What is Progressive Design-Build
The Progressive Design-Build (PDB) project delivery model is a collaborative and flexible approach that integrates design and construction services into a seamless process. It differs from traditional Design-Build by incorporating phased decision-making, allowing for greater collaboration and refinement throughout the project.
Figure 1: Time Saved with PDB vs. DBB delivery. Source: Kiewit
How Progressive Design-Build Works
- Early Engagement of the Design-Build Team
The owner selects a single team (often based on qualifications, not just price) that includes both the designer and builder early in the process. This team works closely with the owner from the project’s inception, ensuring alignment with goals, budget, and vision.
- Phased Approach
The project progresses in phases, with key decisions made incrementally as more information becomes available.
Typically, these phases include:
- Preconstruction Phase: Focuses on conceptual design, budgeting, and planning.
- Design Phase: Iterative design development, including detailed cost estimates.
- Construction Phase: Execution based on agreed-upon designs and scope.
- Collaborative Design and Budget Development
In the early stages, the team and the owner collaboratively develop the design while continuously estimating costs and assessing risks. Budget and scope adjustments are made dynamically to stay within the owner’s objectives.
- Transparency in Cost and Schedule
The PDB approach emphasizes open-book pricing, where costs are fully transparent to the owner.
As designs are refined, the team provides updated cost estimates, enabling the owner to make informed decisions before construction begins.
- Flexibility in Decision-Making
The progressive nature allows for adjustments and optimizations at every stage.
Owners can refine their requirements as the design and construction details become clearer.
- Seamless Transition to Construction
Once the design is sufficiently developed and a Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) or other cost agreement is established, the project moves seamlessly into construction without the need for re-bidding or switching teams.
The same team that worked on the design executes the construction, ensuring continuity.
How does it differ from Regular Design-Build (DB)
Procurement Approach
Design-Build The owner typically hires a Design-Build team based on a fixed price or lump sum proposal. The team is selected after submitting a complete design and construction cost upfront. Limited opportunity for the owner to influence the design after the contract is awarded. | Progressive Design-Build The owner hires the Design-Build team based on qualifications and experience rather than a detailed cost proposal. The contract starts with a phased approach, where design, budget, and scope evolve collaboratively before finalizing construction costs. Provides more flexibility for owners to adjust the design throughout the preconstruction phase.
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Owner Involvement
Design-Build: The owner provides project requirements, and the Design-Build team develops the design and executes the construction with minimal owner involvement after contract execution. Owners rely on the team to deliver a turnkey solution, which may limit their ability to influence design decisions later. | Progressive Design-Build: The owner plays a much more active role in the project’s early stages. Collaboration happens throughout the design process, and owners make incremental decisions as costs and designs are refined. Greater flexibility to adapt to changing needs or site conditions. |
Cost Estimation and Risk Management
Design-Build: A fixed cost or lump sum is often determined before the design is fully developed, based on preliminary assumptions. The Design-Build team assumes more cost risk, but unforeseen changes or errors may lead to disputes or change orders. | Progressive Design-Build: Open-book pricing is used, with costs being transparent and shared with the owner as the design evolves. A Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) or other cost agreement is only established after sufficient design progression and agreement between the parties.
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Design Development Process
Design-Build: The team typically develops the design independently, based on the owner’s upfront requirements. The design is largely finalized before the contract is awarded, leaving little room for iterative changes later. | Progressive Design-Build: The design is developed incrementally in collaboration with the owner. Allows for iterative refinement based on owner feedback, budget considerations, and new information (e.g., site conditions or regulatory changes). |
Summary of Key Differences
Aspect | Design-Build | Progressive Design-Build |
Procurement | Based on fixed price or lump sum. | Based on qualifications; cost evolves. |
Owner Involvement | Minimal after contract award. | High throughout design and preconstruction. |
Cost Transparency | Limited; fixed cost upfront. | Open-book pricing; GMP established later. |
Flexibility | Limited; changes often require renegotiation. | High; iterative design adjustments allowed. |
Risk Management | More reactive; may lead to disputes. | Proactive; risks addressed collaboratively early. |
Best for | Simple, well-defined projects. | Complex, evolving projects. |
In essence, PDB offers more collaboration, transparency, and flexibility, while DB is focused on speed, efficiency, and delivering a pre-defined solution. The choice depends on the project’s complexity, the owner’s desired level of involvement, and the need for adaptability during the process.
