Mapping of Practices of State Transportation Agencies for Consultant Oversight of Construction Engineering and Inspection Services

Abstract

Over the past few decades, state transportation agencies (STAs) have outsourced various functional activities traditionally performed by in-house personnel in reaction to increasing workloads and diminishing staff. To cope with the situation, STAs have developed and implemented various tools and practices for management and oversight of construction engineering and inspection (CEI) services. A national CEI survey was conducted to provide detailed mapping of various tools and practices used for CEI services and to understand the primary advantages and disadvantages of using CEI consultants. The survey found that STAs used a wide variety of tools and practices to define the scope of work for CEI services, select consultants, and administer CEI consultant contracts. Statistical analyses of variance estimated that CEI consultant management and oversight practices varied significantly; this finding may imply multiple underlying factors in the choice of one practice over another. One of the most important findings of this survey was the value of CEI consultant services to STAs. The survey found that the CEI consultant services provided STAs with an improved ability to handle peak workloads, the flexibility of quickly adding or reducing staff, and specialized expertise that might not be available in house. However, the reported challenges of working with CEI consultants included developing and maintaining consultants' familiarity with in-house processes and procedures, ensuring that consultants held appropriate CEI qualifications, and the relative cost of CEI consultants versus in-house staff.