New method helps streamline project delivery

By Mario Montalvo
District 2 public information officer

A new method for delivering projects is being utilized in District 2.

Construction Manager/General Contractor (CMGC) is a project delivery method that allows Caltrans to select a contractor early in the project development process. This allows the contractor to essentially act as a consultant during this time and help develop the project as it goes along.

“Since the contractor is involved in the project development process it reduces the assumptions that typically need to be made during design and helps deliver a project that should require less changes during construction, which is exciting,” Construction Chief Jim Wood said.

The contractor may provide constructability reviews, value engineering suggestions, construction estimates, and other construction-related recommendations. 

“They’re basically helping us design the project,” Resident Engineer John Hinton said.

Hinton is currently assigned to the Yreka Rehab and Dunsmuir Gaps projects, both of which have utilized CMGC. He said this new project delivery method is more efficient and can actually save Caltrans money during the construction phase.

“We basically can design the job based on the particular contractor’s equipment, their staging ideas, and can avoid change orders during the construction,” Hinton said.

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The process also allows the contractor to bring their expertise to the Project Development Team (PDT), which helps streamline the process.

“They’ve got hundreds of projects under their belts,” Hinton said. “Just a lot more knowledge, a lot more experience, and they can bring that to our design.”

Having the contractor as part of the PDT also allows them an inside look at how Caltrans works and helps them better understand the design process and the challenges Caltrans faces when delivering projects.

“Our contractor has told us several times, ‘Wow! We didn’t realize you had all these constraints, all these things you had to consider’,” Supervising Transportation Engineer Toby Crawford said. “And it helps them understand how Caltrans comes to some of the decisions that they’ve made when you put together a set of plans.”

By having the contractor play a role in the development of the project, CMGC can also help open the door to improved innovation.

“They may be more aware of more resources and tools that are available, new construction equipment,” Toby Crawford said. “And they can propose innovative ideas.”

Once the design process is nearly complete, the contractor will submit a price to construct the project. And if that price is acceptable, the CMGC contractor will become the general contractor and will construct the project.

And since the contractor has essentially been on board from the beginning, it helps minimize or even eliminate any surprises that may arise during the construction phase.

“CMGC is relatively new to us, and we see great potential with this method of designing and constructing larger, more complex, projects,” Wood said.