Design-build Gives New Twist to Project Contracting

Nov 24, 2005 8:00 AM

Design-build project delivery, which seeks to streamline projects and save money by having the same entity serve as both designer and general contractor, is becoming increasingly popular throughout the construction industry, and has important consequences for AV professionals.

Glenn Polly of VideoSonic in New York says he’s definitely seen an increase in projects being implemented by the design-build method, largely because owners are concerned with the bottom line.

One of the appeals of design-build is the opportunity to fast-track projects by allowing construction to begin in stages even while design is still underway. In the traditional design-bid-build (D-B-B) scenario, RFPs can’t go out until design is complete, and prospective bidders generally won’t bid on partial or incomplete documents. By uniting the functions of designer and general contractor, design-build presents AV integrators with a number of new challenges.

Tim Cape of Technitect notes, for example, the much longer duration of the project planning process under design-build. “Integrators are more oriented to the shorter term,” he says. The pre-design and design stages of a project can extend over months or years, Cape says. And although the process often includes an AV consultant, it can be harder for the integrator to get a seat at that table.

Project duration also complicates life for the integrator accustomed to bidding on detailed equipment specifications, Polly says. Typically, an RFP contains an itemized equipment list, but, because the project might be delayed for six months to a year, the products might be unavailable or the prices dropped.

An advantage of design-build in this setting: “The job can be reconsidered and modified over the entire life of a project,” Polly says.

In contrast, the traditional D-B-B system assumes design is finished once contracts are let, and any changes will start the designer’s meter running once again. Design-build differs from this protocol. “We’re expected to make those changes as part of the scope of work,” Polly says.

Architects, AV consultants, or AV integrators can all lead design-bid projects, and these approaches are suitable for different kinds of projects, Cape says.

The amount and nature of the AV systems in a project will determine how early and how extensively the AV consultant or integrator is involved, Cape says. The recently published InfoComm International book AudioVisual Best Practices includes graphics and advice comparing the benefits of integrator-led and consultant-led design-build structures, based on the size of the AV budget and the project schedule.

Becoming involved in a project early requires that AV integrators develop both expertise in construction practices and methods, and strong relationships with the design community, which may include some professionals who are not familiar to the AV participants, such as the professional construction manager.

“CMs are now more the norm than the exception,” Cape says. According to the Construction Management Association of America, the CM’s responsibilities in a design-build environment will often include helping the owner select the design team.

This further complicates the business challenge for AV product and service suppliers, says Cape, requiring successful AV firms to understand how to attain the business and do the work.