TRENDS

UTILITY PROJECTS

TRENDS IN WATER AND WASTEWATER

NUCA OF COLORADO – MARCH 19, 2015

UTILITY PROJECT TRENDS

WHAT’S GOOD? WHAT’S NOT-SO-GOOD?

WILLINGNESS TO INVEST(RESISTANCE RATE HIKES)

“All politics is local”

Design and build to budget

See next slide…

Lack of CIP funding(lingering effects of 2008)

Resistance to raising rates(“No new ‘taxes’!”)

Visibility of utility projects(out of site, out of mind)

Competing infrastructure needs (roads, bridges, telecom, power, etc….)

Cost to deliver (expectation for lower impact with higher standards)

PUBLIC-PRIVATE PARTNERSHIPS (P3, PPP, PPTA)

Learn the definitions

Follow the money

Build relationships

Know where you fit

Enabling legislation and philosophical acceptance(government = inefficiency)

Need for funding (something for nothing?)

Creative infrastructure solutions (we’ll try anything!)

Availability and interest of financial advisors and funds (the P3 industrial complex)

Risk transfer offsets added cost of capital (value for money?)

RISK TRANSFER(ESPECIALLY SUBSURFACE)

Challenge precedents from other types of infrastructure

Decide if you want to be the “greater fool”

Be creative in solving Owner challenges

Owner desire for a fixed price, no matter what(Spearin be d*m$ed!)

Unintended consequence of design-build (“the party best able to manage risk…”)

Competitive environment (greater fool theory)

P3 precedent (hey, it works for hospitals!)

Poor as-builts offset by technology improvements(we don’t know what’s there, but you can find it…)

COLLABORATIVE DELIVERY (CMAR, DESIGN-BUILD)

Build a reputation

Open your books

Be creative

Be ready to invest

Infrastructure need (things are falling apart!)

Proven success and focus on creative solutions (design-build solves challenges)

Additional delivery models (progressive DB)

Broader legislative and utility acceptance (new utility leadership)

More experienced competitors (contractors and designers are following the market)

RESOURCES

www.dbia.orgwhat’s new:• design-build best practices• education and certification

www.waterdesignbuld.comwhat’s new:• procurement templates• owner education• owner surveys and original research

www.inframation-events.com/p3americas/

www.p3canada.ca/en/

Leofwin ClarkLeofwin.Clark@ch2m.com

www.ch2m.com