Alliance Contracting - Design-Build for Water and Wastewater Projects - page 329

management representatives from the owner, designer, and contractor, and will carry the
responsibility to resolve issues that cannot be resolved within the wider project team or by
the alliance project manager. The AMT will develop innovative and best-for-project solu-
tions to overcome issues that could affect the cost or schedule of the project. The AMT
also reviews progress on the KRAs and outlines plans for achieving them. By focusing
management and decisions on a best-for-project basis, the AMT drives results that benefit
all parties rather than individual organizations. One of the unique features of alliance
contracting is that there are no dispute resolution conditions—if an issue is unresolved, it
must continue to be worked through until a unanimous decision by the AMT is reached.
BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES OF
ALLIANCE CONTRACTING
Alliance contracting establishes project delivery relationships and behaviors that allow
results that are not often achieved by traditional delivery. This method promotes innova-
tive thinking and solutions, rewards for outstanding performance, and aligns all stake-
holders early in the conceptual phase of the project. The alliance contracting principle is
built on trust among all alliance members, and on prioritizing the project goals and needs
over the benefit or detriment of the individual organizations. This enables owners, gov-
ernments, and the private industry to work in an environment where decisions are based
on what is best for the project.
EXAMPLE PROJECTS IN AUSTRALIA
Two recent alliance projects for water/wastewater infrastructure in Australia help illus-
trate some of the key benefits of alliance contracting.
Bundamba Advanced Water Treatment Plant
The Bundamba Advanced Water Treatment Plant (AWTP) in partnership with Western
Corridor Recycled Water Pty. Ltd. and the Queensland Government's Department of
Planning and Infrastructure is part of the AU $2.4 billion Western Corridor Recycled
Water (WCRW) Project. With a network of 200 km of underground pipelines and three
new advanced water treatment plants, the WCRW Project helps to secure a water supply
for the rapidly growing, yet drought-stricken, southeast Queensland region. The project
was delivered through multiple alliances, which included five design-build alliances and
one overall operation and maintenance alliance.
Alliance principles were adopted because the project needed to be delivered in
record-breaking time with cost certainty, while meeting the environmental guidelines,
and still produce facilities that would reliably deliver water to the southeastern power sta-
tions in Queensland. This amount and complexity of work could not be accomplished by
traditional project delivery practices.
The owner and the alliance contractor agreed on a target cost that was established
by competitive bidding of equipment and subcontracts. To ensure self-performed work by
the alliance partners was billed at actual cost, the owner performed regular audits on the