How does it differ from Design-Bid-Build (DBB)
Progressive Design-Build (PDB) streamlines project delivery by integrating design and construction, unlike Design-Bid-Build (DBB), which separates these phases into a rigid, linear process. DBB often leads to inefficiencies, such as delays during handoffs, limited collaboration, and costly change orders when design flaws or budget misalignments are discovered during construction.
Team Structure
Design-Bid-Build: The owner works with separate entities for design and construction, requiring a sequential handoff between the two. Coordination between independent teams depends on well-defined plans and smooth transitions. | Progressive Design-Build: A single, unified team handles both design and construction, fostering collaboration from the start and ensuring alignment throughout the project. |
Process
Design-Bid-Build: Follows a linear path: Design is fully completed first, followed by competitive bidding, and then construction. Each phase must be finished before moving to the next, requiring careful oversight to ensure the plans meet budget constraints. | Progressive Design-Build: Design and construction planning evolve in tandem in phases, providing flexibility and faster progression without sacrificing attention to detail. Preconstruction planning includes continuous input from all parties, minimizing delays. |
Owner Involvement
Design-Bid-Build: The owner’s involvement is front-loaded during the design phase, with limited ability to refine details once construction begins. | Progressive Design-Build: Owners remain engaged throughout the process, with opportunities to refine the design, adjust budgets, and address challenges collaboratively. Decisions are made incrementally, allowing for real-time adjustments based on emerging insights. |
Cost and Flexibility
Design-Bid-Build: Construction costs are locked in after competitive bidding, often before all complexities of the project are fully understood. Changes after the bidding process can require renegotiation or change orders, introducing additional steps. | Progressive Design-Build: Costs are developed with open-book transparency and adjusted as the design progresses. The phased approach allows the team to proactively optimize scope, budget, and risk, avoiding surprises. |
Risk
Design-Bid-Build: Risk is distributed unevenly, with the owner assuming responsibility for gaps or issues in the design that may arise during construction. | Progressive Design-Build: Risk is addressed collaboratively in the early stages, with the integrated team aligning on solutions before construction begins. |
Key Takeaways: What is Progressive Design-Build?
- Collaborative Approach: PDB brings together designers, builders, and stakeholders early in the process to ensure alignment with the project’s goals, budget, and vision.
- Phased Decision-Making: Unlike traditional Design-Build, PDB evolves in stages, allowing for continuous input, refinement, and informed decisions throughout the project.
- Transparency and Flexibility: Open-book pricing and iterative adjustments ensure the project adapts to emerging needs while staying within budget and schedule.
- Seamless Transition to Construction: The same team that designs the project builds it, ensuring continuity, reducing handoff delays, and fostering accountability.
PDB is a modern, efficient way to deliver purpose-driven projects with collaboration, adaptability, and cost control at its core.

Why Progressive Design-Build (PDB) is Better for Purpose-Driven Projects
Progressive Design-Build (PDB) is the ideal choice for purpose-driven projects because it not only delivers efficient and cost-effective solutions but also ensures that the project works for everyone involved. These are projects where the “what” is clear—like a an apartment building, student residence or a parking structure—but the details of “how” require input from various stakeholders to make it truly successful.
Everyone Stays Involved to Get It Right
In PDB, the necessary stakeholders remain involved throughout the process to ensure the project aligns with everyone’s needs.
Consider a student residence project:
- University Housing Departments might prioritize maximizing the number of beds while ensuring there are adequate shared facilities like lounges and study spaces to foster community.
- Facilities Management Teams could focus on low-maintenance materials, efficient HVAC systems, and designs that simplify future repairs.
- Students or Student Representatives might advocate for amenities like soundproofing, ample storage, or communal kitchens.
By involving these stakeholders from start to finish, PDB ensures the residence isn’t just a building—it’s a fully functional, comfortable, and cost-efficient environment that serves its purpose effectively. The design-build team then uses their expertise and experience with similar projects to incorporate stakeholder feedback while optimizing construction methods, keeping the project on time and within budget.
