A Design-Build Done Right® Primer
PROJECT DELIVERY
A DESIGN-BUILD INSTITUTE OF AMERICA PUBLICATION
How an Owner proactively acts when
undertaking a capital project drives how
all of the other parties will react. Owners
should begin each project by conducting an
objective assessment of its organization and
project. Achieving a clear understanding of
the project’s goals, objectives, opportunities
and constraints is a critical first step.
Conducting a brutally honest analysis of
the Owner’s organizational culture, policies
and procedures, including how critical decisions
are made, will inform the task of planning for
project success.
Each Project Is Unique
Savvy Owners strategically and carefully
plan to organize each project in a manner
that appropriately addresses its distinctive
challenges while capitalizing on its special
opportunities to ensure the best probability
of overall project success. A project’s Strategic
Acquisition Plan focuses on determining the
best combination of these key factors:
PROJECT DELIVERY
Project Success Rises and Falls
with the Owner
PAGE 2 PROJECT DELIVERY PRIMER
Project Delivery Systems Determine
How Key Parties Are Involved
In all project delivery systems, there is always a minimum of three key parties involved:
The various project delivery systems drive
a variety of ways each party relates to the
others. The most distinctive characteristics of
the different systems hinge on these primary
considerations:
• Owner Engagement and Control:
How “hands-on” does the Owner want to
be with their project? The delivery system
chosen can dictate a wide spectrum
of engagement and control. An Owner
can choose to have great control over
every detail of the project or can elect to
delegate this responsibility to an entity
that oversees everything…or any options
between the two extremes.
• Relationships:
Each project delivery system will establish
different relationships between the parties
involved. This includes interpersonal
relationships, how communications occur
and contractual relationships. Some project
delivery systems are designed to encourage
trust, collaboration and teamwork among
all parties. Other project delivery systems
create a system of “checks and balances”
between parties.
PROJECT DELIVERY SYSTEMS
PROJECT DELIVERY PRIMER PAGE 3
PROJECT DELIVERY SYSTEMS
• Timing of Engagement of the Parties:
The timing of when each party becomes
involved in the project is also determined
by the project delivery system. Some
project delivery systems will first advance
the project to final design, then seek
competitive bids from contractors. This
ensures that contractors have a complete
scope definition when preparing their
pricing. It also means that contractors,
including specialty trade contractors, have
no input into the design of the project.
They do not see the design until it is
finished. Contractor input occurs after the
award of the contract and is frequently
reconciled by change orders. Other
project delivery systems engage key prime
contractors and trade subcontractors
before the design has advanced beyond
conceptual stages. This allows the
design to be developed and informed by
constructability and marketplace insight
of the experts who will be building the
project. These construction professionals
have the opportunity to provide input
regarding the most cost and schedule
efficient construction methods or materials
before the design has been completed.
• Project Budget:
Among the most important aspects of a
construction project is the project budget
and the value received for it. Owners
using project delivery systems that rely on
competitive bidding will not have an initial
fixed price for the project until all the design
and bidding processes are completed. The
bidding marketplace determines whether
or not the completed design is within the
Owner’s budget. The concept for award of
the contract is the lowest bid price. Other
project delivery systems are devoted to
a design-to-target budget process that
relies on mutual trust, collaboration and
refinement of the design to fit within a
target budget. A firm, fixed price is often
established before the design is complete, as
soon as the scope and quality of the design
is optimized and confirmed to be within the
target budget. The concept for the award of
the contract is qualifications or best value.
• Project Schedule:
Some project delivery systems are linear
and sequential. First the project is designed,
then it is bid, and once the contractor is
selected, it is built. Each step in the process
must be completed before the next one
While selection of the procurement method and
contracting forms are also important components of a
Strategic Acquisition Plan, this primer focuses on
selecting a project delivery system.
PAGE 4 PROJECT DELIVERY PRIMER
PROJECT DELIVERY SYSTEMS
can be built. Other project delivery systems
offer the opportunity to “fast-track” the
project schedule. Project elements that
must be constructed first are designed and
released for construction. Construction
begins while components of the project
that will occur later in the construction
process are still being designed. This
overlap of the design and construction
phases shortens the overall duration of the
project. Some project delivery systems are
helpful in identifying long-lead items that
are affected by supply chain delivery issues.
These project delivery systems allow the
early procurement of long-lead items ahead
of normal sequences to help mitigate the
negative impact of supply chain issues.
