The "no lines on paper" RFP
As a background: design-build has been used for about 20 years now. I know, some say DB has been an available delivery method for decades if not centuries. But I'm speaking 'mainstream' use. The Design-Build Institute of America was founded just 18 years ago, and until recently many states and public jurisdictions could not legally use design-build delivery. So, as I have inferred, design-build is new.
I mention this to provide a context for the evolution of this 'new' method of contract and delivery for construction projects. In the 90's, moving in to the early 2000's, DB was widely used by the owner with some sort of preliminary design (solution). In federal contracting, a preliminary design of about 35% of full design was included in the Request for Proposals (RFP) by many agencies and departments. Inclusion of a preliminary design is often referred to as a "bridging" design or "bridging documents".
Bridging documents are often included in RFPs as the starting point and the basis of the design-builders proposal. Using the Bridging document, the design-builder 'fills in the small details', calculates a proposed price for completing the design and building the project, and submits all in response to the owner's RFP.
Now, imagine the owner had no Bridging document, no basic design for the design-builder to respond to. Many questions arise...how does the owner define and convey the scope-of-work for which they seek a proposal? How does the owner publish an RFP with "no lines on paper"?
Answer: something new that the industry has created; a performance-based statement of work (PBSOW). A performance-based statement of work has no lines, or drawings, or specifications in the traditional sense. It does, however, tightly define the scope-of-work for the project. The performance-based scope establishes measurable expectations which must by contractually complied with. These expectations, or criteria, divide themselves into two categories: program metrics that define quantitative expectations (such as square footage, capacities, adjaciency of spaces, etc) and perfromance expectations that define qualitative metrics (such as LEED certification level, service lif-span, O&M life-cycle costs, durability, etc).
Comprehensive and complete PBSOW's can be 200 to 300 pages in length, but still smaller than the combined traditional plans and specifications that form the contract basis used in design-bid-build. Keep in mind, a PBSOW does not define the 'solution'; it defines the 'problem' for which the owner seeks a 'solution'. As such, the owner does not create 'lines on paper' by hiring an architect and creating a set of 'bid docuemnts'. And since there are no lines on paper, no design documents, then there are no design errors or omissions for which the owner is at risk.
At this point, most owners have about a billion questions. Many think that PBSOW design-build is a hoax, and has to have a down side. It does...it's new, it's not conventional, it requires a paradigmn shift in the owner's thinking, and requires a concentrated effort upfront in the creation of the PBSOW RFP. That being said, there are some amazing examples of PBSOW Design-Build projects that have been delivered.
One in particular is the DOE's Research Support Facility (RSF) in Golden CO, at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. This 220,000 sf facility is likely the worlds most energy efficient office building. The RFP for the acquisition of this project used "no lines on paper", it was 100% performance-based. And the outcome is truly High Performance. It has won dozens of national awards form about every stakeholder group in the design and construction industry, including AIA, DBIA, and AGC.
See for your self...google "NREL RSF"
The details of how the RFP was put together for the Research Support Facility will be published in an upcoming issue of DBIA's Integrated Quarterly...please look for it.
Dave
I mention this to provide a context for the evolution of this 'new' method of contract and delivery for construction projects. In the 90's, moving in to the early 2000's, DB was widely used by the owner with some sort of preliminary design (solution). In federal contracting, a preliminary design of about 35% of full design was included in the Request for Proposals (RFP) by many agencies and departments. Inclusion of a preliminary design is often referred to as a "bridging" design or "bridging documents".
Bridging documents are often included in RFPs as the starting point and the basis of the design-builders proposal. Using the Bridging document, the design-builder 'fills in the small details', calculates a proposed price for completing the design and building the project, and submits all in response to the owner's RFP.
Now, imagine the owner had no Bridging document, no basic design for the design-builder to respond to. Many questions arise...how does the owner define and convey the scope-of-work for which they seek a proposal? How does the owner publish an RFP with "no lines on paper"?
Answer: something new that the industry has created; a performance-based statement of work (PBSOW). A performance-based statement of work has no lines, or drawings, or specifications in the traditional sense. It does, however, tightly define the scope-of-work for the project. The performance-based scope establishes measurable expectations which must by contractually complied with. These expectations, or criteria, divide themselves into two categories: program metrics that define quantitative expectations (such as square footage, capacities, adjaciency of spaces, etc) and perfromance expectations that define qualitative metrics (such as LEED certification level, service lif-span, O&M life-cycle costs, durability, etc). Comprehensive and complete PBSOW's can be 200 to 300 pages in length, but still smaller than the combined traditional plans and specifications that form the contract basis used in design-bid-build. Keep in mind, a PBSOW does not define the 'solution'; it defines the 'problem' for which the owner seeks a 'solution'. As such, the owner does not create 'lines on paper' by hiring an architect and creating a set of 'bid docuemnts'. And since there are no lines on paper, no design documents, then there are no design errors or omissions for which the owner is at risk.
At this point, most owners have about a billion questions. Many think that PBSOW design-build is a hoax, and has to have a down side. It does...it's new, it's not conventional, it requires a paradigmn shift in the owner's thinking, and requires a concentrated effort upfront in the creation of the PBSOW RFP. That being said, there are some amazing examples of PBSOW Design-Build projects that have been delivered.
One in particular is the DOE's Research Support Facility (RSF) in Golden CO, at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. This 220,000 sf facility is likely the worlds most energy efficient office building. The RFP for the acquisition of this project used "no lines on paper", it was 100% performance-based. And the outcome is truly High Performance. It has won dozens of national awards form about every stakeholder group in the design and construction industry, including AIA, DBIA, and AGC.
See for your self...google "NREL RSF"
The details of how the RFP was put together for the Research Support Facility will be published in an upcoming issue of DBIA's Integrated Quarterly...please look for it.
Dave