This approach ensures that all voices are heard, the design evolves to meet practical needs, and the end result satisfies the goals of everyone involved.
A Proven Team Brings Expertise and Efficiency
PDB lets you benefit from the expertise of a team that has done this type of project before.
Whether it’s a school, a student residence, or a parking structure, the team already knows the common challenges and the best ways to solve them.
They’ve developed processes, efficiencies, and standardized solutions that save time and money. This means fewer mistakes, faster delivery, and better quality.
Flexibility to Shape the Project as It Progresses
With PDB, you don’t have to lock in every detail at the start. As the project takes shape, adjustments can be made based on feedback from stakeholders or new ideas that improve functionality.
For instance, in a student residence, the university’s housing department might identify the need for more shared study spaces, or maintenance staff might suggest adjustments to optimize long-term upkeep. The design-build team can adapt while keeping the project on schedule and within budget.
Standardization + Customization = Best of Both Worlds
For projects like hotels or apartments, many elements—like walls, layouts, or plumbing systems—can be standardized for efficiency. But PDB also allows for customization to meet specific stakeholder needs.
For example, while the structure of a hotel might use proven modular components, the design-build team can tailor common areas or back-of-house spaces to satisfy the facility manager’s operational goals and the market research team’s insights into guest preferences.
One Team, One Goal
With PDB, the design and construction team is responsible for the entire project. This eliminates miscommunication or finger-pointing between separate designers and builders. It also ensures that the project is optimized for efficiency and practicality while still satisfying stakeholder needs.
Don’t Hire a Chef and Tell Them How to Cook
If your project has a clear purpose—like housing people, storing items, or parking cars—PDB ensures that it not only gets done efficiently but also works for all the stakeholders involved. You get the benefit of a seasoned team that knows how to deliver, but you also maintain control and input to make sure the project meets your needs.
It’s like working with a seasoned chef to prepare a meal for an important event: they bring proven recipes, know the best ingredients, and have mastered the techniques to deliver the proper number of delicious meals efficiently. But they’ll still consult with you to ensure the menu matches your preferences and dietary needs, creating a meal that’s perfect for your occasion.
Examples of Purpose-Driven Projects for PDB
Apartment Buildings
- Why PDB Works: PDB is ideal for apartment buildings because it leverages the similarity in unit layouts and common areas to streamline the design and construction process. Early collaboration with stakeholders like property managers and developers ensures that designs meet operational needs and tenant expectations while delivering efficient and cost-effective housing. This approach allows for consistency across projects while adapting to unique site conditions as needed.
- Key Features: Consistent unit types with clear functional goals; common amenities such as lobbies, fitness areas, and parking.
- Advantages: Reusable designs and modular components reduce costs and timelines; experienced teams ensure seamless delivery across multiple projects.
Student Residences
- Why PDB Works: PDB is perfectly suited for student residences because these projects involve a wide range of stakeholders—from housing and facilities teams to student life and campus safety—each with specific needs. By combining efficient, standardized designs with collaborative input, PDB ensures the final building is functional, durable, and supports a thriving student community.
- Key Features: Repeated layouts for dormitories and shared facilities; robust designs to handle heavy use.
- Advantages: Modular systems enable faster, more reliable construction; teams experienced with similar projects bring proven solutions.
Hotels
- Why PDB Works: PDB is ideal for hotels because it integrates efficient, standardized room designs with input from key stakeholders—such as operations, facilities, and marketing—to ensure the final building meets brand standards, guest expectations, and operational needs, all while staying on schedule and within budget.
- Key Features: Modular rooms configured for operational efficiency; integrated back-of-house systems for seamless operations.
- Advantages: Prefabricated components ensure high-quality finishes; teams familiar with hospitality needs reduce operational delays.
Seniors Residences
- Why PDB Works: PDB is ideal for seniors residences because it combines efficient, repeatable designs with input from stakeholders like healthcare providers, facilities teams, and resident advocates to create safe, accessible, and comfortable living spaces. Senior residence operators often have design standards from other buildings they wish to replicate, and early involvement through PDB ensures those standards are delivered efficiently and optimized for cost and performance.
