Family Album

“The times they are a-changin’”
By: Kate Smith with thanks to Mike Gritters, Rich Henry and Rod Thayer and apologies to Bob Dylan

Alternative project delivery methods” is a mouthful but the term has significant meaning for McCarthy and our clients — especially our public institution clients. Most public agencies (institutions that receive most, if not all, of their funding from our government) have their projects built the old-fashioned way: design, bid, build. This means that once design is completed, bids are taken from (sometimes) qualified contractors and the lowest bidder wins the contract. While that might sound like a good idea, it often leads to problems. If the design documents aren't complete, for example, change orders are required. This usually results in delays, increased project costs, and headaches for the client and everyone involved. Thanks to some innovative McCarthy team members and some creative clients, we are finding ways to deliver projects to our public sector clients more efficiently incorporating more teamwork between designers, owners, developers and McCarthy.

San Jose State University (SJSU) was in dire need of new dormitories and retail space. Rather than going the old-fashioned route, SJSU had a short list comprised of pre-qualified teams of developers, architects and contractors propose delivering the project. The teams were evaluated on their ability to deliver the best project within budget and on schedule. Thanks to the Close-the-Loop activities of Rod Thayer of the Sacramento office and Britt Slone from Seattle, McCarthy's team (including developer Trammell Crow and architect Niles Bolton) was put on the University's short list. SJSU's creative approach and the strength of our team won the $355 million contract.

The Paramount School District in Southern California is a similar success story with a delivery system that is generating excitement throughout the California education community. The laws for building schools in California specifically prohibit the kind of contract used in design-build projects, but rather than focus on what can't be done, this group looked at how projects could be delivered efficiently without violating the rules. For Paramount, this meant that separate contracts had to be signed with the builder (McCarthy) and the architect (LPA). Then the project had to go through public bidding. Once the school district received bids on four major work categories of the project, the bids were assigned to McCarthy so that we could then function in a capacity that is similar to the construction manager at risk approach.

The University of California at San Diego's cancer treatment center is yet another success story. The original contract for the project only required bids on general conditions, fees and rates on pre-construction work. Once that bid was won, the contract was signed and McCarthy then went to a group of pre-qualified subcontractors for public bidding.

While these examples all related to California projects, this creative approach can be used elsewhere. Will this alternative work for every public project? No, but it is important to remember the next time you hear “We've always done it that way” or “We have to do it this way”, a little creative thought and a lot of teamwork can change the way things are done.

Late breaking news! Our Phoenix office beat Sundt and Turner to get the Maricopa County Admin Headquarters — a $90 million gem using alternative delivery methods.