Project Delivery Method Selection Flashcards

Which factor most strongly favors selecting design-build over design-bid-build when an owner has a fixed opening date?

Answer: Overlapping design and construction phases reduces overall schedule

Design-build enables concurrent design and construction, compressing the schedule compared to sequential design-bid-build delivery.

An owner wants maximum control over material specifications and design details throughout construction. Which delivery method best supports this goal?

Answer: Design-bid-build

Design-bid-build gives owners direct contractual authority over the designer, allowing ongoing specification changes without renegotiating a single entity's contract.

Under the DBIA framework, what term describes the situation where a single entity holds contractual responsibility for both design and construction?

Answer: Single-point accountability

Single-point accountability means the design-builder is the sole party contractually responsible to the owner for both design defects and construction defects.

A municipality needs a water treatment plant but lacks the internal expertise to develop detailed technical requirements. Which project delivery approach is most appropriate?

Answer: Performance-based design-build specifying outcomes rather than prescriptive design

Performance-based design-build lets owners define what the facility must accomplish, allowing the design-builder to innovate on how to achieve those outcomes.

Which procurement characteristic distinguishes qualifications-based selection (QBS) from low-bid selection in design-build?

Answer: QBS awards based on the team's experience and technical approach before price negotiation

QBS evaluates a firm's qualifications, past performance, and technical approach first, with price negotiated after the best-qualified team is identified.

When comparing risk allocation, how does design-build differ from design-bid-build regarding design errors discovered during construction?

Answer: In design-build, the design-builder bears the cost of correcting design errors without additional owner payment

Because the design-builder holds both contracts, design errors are the design-builder's responsibility to correct at no added cost to the owner.

An owner selects a project delivery method early in planning. Which DBIA-recognized benefit makes design-build particularly valuable when the project scope is not fully defined?

Answer: Progressive design-build allows scope to be refined collaboratively as design advances

Progressive design-build is structured so the owner and design-builder refine scope and price incrementally, making it well-suited to projects with evolving requirements.