- Key Features: Modular units designed for accessibility and safety; shared spaces for dining and healthcare services.
- Advantages: Early collaboration ensures regulatory compliance and user comfort; proven teams optimize layouts for functionality and care.
Parking Structures
- Why PDB Works: PDB is ideal for parking structures because their designs are primarily governed by the standardized dimensions of parking spaces and drive aisles, with the goal of maximizing the number of parking spaces. Early collaboration with stakeholders like facilities managers and developers ensures the project covers necessary requirements while optimizing the parking layout. This approach delivers cost-effective, functional solutions tailored to the project’s specific requirements.
Schools and Educational Buildings
- Why PDB Works: PDB is ideal for schools because it balances efficient, repeatable layouts with input from educators, administrators, and facilities teams to create functional, safe, and inspiring learning environments. School districts often have design standards from existing buildings they want to replicate, and early involvement through PDB ensures these standards are delivered efficiently. Additionally, PDB teams can be engaged for multiple school projects, further enhancing efficiencies and consistency, while allowing for architectural creativity in spaces like front entrances or auditoriums.
- Key Features: Repeated unit designs for classrooms, offices, and labs; defined safety and accessibility standards.
- Advantages: Early collaboration ensures designs meet educational and regulatory needs while being efficient to build; reusable design templates reduce time and costs.
Health Clinics and Small Medical Offices
- Why PDB Works: PDB is ideal for health clinics and small medical offices because it integrates standardized, repeatable layouts with input from key stakeholders like healthcare providers, facilities managers, and operations teams to create efficient, patient-centered spaces. Early involvement ensures essential features like exam rooms, waiting areas, and labs meet specific operational needs, while allowing for flexibility in areas like entrances or community spaces. For organizations with multiple facilities, PDB can efficiently replicate proven designs across locations, driving consistency and cost savings.
- Key Features: Modular room configurations tailored to specific medical functions; integrated utilities for medical equipment.
- Advantages: Experienced teams ensure rapid integration of healthcare-specific features; prefabricated systems enhance precision and speed.
Warehouses and Distribution Centers
- Why PDB Works: PDB is ideal for warehouses and distribution centers because it integrates standardized layouts with value engineering tailored to the building’s intended use. Early involvement of stakeholders like logistics managers and operations teams allows structural layouts to be optimized for specific needs, such as racking systems, equipment zones, and docking configurations, ensuring the facility supports seamless operations while maximizing efficiency and cost-effectiveness.
- Key Features: Large, open spaces with scalable configurations for shelving and docking; streamlined mechanical, HVAC, and electrical systems.
- Advantages: Modular designs ensure efficient construction and flexibility for future needs; teams familiar with similar facilities can optimize workflow and layout.
Manufacturing Facilities
- Why PDB Works: PDB is ideal for manufacturing facilities because it combines standardized designs with value engineering tailored to the specific production processes and operational needs of the facility. By involving stakeholders like production managers and facilities teams early, structural layouts can be optimized for equipment placement, workflow efficiency, and utility access. This ensures the building is designed to support seamless operations, reduce downtime, and maximize cost-effectiveness.
- Key Features: Open floor plans that accommodate heavy machinery; defined utility systems for power, water, and ventilation.
- Advantages: PDB allows for early adaptation to equipment-specific needs; modular prefabrication reduces lead times and ensures consistency.
Data Centers
- Why PDB Works: PDB is ideal for data centers because it integrates standardized layouts with value engineering tailored to critical infrastructure needs like cooling systems, power redundancy, and security. Early involvement of stakeholders such as IT managers and facilities teams ensures that structural layouts are optimized for server placement, cable management, and future scalability. This approach delivers highly efficient, secure, and reliable facilities while optimizing costs and meeting operational demands.
- Key Features: Standardized layouts for racks, cooling, and networking systems; defined redundancy and scalability requirements.
- Advantages: Experienced teams deliver optimal energy efficiency and technical integration; modular construction enables rapid scalability for future expansions.
