"Two-Step Design Build"

The January 28, 2013 issue of ENR Magazine includes just two women in its list of top 25 newsmakers for 2012.  One of these is Lisa Washington, DBIA Executive Director.  Lisa earned the honor for spearheading an effort with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and other federal agencies to adopt a two-step proposal process for projects. 

The two-step design build proposal process first short-lists three firms rather than five or more, and uses performance-based rather than prescriptive requirements to evaluate competing proposals.  The process also encourages payment of meaningful stipends to offset proposal preparation costs for competing entities. 

[Under single step RFP's firms devote significant time and money on their designs with less chance of winning the work.  It stands to reason that under those conditions pricing will build in more contingencies and margins for error]

"More creativity at less cost is the real intent of design-build," Washington says.  "Some [owners] say single step is faster--it isn't--or that a [low-bid] number up front offers them best value--it doesn't"   

DBIA says design-build is now used on 40% of all U.S. projects, so the goal is to get industry to use it correctly.  Washington has been pushing design-build best practices during her nine-year DBIA tenure.  Revenue from DBIA's "Education Tour" program has grown to $1.4 million in 2011 from $30,000 in 2004.