Public owners are increasingly turning to alternatives to the traditional design-bid-build delivery method, according to a recent study.
The 2005 Pulse of U.S. Public Construction survey— conducted by Phoenix-based PinnacleOne—examined the opinions of 167 public owners involved in construction projects throughout the United States. Other findings include:
When asked the primary reason for considering alternative procurement methods, 57% of owners polled cited a goal of reducing costs. More than a third (38%) cited the need to reduce the length of project schedules as their primary reason.Although only 5% of owners identified claim reduction as the primary reason to pursue alternative methods of delivery, a majority of the owners view alternative delivery methods as effective tools to reduce the level of risk they assume.More than a third (37%) of public owners either currently use or plan to use design-build on projects in the next year; 66% consider this method effective in reducing the level of risk they assume on a project. In the municipal/government sector, 45% percent of the owners are using or plan to use design-build in the next year.