• Risk Management:
All projects have risk for each party
involved. Each project delivery system
assigns risk differently to each party.
Understanding how risk is identified,
allocated and managed is a key to
understanding the nuances between
project delivery systems.
• Dispute Avoidance and Resolution:
While the choice of a project delivery
system will define roles and responsibilities
of each party, most construction projects
are so involved and complex that it is
virtually impossible to get through one
without having to work through some
differing points of view. Disputes can
delay a project, add to its cost and take an
emotional toll on everyone involved. This
is particularly true of formal disputes that
involve protests, mediation, arbitration
or even litigation. The project delivery
systems that create a system of “checks
and balances” between design professionals
and construction professionals also tend
to create more adversarial relationships
between those parties. These project
delivery systems are historically and
statistically more prone to formal disputes
than other delivery systems. One common
way to resolve such issues is by a Change
Order to the contract. The extent to which
an Owner is familiar and comfortable with
the Change Order process may influence
the selection of a project delivery system.
While there are well-established alternative
dispute resolution (ADR) techniques that
can be applied to any delivery system,
their objectives are better aligned with
some delivery systems than they are with
others. Delivery systems with defined Best
Practices that are focused on teamwork
proactively address project issues with the
intent of resolving them quickly and fairly.
This is more likely to avoid formal disputes.
• Project Goals, Constraints and Opportunities:
The Owner’s goals for each individual
project may drive an emphasis on one
or more of the considerations described
above. An Owner’s choice of project
delivery system may be further constrained
by the legal authority or organizational
policies under which the Owner operates.
One key decision in an Owner’s Strategic
Acquisition Plan is the selection of project
delivery system best suited for the unique
qualities of the project. While selection of the
procurement method and contracting forms
are also important components of a Strategic
Acquisition Plan, this primer focuses on
selecting a project delivery system.
The following pages describe the most
common project delivery systems being used
today.
PROJECT DELIVERY PRIMER PAGE 5
DESIGN-BUILD
A Single Contract Changes Everything
Once considered “an alternative form of project
delivery,” Design-Build is now the fastest
growing and most commonly used project
delivery system. Nearly half of all design and
construction projects in the United States are
being delivered using some form of
Design-Build. It is widely used for both private
and public sector (federal, state and municipal)
projects. It is used across all project types,
including vertical (building) construction,
transportation and water/wastewater markets.
In all other project delivery systems,
there are separate contracts for design and
construction. The single contract for both
design and construction is the Design-Build
distinction.
DESIGN-BUILD
The Owner executes one contract with a
single point of responsibility. Everybody on
the team works together from the beginning
of the project. They provide unified project
recommendations to best fit the Owner’s
program needs, schedule and budget. Any
changes are addressed by the entire team,
including the Owner, driven by collaborative
problem-solving and innovation — not excuses
or blame-shifting.
Streamlining project delivery through a
single contract between the Owner and
Design-Builder transforms the relationship
between designers and builders into an alliance
that fosters collaboration and teamwork.
United from the outset of the project, an
integrated team works to successfully complete
a project faster, more cost effectively and with
optimized project quality while meeting the
Owner’s project criteria.
Single source contracting is the
fundamental difference between Design-Build
and other project delivery systems. It drives
the culture of integration and collaboration
that is inherent in Design-Build Done Right®.
Design-Build delivery is as much a mindset
as it is a process. A successful Design-Build
project is defined by the attitude and actions
of everyone involved. Design-Build is intended
to be a highly collaborative, fully integrated
undertaking that is built on trust, mutual
respect, teamwork, innovation and creative
problem solving. Design-Build works best
when everybody makes the mental shift to
think and act as a single entity focused on
achieving shared project goals.
Design-Build is where one entity, the Design-Builder,
enters into a single contract with the Owner to provide both design and construction services.
Design-Build is single source responsibility.
PAGE 6 PROJECT DELIVERY PRIMER
DESIGN-BUILD
Flexibility of Design-Build
One reason for the popularity of Design-Build
is the flexibility it offers as to how Design-Build
services are procured and provided. While
this flexibility is primarily a consideration of
procurement methods and contract format,
Design-Build project delivery remains the
constant common denominator among the most
prominent variations of its implementation. The
two most prominent options for competitive
procurement of Design-Build services are:
PROJECT DELIVERY PRIMER PAGE 7
CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT AT RISK
While Best-Value Design-Build and Progressive
Design-Build are two procurement methods
with distinguishing characteristics, they share
numerous attributes common to all forms of
Design-Build project delivery, as set forth in the
DBIA Universal Best Practices, including:
• The ability of Owners to focus on nonprice related factors, such as qualifications, past performance and project approach, to
select teams.
