Design-Build Done Better

The Colorado market is an established, thriving hub for alternative delivery engineering projects. What is alternative delivery, and how does it relate to design-build?

Simply put, design-build is an alternative delivery method that combines the design and contracting teams into one, so the project stays within one firm from start to end. This ensures efficiency and nimble problem-solving since both teams are part of the same organization. It also often reduces paperwork, increases innovation and creativity, and decreases lead time.

Design-build projects often build connections between destinations, such as bridges or airports, but they also build connections within teams and communities. However, as with any established practice, sometimes things can get stagnant and fall into a rut of rinse, lather, repeat.

At KLJ, we believe there is a better way to build by revitalizing innovation and creativity within well-established practices. We should know, we’ve been around over 80 years and continue to reimagine what engineering can be. Here are three things you need to know about how design-build benefits citizens, the community, and the industry as a whole.

People Matter

The design-build process can seem overwhelming at first, but at its heart it brings together diverse ideas and experiences to make the project the best it can be.

When combining the design and contracting teams to deliver a major project, such as a bridge, government building, or transit facility, every person on that team becomes a key player in pushing the project forward. Whether it is on the marketing, proposal, production, or quality control team, there isn’t a role that isn’t vital to the project’s success.

Having as much expertise under one roof is a great start, but what really makes a design-build project successful is the right people. Creating an environment where team members can openly express their ideas leads to more innovation, less time in the design phase, and better execution of the project objectives.

The people on a project are just as important as the technical aspect and making sure the team feels valued and respected is essential to any successful design-build project. This can make design-build teams some of the most collaborative and encouraging teams to work on within the engineering world.

Exceeding Expectations

A community runs on its infrastructure, and that infrastructure relies on the community. A project is not a “thing,” but a collection of people, communities, and stakeholders.

Improving communities is part of why we at KLJ love engineering progressive infrastructure. Design-build makes this process even easier, where solutions can be arrived at even faster and the project completed quickly to start benefitting the community as soon as possible.

By shifting the focus to the end-users of the infrastructure being built, it changes the perspective and goals of the whole team. Since we often live and work in the communities we serve, our teams understand projects on both a personal and professional level.

What does this mean for you as a resident of Colorado? Design-build helps infrastructure projects get done faster, more efficiently, and with more innovations that help increase safety and ease of use.

Design-build can be the difference between a major project taking years to complete and just a few months. If you’ve ever been stuck in traffic in a road construction zone, you will know the difference a project’s speed can make in your everyday life.

Engineering, Reimagined

Engineers are constantly basing decisions on past experience and judgement. Although we need to leverage this knowledge, we also need to find ways to bring out new ideas. Without innovation and new voices being added to the conversation, our industry becomes stationery and design-build loses its value.

That is why we are excited to be opening a new office in Grand Junction, CO in 2021. This KLJ location will house experts in water, transportation, aviation, and alternative delivery, and we are actively hiring for positions in these areas to work out of the Grand Junction office.

At KLJ, we integrate innovation into our engineering, staffing, and ideation practices to make sure each project is uniquely designed to meet its specific needs and opportunities. To learn more about our design-build capabilities, contact Ben Dzioba at benjamin.dzioba@kljeng.com or visit www.kljeng.com.

 Ben Dzioba, PE, PMP, DBIA is a licensed engineer, certified project management professional and design-build professional. He is on numerous national committees and a 2017 DBIA Transportation Leadership award recipient. He is also the past-president of the DBIA-Upper Midwest Region and KLJ’s design-build leader. If you have questions about the design-build process and how to build both teams and projects, Ben has answers.

(This sponsored content was provided by KLJ)