CONSTRUCTION MANAGEMENT PRACTICES: RETHINKING EFFECTIVE HIGHWAY PROJECT DELIVERY

To learn about construction management practices other countries are using, the Federal Highway Administration and the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials sponsored a 10-member team scanning study of Europe and Canada. The team observed that, just as in the United States, highway agencies in Europe and Canada face the challenge of operating an aging infrastructure under tight funding constraints, growing environmental challenges, and leaner staffs. The international agencies are developing innovative solutions to this challenge. While the low-bid system common in the United States is used abroad, most of the countries the team visited have adopted a best-value procurement system as standard procedure. Another contrast the scan team observed is in contract payment methods. While unit pricing based on quantities produced is the most-used method in the United States, other countries are having success with lump-sum payments. In most of the countries the scan team visited, highway agencies with trimmed-down staffs have turned to the private sector to perform functions they used to do themselves. The agencies also use risk analysis and allocation techniques to help them quantify project risk and choose contracting strategies to mitigate those risks. Further discussion in this article centers on the scanning team's recommendations on construction management practices agencies in the United States should consider trying.

• Record URL:
  http://onlinepubs.trb.org/onlinepubs/nchrp/transcan_8.pdf
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• Supplemental Notes:
  • Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved
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• Publication Date: 2004

Language

• English

Media Info

• Features: Photos;
• Pagination: p. 7-9
• Serial:
  • TranScan
  • Issue Number: 8
  • Publisher: Transportation Research Board
  • ISSN: 1095-5593

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Construction management; Contracting out; Innovation; Payment; Procurement; Recommendations; Risk analysis; Study tours
• Geographic Terms: Canada; Europe
• Subject Areas: Construction; Finance; Highways; Research; I50: Construction and Supervision of Construction;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00989334
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS, TRB
• Created Date: Apr 29 2005 12:00AM