Mainstreaming the P3 Process--Is it Just for Mega Firms?

How can you tell when a delivery system is coming into its own?  Here's one way to gauge the progress of P3 as a delivery system:  Law firms are marketing three hour courses on bid protests.

Here is Frank Rapoport touting his course (Peckar & Abramson), which looks very polished:

P&A is pleased to announce its second course offering for the P3 industry – Bid Protest Clinic for P3 and Design-Build Teams. 

This course follows P&A’s first course – Making the Transition to P3 (A roadmap for construction contractors on how to forge public private partnerships (P3s) with government agencies and negotiate with private equity partners.)

Why Take This Course?

There has been a visible increase in the number of bid protests on P3 projects, since the publication of the attached 2012 article. Projects being protested have included the Goethals Bridge, Cincinnati Innerbelt Bridge, Maryland I-95 Rest Stops, and I-15 in Utah (DB). 

If a team is not shortlisted or is not selected for an award under a solicitation, the  unsuccessful bidder should always request a debriefing from the owner. Being prepared to ask and demand answers to the right questions is critical to achieving a  meaningful debriefing. Our Bid Protest Clinic covers the information and questions to submit in advance of the debriefing, to create a paper trail, as well as the type of questions that are and are not appropriate

In the meantime, mid-size contractors are asking questions.  Aileen Cho at ENR reports from the annual meeting of Construction Financial Management Association recently held in San Diego--will the adoption of P3 for medium size projects leave medium and smaller size contractors in the cold?  

Here is one man's opinion, James Merrill, managing director with Star America Capital Advisors.

[F]oreign firms typically eye alternative delivery projects of $500 million+ in the U.S. "They want the big, flashy projects," he said. But there are examples in Canada of smaller—$30-million design-build projects, for example—that, "if set up right, the [midsize] contractors are not cut off," added Jeff Parkhurst, principal with Epic, an insurance and bonding broker.

The potential of a big design-build project causing more specialization on smaller projects and cutting out the midsize contractors is a concern, Merrill said. When asked what resources those contractors had, he said, "You can call me."