes, the DB consultant services normally covers management
of the project activities, the DB consultant's subcontractor work, any technical or financial
reports, the project schedule during selection of the design-builder, design development,
permitting, construction, startup and commissioning, and project close-out activities.
In addition, there may also be management of quality assurance and quality control
(QA/QC) activities for the project.
Another task often assigned to the DB consultant is preparation of the design criteria
package (i.e., technical criteria document, chapter 13) inclusive of the project's perfor-
mance specifications. The purpose of the design criteria package is to clearly convey the
scope of the project and it may include elements of a conceptual design. In addition, when
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