Storage Buildings
- Why PDB Works: PDB is ideal for storage buildings because it combines standardized layouts with value engineering to maximize usable space and functionality. Companies with multiple locations often have similar layouts and requirements, and PDB excels at replicating these designs efficiently. Early involvement of stakeholders like facilities managers and operations teams ensures structural layouts are optimized for storage configurations, climate control, and security, delivering cost-effective and consistent facilities across locations.
- Key Features: Modular, scalable storage units; standardized systems for climate control and security.
- Advantages: Prefabricated designs accelerate construction timelines; experienced teams ensure adaptability for future expansions.
Key Takeaways: Why Progressive Design-Build (PDB) is Better for Purpose-Driven Projects
- Stakeholder Involvement: PDB ensures continuous collaboration with stakeholders like end-users, facilities teams, and operational managers, resulting in a project that meets everyone’s needs.
- Expert Team Advantage: Leveraging a team experienced in similar projects ensures proven solutions, efficient processes, and fewer errors.
- Flexibility Throughout the Process: PDB allows for iterative adjustments to design and scope, ensuring the final product aligns with emerging requirements and stakeholder feedback.
- Standardization with Customization: PDB balances efficiency through repeatable designs while enabling tailored solutions for unique aspects of the project.
- One Team, One Goal: A unified Design-Build team handles every aspect of the project, fostering accountability, clear communication, and seamless execution.
PDB is the ideal delivery model for purpose-driven projects, combining collaboration, expertise, and adaptability to ensure the best outcomes.
Standardization Beyond Individual Projects: The Strategic Advantage of PDB
One of the transformative aspects of Progressive Design-Build (PDB) is its ability to drive standardization not just within individual projects, but across entire categories of purpose-driven projects. By leveraging repeated learnings, modular systems, and consistent methodologies, PDB enables efficiencies that extend beyond the scope of a single build.
Standardizing Approaches Across Project Types
Through PDB, teams can develop repeatable strategies tailored to specific project types, such as parking structures, student residences, or hotels. For instance:
- Design Processes: Predefined workflows ensure faster project kick-offs, predictable timelines, and reduced design iterations.
- Pre-approved Designs: For common project types, such as apartment buildings or parking decks, teams can establish standardized layouts or templates that streamline approvals and reduce lead times.
- Invest in Efficiencies and Automation: By repeatedly working on similar project types, PDB teams can invest in better ways to design and build. Just as IKEA revolutionized furniture by standardizing components and optimizing assembly processes to make high-quality, cost-effective products, PDB allows construction teams to refine methods, adopt automation, and implement innovations that reduce costs and improve outcomes.
The Value of a Preassembled Team
A key advantage of PDB is the ability to retain a preassembled team—a group of architects, engineers, and builders who have already developed strong working relationships. This eliminates the adjustment period required for new teams to learn each other’s workflows, communication styles, and strengths.
- Immediate Collaboration: Teams that have already “formed, stormed, normed, and performed” can skip the trial-and-error phase of team dynamics, diving straight into productive collaboration.
- Efficiency from Experience: Familiarity with each other’s processes and efficiencies ensures faster decision-making and smoother execution.
- Consistency Across Projects: The same team can apply proven practices, techniques, and lessons learned, reducing errors and delivering more predictable outcomes.
Imagine you need a band for a wedding. You wouldn’t hire a singer, a guitarist, a bassist, a drummer, and a keyboardist separately and expect them to meet for the first time on the night of the event and perform flawlessly. Instead, you’d hire a band—a group of musicians who play together regularly, have rehearsed extensively, and know how to deliver a great performance as a team. You might even attend one of their shows beforehand to see how they work together.
PDB works the same way, bringing together an experienced, cohesive team that knows how to collaborate seamlessly, ensuring your project starts with momentum and delivers great results.
The night of the wedding can’t be a band practice, and every new building can’t be a prototype.
Ideal for Modular Systems and Prefabricated Components
PDB excels at integrating modular construction, leveraging standardized components to streamline the design and construction process across multiple projects. Early involvement of the entire team—owners, designers, and builders—is critical for finding the best ways to use modular components to meet project goals. Key decisions that drive cost efficiency, such as structural layout or main element layout, happen early in the project, making collaboration essential.
