Preparing an Owner Organization to Perform Design-Build - Design-Build for Water and Wastewater Projects - page 55

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Preparing an
Owner Organization to
Perform Design-Build
Chuck Williams, PE, DBIA, PMP
Contributing Authors:
Larry Wyeno, PE, City of Longmont, Colo.;
Madeline Fong Goddard, PE, Sewerage and Water Board of New Orleans, La.;
Alberto Acevedo, PE, BCEE, PMP, Orange County Sanitation District, Calif. IPMC,
E2 Consulting Engineers;
Rich Bartels, PE, DBIA, Colorado Springs Utilities, Colo.;
and Oscar A. Khoury, PE, DBIA, Riverside Public Utilities, Calif.
INTRODUCTION
Owners have numerous everyday challenges in programming, planning, developing, pro-
curing, and executing capital projects, but their decision to use design-build (DB) project
delivery presents many new and different challenges for their organization. While own-
ers recognize the potential time savings and risk transfer advantages of DB, they must be
prepared to earn those advantages through significant cultural changes, training and ori-
entation, and new processes and procedures. Organization preparation is critical to better
assure project success and avoid several potential pitfalls.
This chapter identifies and discusses the preparation needed for owners to address
the challenges of performing a successful DB project. Included are preparation steps that
should occur prior to the selection of the design-builder. These steps include conducting
a self-assessment, which helps to identify tasks or activities the owner organization needs
to perform. Also included are predictors of success and numerous “lessons learned” from
owners who have experience with DB project delivery.
This information was assembled through discussion with the contributing authors of
this chapter and is also presented in Williams, Fong Goddard, and Bartels (2011).
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