Design Build Construction Projects

As I open the bid, the first thing I do is to identify a few attributes regarding the bid, I like to call this stage the Preliminary Stage, which in this case, are the following:

1. Project Title: MRAR BT Collins B662
2. Project Number: P2 515199
3. Due Date and Due Time: 4/21/2025
4. Submission Method & Location: Electronic, PIEE
5. Bid Point of Contact: Alex Hamilton, alex.j.hamilton@usace.army.mil
6. Site Address: 6270 Midway St. Sacramento CA 95828
7. Construction Duration: 740 Calendar Days
8. Bid Type (Federal or Public Works): Federal
9. Estimated Value: $10,000,000 - $25,000,000
10. Square Feet: 23,750 SF

All these eight attributes are also displayed on the main sheet of the construction cost spreadsheet for later reference. The reason behind these attributes is because they are a standard when it comes to the holistic understanding of the project.

After the preliminary stage, comes what I call the Bureaucratic Stage. This stage entails the Bid Submission criteria, i.e. what is needed in order to submit the bid? Usual items include the Bid Bond, a Bid Form (a tabulation indicating the amount for each item of the bid, these items are provided in the Specs or as a separate attachment, sometimes bids are Lump Sum, which means that no item breakdown is needed), Subcontractor list, Schedule, Personnel Resumes, Past Performance (a list of similar projects done by the bidder), among other items. This stage and its extend and complexity depend on each bid individually, it is never uniform as different awarding bodies require different items for submission.

This is a two-phase procurement basis of the award process. Only five general contractors will pass to Phase II, in which a site walk will proceed. In order to pass Phase I, the general contractor must follow two submission Volumes, each of which contains one or more factors.

Phase I Evaluation Criteria:

1. Volume I:
   • Factor I:
     • Past Performance: The general contractor has to provide up to three projects substantially complete or completed within the last five years. The projects have to include a minimum of 15,000 square feet area of renovated building. The contractor should have self-performed 15% of the scope, and letters of recommendation or project write ups are to be provided.
     
     • Designer of Record (DOR): The designer of record similarly shall provide descriptions of up to three projects that have been construction within the last six years that are similar in size and scope.
     
   • Factor II:
     • Technica Approach for Design Build: Here’s where the resumes of the contractor’s personnel come into place. Not only do we need to include the resumes and the key members in the project (for both the DOR and the General Contractor), but also a narrative describing the approach upon the project.
     • We can also see that a Quality Control plan is to be developed, which shall not exceed 10 pages. “A Quality Control (QC) Plan is a project-specific document that outlines the contractor’s approach to ensuring all work meets the contract’s quality standards throughout the design and construction process. It defines responsibilities, inspection procedures, testing methods, and documentation protocols to proactively identify and correct deficiencies. The purpose of the QC Plan is to ensure that all materials, workmanship, and processes comply with project specifications and applicable regulations, ultimately supporting the successful, timely, and compliant delivery of the project.”
     
2. Volume II:
   • Factor I: Standard Form 1442
   • Joint Venture Agreement (If any)
   • Evidence of Ability to obtain bonding
   • Pre-Award Information

It is worth noting that Phase I does not include pricing submission.

As you may see, this stage is quite important as it can dictate whether a general contractor proceeds with the bid or not. Some general contractors cannot meet the past performance criteria, or the bond criteria, or the DOR criteria, which is why this stage comes at the beginning. If the general contractor meets all criteria specified herein, and feel confident about bidding despite the bureaucratic requirements, then we proceed to the following stage.

The third stage is what I call the Trade Identification Stage, in which we glimpse over the plans and try to identify the trades involved in the project. This stage does not necessarily involve take-offs (although they can be applied) but instead involves the acknowledgment of major trades based on the plans, and sometimes the specs. You can use the plans to identify the trades based on the type of Plan Sheets that appear on the set, e.g. L-Sheets are for Landscape, E-Sheets for electrical, D-Sheet for demo, etc. However, in the C-Sheets (Civil), S-Sheets (Structural), A-Sheets (Architectural) are where one can find a higher diversity of trades, as these types of sheets tend to be inclusive of multiple trades at a time. In this stage, one has to avoid generalizing a trade, and instead breakdown such trade into subtrades depending on the type of work within each subtrade. For example, instead of including all types of demolition within a trade labeled “Demolition”, one has to breakdown the trade “Demolition” by subtrades, for instance, “Framing Demolition”, “Parking Lot Demolition”, “Electrical Demolition”, and so on. Now, how do we know which subtrades belong to the trade itself? Depending on the plans. How do we know how to break the trade down? Usually because each subtrade is taken by the subcontractor of the adjacent work, for example, “Framing Demolition” is usually included in the quote from the Framing subcontractor, “Parking Lot Demolition” is usually included in the quote from the Paving or Concrete subcontractor, and the same goes for the “Electrical Demolition”. This is never uniform and perhaps it is up to subjectivity to decide how to break it down, but this is why this expertise is called “Estimating”, it is an estimating, not an accuracy—yet that is, I need to dwell more into this field to make it an accuracy.

Civil Engineering Drawings: According to my research, the C-Sheets pertain to site-related aspects of the project, how the building interacts with the environment, site work attributes of the project, how the project interacts with the land it sits on. Some attributes of the Civil Engineering Drawings are Topography (Survey), Grading, Site Utilities, Roads, Parking, Stormwater Management, Erosion Control, Earthwork, Concrete, among others.

Structural Drawings: They show the Skeleton of structures, everything that keeps the structure rigid, stable, and secure. This includes footings, beams, slabs, rebar, framing, structural steel, among other supporting attributes of the structure.

Architectural Drawings: Architectural sheets involve the aesthetic and functional aspect of the structure. The core building’s design. These drawings include doors, windows, finishes, furniture, millworks, flooring, ceilings, panels, and any other aesthetic aspect of the structure.

As mentioned before, the trades can also be found not only in the Plans, but also the Specifications of the project, especially if an Overview or Summary paragraph is included in the RFP (Request For Proposal) document. For instance, take the following:

Here we can see that the following trades are mentioned: Roofing Repair, HVAC, Electrical Distribution, Water Distribution, Fire Alarm & Systems, Ceilings, Windows, Doors, Floor Coverings, Interior Reconfiguration, Demolition, Concrete, Structural Steel (Beams), and will also most likely include Painting. Using that data, and the visualization of the plans, we can allocate those trades under a spreadsheet, in which take-offs will be taking place:

There are trades that—as I mentioned earlier with the example of the Demolition trade—are too abstract. Here we have another example of an abstract trade: Interior Reconfiguration. This might mean finishes, such as painting, acoustical panels, or tiles, but also reconfiguration of furniture such as millworks and kitchen, laboratory, or office items. In these cases, we inquire further into the plans to break the abstraction into multiple subtrades.

I cannot share the structure of the bid spreadsheet that I currently use since it is intellectual property of my employer and do not want to get into trouble. Nor will I be sharing the rates or subcontractors used herein. What I will share, however, is the acquisition procedures and any formulas and templates created by me.

Honestly, this job is not as interesting as I forcibly makes it seem. It is quite boring actually, but there are few instances where art and functionality are apparent, that's true. The reason why I am still in this monotonous job is because I am chasing a dream, and dreams cost money unfortunately. This job pays enough for me to actively chase it, which is what I want. With enough perseverence, eventually such dream will become my full time job. I know that.