The Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA) has released “Universally Applicable Best Practices Applying to Any Project Type, in Any Market Sector, of Any Size.” Based on research, case studies, and industry input, DBIA has identified design-build best practices.
“The 10 Design-Build Done Right Best Practices serve as a single source that clearly defines design-build fundamentals to significantly enhance superior project outcomes,” says Lisa Washington, CAE, Executive Director/CEO, DBIA. “With design-build currently at 40% of all non-residential design and construction, the impetus for owners to engage in Design-Build Done Right is at an all-time high. By applying these ten DBIA Best Practices, owners and practitioners will unlock the inherent value of design-build project delivery.”
Best practices supporting effective design-build start during the owner’s procurement decision-making process and span through project execution. Each DBIA Best Practice is supplemented by several techniques that provide guidance on specific ways to implement the best practice. The combination of best practices and implementing techniques are the basis for Design-Build Done Right.
Design-build requires more than a good contract and appropriate risk allocation. Everyone from the owner to the subcontractors must understand the process, the expectations and fully engage in the collaboration. DBIA categorizes the 10 best practices (and nearly 50 supporting implementing techniques) into three areas:
Procuring Design-Build Services
1. An owner should conduct a proactive and objective assessment of the unique characteristics of its program/project and its organization before deciding to use design-build.
2. An owner should implement a procurement plan that enhances collaboration and other benefits of design-build and is in harmony with the reasons that the owner chose the design-build delivery system.
3. An owner using a competitive design-build procurement that seeks price and technical proposals should: (a) establish clear evaluation and selection processes; (b) ensure that the process is fair, open and transparent; and (c) value both technical concepts and price in the selection process.
Contracting for Design-Build Services:
4. Contracts used on design-build projects should be fair, balanced and clear, and should promote the collaborative aspects inherent in the design-build process.
5. The contract between the owner and design-builder should address the unique aspects of the design-build process, including expected standards of care for design services.
6. The contracts between the design-builder and its team members should address the unique aspects of the design-build process.
Executing the Delivery of Design-Build Projects:
7. All design-build team members should be educated and trained in the design-build process, and be knowledgeable of the differences between design-build and other delivery systems.
8. The project team should establish logistics and infrastructure to support integrated project delivery.
9. The project team, at the outset of the project, should establish processes to facilitate timely and effective communication, collaboration, and issue resolution.
10. The project team should focus on the design management and commissioning/turnover processes and ensure that there is alignment among the team as to how to execute these processes.
DBIA recognizes that there are real-world differences among design-build market sectors (e.g., water/wastewater, transportation, federal projects), and that specific implementation techniques might differ slightly from one market sector to another. For this reason, DBIA is in the process of working with market sector experts on sector-specific documents to supplement the overall best practices released today. These will provide more detailed guidance on how to put these best practices and implementing techniques into use in different design-build market sectors.
DBIA intends to continually update its portfolio of publications, tools and other resources so that design-build stakeholders will have access to leading-edge information that will allow them to achieve Design-Build Done Right in accordance with the concepts expressed in this document.
Related Stories
| Dec 17, 2010
New engineering building goes for net-zero energy
A new $90 million, 250,000-sf classroom and laboratory facility with a 450-seat auditorium for the College of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana/Champaign is aiming for LEED Platinum.
| Dec 17, 2010
Vietnam business center will combine office and residential space
The 300,000-sm VietinBank Business Center in Hanoi, Vietnam, designed by Foster + Partners, will have two commercial towers: the first, a 68-story, 362-meter office tower for the international headquarters of VietinBank; the second, a five-star hotel, spa, and serviced apartments. A seven-story podium with conference facilities, retail space, restaurants, and rooftop garden will connect the two towers. Eco-friendly features include using recycled heat from the center’s power plant to provide hot water, and installing water features and plants to improve indoor air quality. Turner Construction Co. is the general contractor.
| Dec 17, 2010
Toronto church converted for condos and shopping
Reserve Properties is transforming a 20th-century church into Bellefair Kew Beach Residences, a residential/retail complex in The Beach neighborhood of Toronto. Local architecture firm RAWdesign adapted the late Gothic-style church into a five-story condominium with 23 one- and two-bedroom units, including two-story penthouse suites. Six three-story townhouses also will be incorporated. The project will afford residents views of nearby Kew Gardens and Lake Ontario. One façade of the church was updated for retail shops.
| Dec 17, 2010
ARRA-funded Navy hospital aims for LEED Gold
The team of Clark/McCarthy, HKS Architects, and Wingler & Sharp are collaborating on the design of a new naval hospital at Camp Pendleton in Southern California. The $451 million project is the largest so far awarded by the U.S. Navy under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The 500,000-sf, 67-bed hospital, to be located on a 70-acre site, will include facilities for emergency and primary care, specialty care clinics, surgery, and intensive care. The Building Team is targeting LEED Gold.
| Dec 17, 2010
Arizona outpatient cancer center to light a ‘lantern of hope’
Construction of the Banner MD Anderson Cancer Center in Gilbert, Ariz., is under way. Located on the Banner Gateway Medical Center campus near Phoenix, the three-story, 131,000-sf outpatient facility will house radiation oncology, outpatient imaging, multi-specialty clinics, infusion therapy, and various support services. Cannon Design incorporated a signature architectural feature called the “lantern of hope” for the $90 million facility.
| Dec 17, 2010
Cladding Do’s and Don’ts
A veteran structural engineer offers expert advice on how to avoid problems with stone cladding and glass/aluminum cladding systems.
| Dec 17, 2010
5 Tips on Building with SIPs
Structural insulated panels are gaining the attention of Building Teams interested in achieving high-performance building envelopes in commercial, industrial, and institutional projects.
| Dec 17, 2010
How to Win More University Projects
University architects representing four prominent institutions of higher learning tell how your firm can get the inside track on major projects.
| Dec 13, 2010
Energy efficiency No. 1 priority for commercial office tenants
Green building initiatives are a key influencer when tenants decide to sign a commercial real estate lease, according to a survey by GE Capital Real Estate. The survey, which was conducted over the past year and included more than 2,220 office tenants in the U.S., Canada, France, Germany, Sweden, the UK, Spain, and Japan, shows that energy efficiency remains the No. 1 priority in most countries. Also ranking near the top: waste reduction programs and indoor air.
