Design and construction coordination problems and planning for design–build project new users

Abstract

Design–build (DB) is adopted as a project delivery method in hopes to improve performance. Previous studies focus on upstream issues such as conditions for adoption and contractor selection, but few address the design and construction coordination issues that are very likely to be encountered in execution by new users. This paper investigates coordination problems arising from design and construction concurrence and solutions by studying five ongoing DB projects and interviewing nine major contract parties. Inconsistent application of the design and construction process and infrequent feedback are two major problems found to have high influence on DB execution. A work unit planning process with five steps is presented in this paper to help better manage the design and construction coordination of a DB project.