Public Sector Capital Projects: Is there a better way to buy them than Low-Bid? March 25, 2009

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How can we maximize the value of every dollar spent on public construction projects? The low-bid process for contract awards has many well known weaknesses and is particularly vulnerable to trouble in economic downturns such as we are currently experiencing.

Is there a better way? Are there opportunities for legislation that could achieve better value on state and municipal projects while still affording competitive equity?

Best Value procurement standards, coupled with improved design-build and GC/CM methodologies, are providing excellent opportunities today in California for significant cost savings on public works projects.

Join us on March 25th to hear David Bergquist speak about the Best Value Legislation recently enacted in California and his experiences with the 5 year pilot program at the UCSF campus.

Following Mr. Bergquists presentation will be a discussion of the implications of Best Value for state, municipality and university purchasing in Washington State. Our intent is to explore the feasibility of an alliance between public owners, designers and constructors to achieve similar legislative changes in Washington.

BACKGROUND

With the passage of Senate Bill 667 in 2007, the University of California, for projects located at its San Francisco medical campus, may award construction contracts on a basis other than the traditional lowest responsive and responsible bidder standard.This legislation allows the University to award construction contracts, after following specified procedures, on a best value basis, which will allow the University to award contracts based on factors other than low bid.Under the legislation, best value means a procurement process whereby the lowest responsible bidder may be selected on the basis of objective criteria with the resulting selection representing the best combination of price and qualifications.The legislation is intended to serve as a pilot program, which is to end by January 2012.

David Bergquist

Since 2002, David Bergquist has served as a Senior University Counsel in the construction department of the Office of the General Counsel for the Regents of the University of California, the second largest employer in the State of California. Mr. Bergquist was instrumental in the passage of the Best Value Legislation for the UCSF campus, which will serve as a 5 year pilot program for this alternative to low bidder selection methodology in the State of California. He is currently working on a variety of pubic private partnership delivery models for the University and on the $1 billion UCSF Mission Bay Hospital Project in San Francisco, California.

Prior to joining the office, Mr. Bergquist was in private practice for 15 years, including as an equity partner at the law firm McKenna, Long & Aldridge, one of the largest government contracting and construction law firms in the world. Mr. Bergquist's primary areas of practice include construction law, public contracts, design law and construction litigation. Mr. Bergquist is a graduate of Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota (B.A. 1985) and the University of Minnesota Law School (J.D. 1988) where he served as Managing Editor for the Journal of Law & Inequality. Mr. Bergquist is a frequent lecturer for the ABA and other national, state and local construction related organizations.

Agenda

5:00-5:45 Introductions and Social Hour
5:45-6:45 Public Sector Capital Projects, David Bergquist
6:45-7:15 Dinner
7:15-8:45 Implications of Best Value Discussion

ECONOMIC STIMULUS PRICING
Prices have been reduced from 2008 pricing

Student......$10
Academic Researcher.....$30
Public Sector Owners Representatives....$30
Member*........$50
Non-Member..$70
Sponsor a Student Table (includes one guest for your company)..$200
Annual Individual Membership and Member Attendance.$250

*Individual Members may bring one guest at member rate. Corporate members may bring unlimited guests at member rate.



Organized by Lean Construction Institute Cascadia Chapter
The Lean Construction Institute (LCI), a non-profit research organization, was founded in August 1997. LCI's purpose is to develop and disseminate new knowledge regarding the management of work in design, engineering and construction for capital facilities. To that end, the Cascadia chapter is a localized chapterservingthe BC, WA, OR region. LCI has developed the Lean Project Delivery System (LPDS), and the Last Planner System of production control. Lean Construction is a production management-based approach to project delivery - a new way to design and build capital facilities. Lean production management has caused a revolution in manufacturing design, supply and assembly. Applied to construction, Lean changes the way work is done throughout the delivery process. Lean Construction extends from the objectives of a lean production system - maximize value and minimize waste - to specific techniques and applies them in a new project delivery process extending from project definition through design, supply and assembly. Please contact Myra Gudge at (800 )532-2430 ex 4, [email protected].

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Ticket Info:  

• Student, $10.99
• Student Table Sponsor, $205.00
• Acedemic, Researchers, and Public Sector Owner Reps, $30.99
• Members, $51.25
• LCI Non-Members, $71.75
• LCI Annual Individual Membership and Meeting Ticket, $256.25

Official Website: http://cascadiamarch2009-upcoming.eventbrite.com