Collaboration In Design & Construct Transportation Projects – A Case Study

To achieve good project performance with respect to typical parameters of time, cost and quality as well as project constraints, active collaborative efforts involving all parties (client, contractor and designers) are usually necessary. Collaboration in an infrastructure project is often associated with the collaborative models of contracts such as Alliancing and Partnering. However, such collaboration can still readily occur in a traditional Design & Construct (D&C) delivery and be particularly beneficial where challenges and constraints are present. This paper revisited a recently completed road project (Harwood Bridge Upgrade) where various geotechnical challenges encountered during the construction stage were resolved in a collaborative working environment. Consequently, this allowed the study to be focused on the identification of key factors defining the collaborative efforts. From the study, these key collaboration factors could be observed throughout the delivery of selected geotechnical works. Some common attributes were discussed to understand the conditions, which enabled the achievement of collaborative approach in the typical traditional project delivery model.