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Reducing Costs Through Open Procurement and Alternative Project Delivery
Author(s) -
Baird Gregory M.
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
journal ‐ american water works association
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.466
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1551-8833
pISSN - 0003-150X
DOI - 10.1002/j.1551-8833.2011.tb11506.x
Subject(s) - procurement , integrated project delivery , risk analysis (engineering) , business , best practice , capital cost , environmental economics , sustainability , order (exchange) , value engineering , operations management , project management , economics , finance , marketing , ecology , management , biology , macroeconomics
This article discusses some necessary adjustments that can be made by water utilities to achieve greater cost savings in order to address both sustainability and affordability concerns. These adjustments include developing open procurement and selection policies and practices to attain additional capital project and operational savings. Many municipalities and utilities may be leaving 10‐20% of savings on the table with outdated procurement policies that limit best value, life cycle cost analysis, new technologies, methodologies, and materials. For example, utilities should consider adopting open procurement practices to allow for alternative project delivery options such as design‐build and open materials selection such as polyvinyl chloride (PVC). To achieve the best solution and cost for each project, the appropriate project materials and delivery method should always be selected based on careful evaluation and financial analysis. Innovation and continued change dictate that the best low‐cost solutions are evaluated and implemented.