IQ Summer 2011: The Federal Issue - (Page 13)

The international design competition had been won by ROMA Design Group of San Francisco, Calif., in September 2000. With that conceptual design and the approved site, the Foundation began a massive fundraising campaign and started ushering preliminary design through the approvals process. By 2006, the Foundation had received the permission to proceed with the final design—a milestone that triggered the design-build project delivery contract. “We decided to go design-build before we entered design development,” Jackson says. By sharing knowledge of site conditions freely among the design and construction players, by tapping the experience and expertise of designers and builders, the Foundation believed that cost and risk would be minimized while the project advanced on schedule. “ We had a clea r u nderst a nd i ng of t he Memorial’s components and their juxtaposition to one another. We needed a cohesive team with all of the fabricators at the table,” Jackson adds. He goes on to say, “In order to achieve excellence, the contractor needed to be married to the process and part of the process. Given the site conditions of building within [the Tidal Basin] floodplain, there would be unique challenges. The ability to use the expertise of the contractor early on in the process would help tremendously.” When it came time to issue the design-build RFP, the Foundation sought out the best of the best, canvassing the Washington, D.C., area for firms with extensive experience on the Mall and sending the RFP to just five or six firms. “When you are in a challenging role with a large number of stakeholders, the best approach is to take the most knowledgeable and experienced experts in your defense to the table,” Jackson says. “Think of it in terms of going to trial. If your life or career is held in abeyance you want to have the best defense.” A shortlisted group of responders presented to a panel that scored the teams based on presentations and proposals. The team with the highest cumulative score was the joint venture collectively known as MTTG: McKissack & McKissack (architecture and construction management)/Turner Construction Company/Gilford Corporation (civil engineering)/Tompkins Builders, Inc. Deryl McKissack, PE, PMP, president and chief executive officer of the firm leading the design and managing construction, says, “I had goose bumps the first two years” about winning such a prominent project. McKissack & McKissack had significant designbuild experience both as a joint venture partner and as a project team member. Many of those projects had been performed for federal owners and one of particular significance was the Lincoln Memorial restoration. There, the firm provided design-build and program management services for physical security barriers, roadway relocation and historic restoration to the Memorial. The joint venture’s proposal strategy was in line with the Foundation’s desire for the best the city’s A/E/C community had to offer. Sam Condit, dbia.org summer//2011 13 http://www.dbia.org

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of IQ Summer 2011: The Federal Issue

IQ Summer 2011: The Federal Issue