Construction

Design-Build (D-B)

What is the Design-Build (D-B) Method?

Compared with the traditional Design-Bid-Build project delivery method, the D-B offers potential time and cost savings. The D-B projects combine the design and construction phases of a project into a single contract. This reduces costs without reducing quality, since construction can begin while the plans are still being developed. Since the Design-Builder is responsible for both design and construction activities, this reduces the potential for cost increases due to design errors, and/or for discrepancies between design plans and construction activities.

A D-B contract can be awarded as either "low-bid" or "best-value," which is an important advantage. While low-bid is used for most traditional contracts, best-value selection permits the consideration of additional factors, such as experience, qualifications, innovation, technical approach, quality control methods and project management. Often this can reduce costs as well as increase quality.

D-B Resources

• D-B Enabling Legislation
• D-B Sample Manuals of Instruction
• D-B Skill Sets: Essential project management knowledge required by public owners.
• D-B Procurement Strategies
• D-B Contracting:
  • Request for Proposal (RFP) templates
  • Key elements of D-B construction & services contract
• Risk Registries and Risk Allocation Guidance
• Performance Measures to Gauge D-B Success
• Post Award
  • Change Orders
  • Contract Administration
  • Quality Assurance
  • Safety
• Other Handy D-B Resources

D-B Enabling Legislation

• State of Arkansas: Act 460 of 2003; Senate Bill 305 (.pdf)
• State of Connecticut: Substitute Senate Bill No. 33: Public Act 12-70
• Washington State: Design-Build--Competitive Bidding
• Washington State: Design-Build--Qualified Projects
• State of Wyoming: 16-6-708. Design build alternative delivery method (.pdf)

D-B Sample Manuals of Instruction

• Alaska DTPF: Guidebook for Design-Build Highway Project Development (.pdf)
• New York State DOT: Design-Build Procedures Manual (.pdf)
• Virginia DOT: Design-Build Procurement Manual (.pdf)

D-B Skill Sets: Essential project management knowledge required by public owners

• Virginia DOT: Guidance for Locally Administered Design-Build Projects: Roles and Responsibilities (.pdf)

D-B Procurement Strategies

• Virginia DOT: Design-Build Standard Template Documents (Lump Sum Agreement, General Conditions of Contract, Division I Amendments to the Standard Specifications) (.pdf)

D-B Contracting

Request for Proposal (RFP) templates

• Florida DOT: Design-Build RFPs (standard RFP, Maximum Price RFP, Hybrid RFP, Low bid RFP, Pushbutton RFP, Local Agency RFP)
• Michigan DOT: Current and Past DB Projects with all project-related documentation
• New York State DOT: LOI, RFQ, RFP templates (.pdf)
• Texas DOT: Request for Qualifications: The Dallas Horseshoe (.pdf)
• Virginia DOT:
  • Current Design-Build RFPs
  • Current Design-Build RFQs

Key elements of D-B construction & services contract

• New York State DOT: Contract Document Templates (.pdf)
• State of Ohio: Design-Build Selection Criteria (.doc)
• South Carolina DOT: Utility Involvement in South Carolina Design-Build Projects March 2005

Risk Registries and Risk Allocation Guidance

• Washington State DOT:
  • Project Risk Management (.pdf)

Performance Measures to Gauge D-B Success

• Current Design-Build Practices for Transportation Projects: A Compilation of Practices by the Transportation Design-Build Users Group June 2009
• Prerequisite for Design-Build - Considerations for Implementing Design-Build Contracts in the Federal-aid Highway Program by L. Gary Byrd
• New York State DOT: Performance Specifications (page 546)

Post Award

Change Orders

• Ohio DOT: Change Order Policy (See also, Standard Procedure for Processing Change Orders (.pdf) and Change Order Process Flow Chart (.pdf))

Contract Administration

• Ohio DOT: Contract Administration webpage
• West Virginia DOT: Contract Administration webpage

Quality Assurance

• FHWA: Construction Quality Assurance for Design-Build Highway Projects
• NCHRP: Guidelines for Optimizing the Risk and Cost of Materials QA Programs
• New York State DOT: DB Construction Quality Control/ (page 422) (.pdf)
• Texas DOT: Design-Build Program (.pdf)
• Virginia DOT: Minimum Requirements for and Quality Control on Design-Build and Public-Private Transportation Act Projects (.pdf)

Safety

• FHWA: Design-Build Projects and Work Zone Safety and Mobility
• North Carolina DOT: Safety Manuals

Other Handy D-B Resources

• FHWA:
  • Design-Build Effectiveness Study - Report to Congress required by TEA-21, Section 1307(f)
  • Design-Build Procurement - Federal-aid LPA Essentials video
  • EDC-2 Webinars
    • Design Build Model Overview 10/16/2014
    • Design-Build Project Selection Process 11/06/2014
    • Design Build Project Set 11/13/2014
    • Design Build Team Procurement 11/20/2014
  • Oversight of Design – Build Projects
  • P3 – Special Experimental Project No. 15 (SEP-15)
  • Right-of-Way Design/Build
• FHWA EDC D-B Fact Sheet (.pdf)
• Alaska DOT & PF: Design-Build
• Florida DOT: Design-Build Program Evaluation (November 2004) (.pdf)
• Illinois DOT: 2002 Survey on the Current Use of Design-Build by SAIC for Illinois DOT
• Nebraska DOT: Accelerated Project Delivery Methods 
• New York State DOT: SOQ Evaluation and Selection Templates (.pdf)
• AASHTO: Modification and Amendment of Environmental Permits on Design-Build Projects (.pdf)
• NCHRP:
  • Synthesis No. 429: "Geotechnical Information Practices in Design-Build Projects" (.pdf)
  • Liability of Design-Builders for Design, Construction, and Acquisition Claims
• TRB:
  • Current Practices to Set and Monitor DBE Goals on Design-Build Projects and Other Alternative Project Delivery Methods
    • November 2015 Webinar
  • Design-Build Highway Projects: A Review of Practices and Experiences, Phase I Report