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Muscatine changes project model for water system work

Posted on by darion

With the water system project coming up, the Muscatine City Council on Thursday discussed a possible new model for implementing the projects.

Jon Koch, director of the Center for Water and Resource Reclamation, explained the CMAR — or construction manager at risk — construction model during an in-depth council meeting. He said the city has traditionally built projects by designing them and bidding on them with local contractors.







Water Pollution Control Plant

Water Pollution Control Director Jon Koch (pictured) explained that a new project will be carried out at the city’s water treatment plant to upgrade its control systems.


ARCHIVE PHOTO


For the upcoming electrical assets project, he said the department plans to use a new construction model. He said the industry is moving to a Collaborative Project Delivery model.

“The main reason we do Collaborative Delivery is to control costs,” he said. “When you go into a typical project, someone comes in and needs a change order. Pretty soon, your $5 million project becomes a $6 million project.”

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He said the model significantly reduces change orders. The model also increases transparency, with everyone working on the plan familiar with all aspects of the project. Koch said the model shifts more risk to the contractor and the schedule is faster.

The state of Iowa has not permitted CMAR projects until 2023.

Koch said that while the CMAR model is slightly different from the design-send-build model, it is not as big a change as other models.

Under the new model, the design of the project is done in cooperation between the contractor and the consultant, who jointly design the project. The project takes less time and the cost of the project is determined earlier in the design phase.

“The offer is a little different,” Koch said. “It’s not like the offer goes out to different builders and they all come.

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The contractor and consultant are identified based on their qualification statements. Koch explained that the city has a scoring system that determines who is most qualified to do the job.

Koch said the department has determined that the collaborative method will be used for the electrical assets project because it will be a complex project. He also said that the contractor and consultant will have to be in sync on the project. He believes that the project would cost significantly more if it were done the traditional way. He also said that a guaranteed price is built into the project.

The project involves replacing controls at the water treatment plant and several lifting stations that were deemed unreliable. Some of the equipment is 40 years old, Koch said.

No guidance was sought on the design of the electrical assets. Koch said the purpose of the presentation was to inform the council about the new way of conducting projects. The project is expected to be completed in more than a year.

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