- Panels and Modules: Standardized building blocks, like walls, floors, and structural components, reduce manufacturing time and costs while ensuring consistent quality.
- Adaptable Modules: These components, while standardized, can be adjusted to meet unique site conditions or owner preferences without starting from scratch, offering both efficiency and flexibility.
By aligning modular strategies with project requirements from the outset, PDB ensures that modular construction delivers both optimal performance and cost-effectiveness.
Applying Learnings Across Projects
Standardization through PDB creates a feedback loop where every project improves the next:
- Optimized Connection Details: As modular systems are repeated, teams refine how components fit together, improving assembly speed and reducing errors.
- Refined Cost Models: With each project, cost predictions become more accurate, making budgeting more reliable for future endeavors.
- Scalable Workflows: Proven processes are scaled across similar projects, ensuring that time and cost savings are realized consistently.
Benefits Standardization and PDB Delivery
By standardizing approaches, components, and processes, PDB delivers clear advantages for purpose-driven projects:
- Faster Delivery: Reusing proven designs and modular components accelerates construction timelines.
- Cost Savings: Bulk production of standardized elements lowers manufacturing costs and reduces waste.
- Improved Quality: Consistent methods and materials lead to higher-quality outcomes with fewer surprises during construction.
- Easier Maintenance: Standardized components simplify repairs and replacements, extending the lifecycle of the structure.
- Seamless Team Dynamics: A preassembled team reduces onboarding time, enhances collaboration, and ensures project goals are met with precision.
For example, Kiwi Newton’s Kiwi Precast System employs modular precast panels that integrate structural, mechanical, and energy-efficient components. These panels are used across a variety of projects, from student residences to senior housing. This allows for faster project approvals and streamlined construction while delivering energy-efficient, durable buildings.
Key Takeaways: The Strategic Advantage of PDB
- Repeatable Strategies: PDB allows teams to develop standardized approaches for common project types, streamlining workflows and accelerating delivery timelines.
- Improved Efficiency: By applying lessons learned from previous projects, PDB teams continuously refine processes, reduce errors, and optimize construction techniques.
- Investments in Innovation: Repeated work on similar projects enables teams to invest in tools, automation, and methods that drive cost savings and improve quality, much like IKEA’s approach to furniture design.
- Scalability and Consistency: Standardized components and methodologies ensure consistent quality across projects while enabling quick adaptation to unique site or client needs.
- Cost and Time Savings: Bulk production of modular components, coupled with optimized workflows, reduces material costs, construction time, and waste.
PDB turns standardization into a strategic advantage, delivering faster, more reliable, and cost-effective solutions while maintaining flexibility for customization.
Steps for Public Procurement in a Progressive Design-Build (PDB) Project
In most public procurement processes, true collaboration between stakeholders, designers, and builders is limited. Instead of fostering dialogue, these processes rely on RFP questions to gather input, which often fail to address the deeper issues or the real problems the project aims to solve.
This lack of meaningful interaction prevents value engineering, where cost-effective and innovative solutions could be explored. As a result, stakeholders may end up with a project that meets minimum specifications but falls short of achieving the most optimal outcomes for functionality, efficiency, or long-term value.
Here are the steps for public procurement of a PDB project.
1. Project Initiation and Planning
- Define Project Goals: Establish clear objectives, such as scope, budget, timeline, and stakeholder requirements.
- Identify Stakeholders: Determine the key individuals or groups, such as end-users, facility managers, and regulators, who will influence project requirements.
- Secure Funding: Ensure the project has approved financing or budget allocation.
- Develop Procurement Strategy: Choose PDB as the delivery model, considering its benefits for the specific project type.
2. Prepare and Issue a Request for Qualifications (RFQ)
- Develop RFQ Document: Include criteria for selecting qualified Design-Build teams based on experience, past performance, technical capability, and capacity to handle a PDB project.
- Advertise the RFQ: Publish the RFQ widely to attract qualified Design-Build teams, ensuring transparency and compliance with public procurement regulations.
