A new methodology for partnering transportation projects

Abstract

The U.S. Federal Highway Administration has recently emphasized ‘e-Construction and Partnering’ through its ‘Every Day Counts’ initiative which encompasses the use of state-of-the-art construction technologies in tandem with a management element for project delivery best practice. Traditional Partnering became firmly established in the U.S. in the 1990s when technology was simpler and design-build was just emerging in the transportation sector. With the current state of technology available for project delivery, as well as the diverse functional roles and stakeholders involved in life-cycle planning and implementation of transportation facilities today, there has emerged a need for collaborative teamwork of individuals across organizations involved in the delivery of the project. This paper introduces a substitution to the traditional partnering process based upon a proven technology employed first by M. Scott Peck in the early 1980s. The results of the paper should be of interest to public infrastructure contract stakeholders which desire a less combative and litigious work environment.