• Early integration of the entire project
team, including key trade partners so
that constructability, market conditions
and other such factors can inform and
positively influence the design.
• Unleashing the power of team creativity,
innovation and collaborative problem solving.
Both procurement methodologies and
contracting formats can provide excellent
results and should be carefully considered in
an Owner’s Strategic Acquisition Plan.
CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT AT RISK
(CMC, CMAR, GC/CM)
In this project delivery system, the Owner
holds contracts with separate entities:
• Owner to Design Professional of Record
• Owner to Construction Manager (CM)
Both the Design Professional of Record
and the CM are selected primarily on
qualifications at the beginning of the project.
The CM provides constructability reviews,
cost estimating and other preconstruction
services to the Owner for the benefit of
the Design Professional of Record prior to
commencement of construction.
All specialty trade contractors are
subcontracted to the CM. Basis of selection
of specialty trade contractors varies widely
by type of project (public or private) and the
statutes under which CM services are being
provided. Ideally, specialty trade contractors
are selected on both qualifications and price
early in the project and assist the CM in
providing preconstruction services.
Project scheduling is basically sequential
and linear, similar to Design/Bid/Build delivery,
although fast tracking and early ordering of
long lead items is possible.
PAGE 8 PROJECT DELIVERY PRIMER
DESIGN/BID/BUILD
1 Spearin Doctrine: The obligation that the owner impliedly warrants that the plans and specifications that it provides to the contractor, if followed, are adequate and suitable for their intended use. The Spearin Doctrine originates from the landmark construction case, United States v. Spearin, 248 U.S. 132 (1918).
Once construction begins, the CM
performs primarily as the General Contractor
for the project. The CM is responsible to
perform the work on schedule in accordance
with the Contract Documents and ensure the
trade subcontractors do the same. The Owner
warrants the sufficiency of the Contract
Documents (Spearin Doctrine1) to the CM.
The Owner is responsible for the cost of
“gaps” between the Construction Documents
and the Owner’s requirements for project
performance.
DESIGN/BID/BUILD
In this project delivery system, the Owner
holds contracts with separate entities:
• Owner to Design Professional of Record
• Owner to General Contractor
Traditionally, this is a well understood project
delivery system with wide statutory authority
in all public domains. Most public works
procurement laws are based in this delivery
system. Roles are well defined for all parties
involved.
The Design Professional of Record is
selected primarily on qualifications at the
beginning of the project. The Designer
of Record works directly for the Owner
to advance the design to 100% complete
Construction Documents. The General
Contractor and specialty trade contractors
have no input into the design process.
The project is then released for bidding.
The General Contractor is selected on
the basis of being responsive to the bidding
requirements and having the lowest bid.
All specialty trade contractors are
subcontracted to the General Contractor after
the award of Contract.
Project scheduling is sequential and linear
(Design/Bid/Build). Fast Tracking is not possible.
Once construction begins, the General
Contractor is responsible to perform the
work on schedule in accordance with the
Contract Documents. The Owner warrants
the sufficiency of the Contract Documents
(Spearin Doctrine) to the General Contractor.
The Owner is responsible for the cost of “gaps”
between the Construction Documents and the
Owner’s requirements for project performance.
PROJECT DELIVERY PRIMER PAGE 9
DELIVERY SYSTEMS COMPARISON
DELIVERY SYSTEMS
Green = Most Favorable; Red = Least Favorable
PAGE 10 PROJECT DELIVERY PRIMER
DELIVERY SYSTEMS COMPARISON
DELIVERY SYSTEMS
Green = Most Favorable; Red = Least Favorable
PROJECT DELIVERY PRIMER PAGE 11
1001 Pennsylvania Ave., NW, Suite 410
Washington, DC 20004
dbia.org
Project Delivery
Design-Build Done Right® Primer
A Design-Build Institute of America Publication
Copyright © 2023
For case studies and photos of award-winning projects
using design-build best practices,
visit our project database at projects.dbia.org.
DBIA extends a special thanks to the following individuals who helped shape this document:
Chair: Dan Rawlins, RA, DBIA
Bill Godwin, LEED AP, DBIA
Bill Kent, LEED AP, FDBIA
Jim Ropelewski, JD, DBIA