Quality Assurance and Quality Control - Design-Build for Water and Wastewater Projects - page 261

The role of the owner relative to QA/QC during project implementation is differ-
ent for DB than for DBB, and as a result, owners must plan for this different role. In
DBB, the scope of QA/QC activities and responsibility for quality is divided between
the owner (with the designer) and the DBB contractor. For DBB projects, the owner is
responsible for design quality and warrants the accuracy and completeness of the design
plans and specifications as issued to the DBB contractor for bid. During design, the owner
initially develops that QA/QC plan for the design phase, and this plan includes the peer
reviews, checks and verifications, internal approvals, and the methodology for correcting
any deficiencies.
During construction of a traditional DBB project, the owner uses either its own staff,
the design consultant's resident engineering staff, or a third-party construction manage-
ment firm to perform QA/QC activities. The DBB contractor is responsible for QC of all
construction work, while the owner is generally responsible for QA to verify that the QC
has been performed. For some DBB projects, the owner also performs QC with its own
staff or a third party, such as another consultant or testing service. In DBB, the owner is
heavily involved in QA/QC on a daily basis throughout the project execution, completion,
and acceptance processes.
In DB, the design-builder performs the responsibilities for QA/QC for both design
and construction. The design-builder performs the QA/QC activities internally through-
out the performance of the contract, with both design and construction staff assigned to
QA/QC roles. The design-builder is held more accountable and responsible for its QA/
QC for both design and construction activities, so that the contractual liability for meet-
ing the owner's project design criteria and performance requirements is clearly assigned
to, and maintained with, the design-builder.
QA/QC DURING PROJECT PLANNING
BY THE DESIGN-BUILDER
For best-value selection and fixed-price procurements, QA/QC evaluations begin dur-
ing the procurement phase. The proposing design-builder reviews the owner's required
quality standards in the RFP design criteria document for the DB project and identifies
measures and actions necessary to comply with the RFP. Proposers will also identify staff
with the appropriate level of QA/QC expertise to support proposal development and the
delivery of the project. The named individuals will have the responsibility for the entire
quality plan, including full verification and documentation that all owner requirements
will be met. If permitted by the RFP, the design-builder may provide alternate technical
solutions along with the associated cost and time savings, and any alternative may require
an evaluation to verify that it has an acceptable level of quality.
QUALITY MANAGEMENT PLAN
A project-specific quality management plan defines the QA/QC requirements for the con-
tracted scope of work and the implementation tasks needed to verify that those require-
ments are met in the constructed facilities. For DB projects, where the responsibilities of
the design-builder encompass planning, engineering, design, permitting, construction,