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As design and construction jobs grow in size and complexity, many need a designated person to facilitate communication between all parties and ensure the project stays true to the owner’s vision, said panelists at the Design- Build Conference & Expo in Maryland last week.
This is where a layout integration manager comes in.
“Design and construction jobs are getting bigger every day it seems. The teams are huge, handling hundreds if not thousands of activities,” said Sean Gellhaus, associate vice president and national procurement manager for HNTB, based in Kansas City, Missouri. “When you have a large team managing many activities, communication is critical, because if A, B, and C don’t know what X, Y, and Z are doing, you’ve got a big problem coming your way.”
A design integration manager keeps the project aligned with design expectations through each step of the construction process and proactively mitigates conflicts. Typically supplied by the builder, they liaise with the design manager and construction manager, as well as the owner, and mitigate issues as they arise by breaking down communication silos.
“[The design integration manager is] the glue that holds the entire design-build project together,” said Lori Ann Stevens, vice president and director of technical design at Turner Engineering Group, a subsidiary of Turner Construction, based in New York City. “They’re there to ensure that the owner’s needs are met, that the integrity of the architect’s design is preserved, and that the budget stays in that reserved bucket.”
An ideal design integration manager should be an experienced and effective leader, a collaborative decision-maker and a mediator, the panelists said. They need to know how projects work and respect the roles that everyone plays on a project and understand how they work together, said Scott Martin, project manager and design-build market leader at engineering firm Walter P Moore, with based in Houston.
Key responsibilities of this role include overseeing fundamental design direction and confirming that the project meets its objectives and criteria, establishing design budget “guard rails”, facilitating timely design decisions, coordinating the delivery of design packages and facilitate design reviews and buildability as well as communication. between the design and construction teams.
Here are five tips from the panelists to make design integration management successful.
Generate and foster trust in the team
It’s important to create a team dynamic early on and foster an environment of accountability, said Susan O’Connell, director of higher education with AC Martin, a Los Angeles-based architecture and planning firm. Bringing everyone together during the research stage of the project is a vital way to build trust, and if that doesn’t happen, encourage it through active listening, team lunches and the like. Make sure everyone understands the scope, schedule, budget and risks up front, O’Connell said.
Know the customer’s criteria and objectives
The design integration manager needs to deeply understand the project’s criteria, Stevens said, and clearly establish who is responsible for what prior to research, i.e., the means and methods of construction, who manages what consultants and when consultants are transferred to a business partner. They need to have investigative conversations with the design team to make sure the criteria they are designing for is correct.
In a search for a lump sum contract, it is imperative that someone read all the documents because there is no mechanism to change an offer once it has been submitted. This is still important in progressive build design work, but there is more room for maneuver: during validations, a manager can and should challenge project elements or criteria and come up with better ways to do them.
Harmonize design integrity with cost reality
A design manager should identify potential problems as they arise and propose well-researched solutions that still capture the client’s vision, O’Connell said. Construction partners should make the best conceptual estimate of a design upfront, and if it doesn’t fit the client’s budget, work should stop until the whole team has a solution that everyone agrees with. be satisfied
Stevens gave an example when his team saved nearly $58 million on a San Diego airport project by using support frames instead of pillars. The whole team came together to figure out how to improve the design (the designers, the structural engineers, the client, the designer and other stakeholders) and their solution better met the owner’s criteria at a lower cost and allowed better passenger movement. .
Facilitate communication
As design teams expand, it’s increasingly important to make sure they talk to each other, Gellhaus said. The design integration manager must also marry expectations between design teams and subcontractors. Communication management tools are key to facilitating this.
Make sure the preconstruction team is involved so project elements can ebb and flow together, Stevens said. While builders often handle the buying and selection trade teams, architects should also get involved so they can shift their energy to the part of the project being built next.
Lead collaborative decision-making
Use decision management tools for effective and timely decision making, and have a design decision roadmap. Consider choosing based on benefits, O’Connell said, as this allows the owner to feel like they have a say. Another good practice is a meeting matrix, as many project elements are sequenced and certain meetings must happen before others.
A design integration manager will be in six to eight meetings every day, Stevens said, so it’s crucial that they’re good at running them effectively: Make sure the right people are in the room, have clear rules of engagement and then send notes.
