Collaborative delivery models reshape port infrastructure development
Michael Jolliffe, Greg Watanabe and Craig Lewis examine how fixed-price design-build and progressive design-build are replacing traditional procurement for complex maritime projects in The Maritime Executive. As ports navigate unprecedented competitive pressures, environmental and regulatory permitting challenges and infrastructure demands, collaborative delivery models are becoming the norm rather than the exception.
The article explores how these approaches offer critical advantages: schedule compression by overlapping design and construction phases, cost certainty through early pricing commitments and improved risk allocation between owners and contractors. Early contractor engagement during the design and permitting process allows realistic means and methods to be developed, reducing resubmittals that cause delays and increase costs.
Michael, Greg and Craig discuss how collaborative delivery more effectively manages risks by properly assigning and pricing them among project stakeholders. Some contractors have stopped bidding fixed-price design-build due to risk concerns, making progressive design-build or construction manager at-risk approaches more conducive to their risk tolerance.
Strategic port planning and data analytics tools help address visibility gaps in cargo patterns, while collaborative delivery allows flexibility as market intelligence improves. The ports that thrive will be those that embrace delivery models matching their organizational capabilities while maintaining focus on fundamental infrastructure quality and operational needs.
Read the full article in The Maritime Executive: Collaborative delivery models reshape port infrastructure development
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