In February 2023, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) hosted the Every Day Counts Virtual Summit.
If you missed the summit, you can access the recordings and resources on-demand. In the breakout sessions, FHWA provided an overview of the Rethinking DBE for Design-Build initiative and several topical sessions that provided a more in-depth discussion of Open Ended Performance Plans (OEPP) and best practices across the country.
John Burns, from FHWA’s Major Projects Program, Lismary Gavillan, Construction Program Manager from FHWA CA Division and Sara Lee, HNTB Ohio Office (previous DBE), discussed the importance of equitable opportunities for DBEs on design-build projects
(Same as part 1 but different questions from attendees)
James DeSanto from FHWA’s Office of Infrastructure discussed details of design-build while Joe Hernandez, President Modern Times (a DBE consultant) and staff from MassDOT discussed the importance of an OEPP.
(Same as Part 1 but different questions from attendees)
Anna Marriotti and Kelly Whaley from Colorado DOT and Michael Bryant from Texas DOT shared best practices on how their State has successfully integrated OEPPs in their design-build procedures.
(Same as part 1 but different questions from attendees)
Register, access on-demand recordings, and read the full summit information here.
Design-build is a popular alternative contracting method where the project sponsor contracts with the most qualified team to both design and build a project. Design-build contracting is used frequently on larger, complex, federal aid highway and bridge projects that typically have significant subcontracting opportunities for Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBEs). In traditional contracting, prime contractors must submit a commitment plan with named DBE subcontractors to meet the contract goal prior to award. In design- build contracting, however, when prime contractors submit their responses to proposals, the projects are not fully designed, and the details of available subcontracting opportunities are not yet known. This makes it challenging for prime contractors to name DBEs in their commitment plan. Those DBEs that the prime contractors identify may be unable to perform the work at the quoted price when the subcontract details are known, and the work is scheduled—at times 3-5 years in the future. And even more concerning, in some instances because of the lack of details, prime contractors may submit documented good faith efforts instead of meeting the goal with sufficient DBE subcontracting.
One solution States have begun using is an open-ended performance plan (OEPP). An OEPP is a modified DBE commitment plan that, instead of naming DBEs to perform specific work at a specific price, allows the proposer to list anticipated work types for planned DBE participation throughout the life of the project. This type of plan, submitted with a schedule of when actual subcontracts will come to fruition, serves as a roadmap detailing how the DBE goal can be achieved. Another advantage of OEPPs is that they can be flexible to add or change anticipated opportunities for DBE participation.
To learn more about OEPP, FHWA has issued a handbook: DBE Program Administration and Oversight on Projects with Alternative Contracting and Procurement Methods. To further support successful implementation, FHWA will soon be providing resources and training opportunities including webinars, peer exchanges, workshops, examples and templates, case studies and best practices for monitoring and oversight.