Project Delivery Methods
Why delivery method choice drives everything
A delivery method allocates three things: design responsibility, construction risk, and the contractual relationship between owner and builder. The Owner's Construction Manager (CM) must be fluent in design-bid-build (DBB), design-build (DB), construction manager at risk (CMAR), and integrated project delivery (IPD), plus hybrid and multi-prime variants.
In DBB the owner holds separate design and construction contracts; the CM often acts as owner's agent with no construction risk, and the classic trap is assuming the CM guarantees price or schedule. In DB a single entity holds design-construction risk, so the owner trades design control for speed and price certainty. CMAR gives a guaranteed maximum price (GMP) after design is sufficiently developed, with the CMAR holding trade subcontracts and typically sharing savings. IPD uses a multi-party agreement, shared risk-reward pool, and often a lean target-value design process.
Traps candidates fall for
- Confusing "CM as agent" (no risk, fee-for-service) with CMAR (holds risk, gives GMP).
- Assuming a GMP caps owner costs absolutely: owner typically retains contingency for owner-directed changes, differing site conditions, and design errors it owns.
- Assuming DB eliminates owner involvement in design; owners still set performance criteria and review.
- Ignoring procurement-law constraints: some public owners cannot use DB or IPD without statutory authority.
- Multi-prime: owner holds many contracts, so coordination risk shifts back to the owner and CM.
Worked rule of thumb
Match delivery method to the dominant risk. If design is incomplete but the owner needs an early price, CMAR with an early GMP and open-book subcontracting usually beats DBB, which requires completed documents before bidding. If the owner wants one throat to choke for both design and construction, DB. If the owner wants maximum collaboration and has a sophisticated, trusting team, IPD. A quick screen: who owns design errors, who owns coordination gaps, and who absorbs cost overruns? Answer those three and the method usually selects itself.