- Evaluate Submissions: Assess qualifications based on a pre-established scoring system, shortlisting teams that meet the required standards.
3. Request for Proposals (RFP)
- Issue RFP to Shortlisted Teams: Invite detailed proposals from the shortlisted teams. Include project details, goals, and evaluation criteria for technical solutions and cost.
- Conduct Proposal Review: Evaluate proposals based on qualifications, design concepts, and initial cost estimates. This phase focuses on selecting the most capable team rather than finalizing project details.
- Engage in Team Interviews: Hold discussions with top candidates to assess compatibility, team dynamics, and alignment with project goals.
4. Selection of the Design-Build Team
- Finalize Selection: Choose the team that demonstrates the best understanding of the project, innovative solutions, and alignment with procurement goals.
- Negotiate Contracts: Establish a phased agreement, starting with preconstruction and design services, with the option to proceed to construction upon meeting milestones.
5. Collaborative Design and Preconstruction Phase
- Early Collaboration: The selected Design-Build team works with stakeholders to refine the design, establish cost estimates, and set construction schedules.
- Value Engineering: Optimize the design to achieve project goals while staying within budget and schedule.
- Develop GMP (Guaranteed Maximum Price): The Design-Build team provides a transparent, open-book estimate for construction costs based on the agreed design.
6. Approval to Proceed to Construction
- Review Design and Budget: Confirm that the design meets stakeholder requirements and budget constraints.
- Stakeholder Sign-Off: Obtain approval from relevant authorities or stakeholders to proceed with the construction phase.
7. Construction Phase
- Execute the Build: The Design-Build team constructs the project while maintaining ongoing communication with stakeholders.
- Monitor Progress: Regular updates and collaboration ensure the project stays aligned with its goals.
8. Commissioning and Handover
- Testing and Commissioning: Ensure all systems function as intended and meet project specifications.
- Training and Documentation: Provide necessary training and documentation to the owner for efficient operation and maintenance.
- Final Handover: Deliver the completed project, ensuring it meets all agreed-upon requirements.
9. Post-Construction Review and Close-Out
- Conduct Post-Project Review: Assess project outcomes, document lessons learned, and evaluate the PDB process.
- Close Contracts: Finalize all contractual obligations and financial reconciliations.
This step-by-step process ensures that a PDB project is executed efficiently, balancing collaboration, cost control, and public procurement transparency.
Progressive Design-Build (PDB) is an excellent fit for the public procurement of construction projects, as it fosters collaboration while adhering to public procurement regulations. By integrating stakeholder input, transparent cost management, and competitive selection processes, PDB delivers efficient, high-quality projects that meet public needs while ensuring accountability and compliance.
The Future of Construction with Progressive Design-Build
Progressive Design-Build is more than just a project delivery model—it’s a modern approach that prioritizes collaboration, flexibility, and efficiency to achieve the best outcomes for all stakeholders. By integrating design and construction early, fostering open communication, and embracing standardization alongside customization, PDB delivers projects that are on time, within budget, and tailored to their purpose.
Whether you’re developing student residences, parking structures, or data centers, PDB ensures that your project is guided by expertise, supported by innovation, and shaped by your goals. For organizations seeking streamlined processes, better risk management, and superior results, PDB isn’t just an option—it’s the way forward.
Ready to Transform Your Next Project?
Consider how Progressive Design-Build can redefine your construction experience. Collaborate with a team that understands your needs, leverages proven strategies, and delivers exceptional results every step of the way.
Additional Reading on Progressive Design Build
- Colliers Project Leaders
- Progressive Design-Build: A Primer on This Collaborative Delivery Approach
- https://www.colliersprojectleaders.com/insights/progressive-design-build/
- Stantec
- Why progressive design-build is gaining traction in Canada
- https://www.stantec.com/en/ideas/topic/cities/why-progressive-design-build-is-gaining-traction-canada
- Horrocks
- Accelerating Solutions: The Power of Progressive Design-Build
- https://www.horrocks.net/post/accelerating-solutions-the-power-of-progressive-design-build
- Kiewit
- Benefits of Progressive Design-Build
- https://www.kiewit.com/pages/benefits-of-progressive-design-build/