If the process control system is the nerve center of a water or wastewater treatment plant, the electrical system is the heart. To keep a treatment plant’s core mission a priority, process control system and electrical services engineers and integrators must cooperate as system infrastructure is installed, upgraded, or replaced. This demand for a higher level of collaboration and integration is compelling utilities to select design-build project delivery.
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The term “best value,” typically applied when procuring a fixed-price design-build project, is a process for owners to obtain services from design-build firms and contractors, where price is not the only criteria for selection.
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As I sit at the airport in Minneapolis reflecting on the week’s events at the DBIA Water/Wastewater conference, I can’t help but think about how much fun we have as an industry. It is always a wonderful experience to spend time with business partners, competitors and owners, learning more about what makes our industry tick, and more importantly, learning more about what makes us as individuals tick.
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Achieving a successful design-build project requires a collaborative environment that begins with the owner’s commitment to be the leader of internal preparations. Before initiating the procurement process or identifying the delivery method to be used, key decisions need to be made by the owner.
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Thirty-five years ago, I studied water treatment systems in college, and I’ve been captivated ever since. I feel fortunate to work in a field where I feel like I make a difference every single day.
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In working on water infrastructure projects in the collaborative-delivery industry, it is important to understand the value of involving local businesses. When a design-build firm begins a project in a new locality that may not be within their normal geographic area, there are not only differences to be encountered, but more importantly, there are fabulous opportunities.
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A public-private partnership (P3) with project financing is formed when a public-sector entity, such as a municipal water utility or state department of transportation, enters into an agreement with a private-sector entity for the design, construction, finance, long-term operation and maintenance of a project. A P3 project allows for greater private-sector participation in the delivery, financing, and operations of public water infrastructure projects.
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New York’s Governor, Andrew Cuomo, made headlines recently when he submitted a draft budget to expand the use of the design-build project delivery approach. If the budget is approved later this year, New York state agencies would be able to move infrastructure projects forward using design-build.
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For almost two decades now, I have been fortunate to work in various aspects of the water industry. Most of this time has been spent supplying equipment and solutions to a wide variety of users, from a paper mill in Maine, to a distillery in Scotland, and a drinking water plant in Chicago. Over the years, I’ve also observed that the role of an equipment supplier within a water project has evolved to a number of different forms. In its most basic role, the equipment supplier provided a tightly specified piece of equipment whose success ultimately was based on, “How much does it cost?”
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The power of the collaborative characteristics in design-build delivery is never more evident than during the startup and commissioning phases of a project. Raise your hand if you can share a story about a startup that went wrong in a design-bid-build (DBB) contract — I bet most of you have your hands up!
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