Project Services
Project Management, Owner’s Representative, Project Delivery Models and Qualifications Based Selections
Owner’s Representative
Project owners may lack the time, software tools, or staff to oversee and organize the in-house and contracted resources for their project. We operate like a guiding mind at a “high level” to assist owners with work scoping, planning, qualifying, negotiating and contracting the “best fit” project resources. We also monitor, direct, and mitigate issues between the project resources. And as they arise we provide a single version of the truth.
As a liaison, we strictly represent the owner’s best interests at every stage throughout the entire project from concept to completion reporting directly back to the owner. We ensure that respective project scopes are carried out on time, on budget, and at a proper quality of service standard. As an owner’s representative our role is primarily a monitoring role; it is not to be confused with Project Management.
Project Management
Lexus Engineering Project manages all its own engineering projects. On some projects, we manage other engineering disciplines, such as civil and structural.
For some larger projects, we also offer Project Management as a service. We have been hired by some General Contractors and Owners to provide PM services for some one-time projects where our background is a good fit for that project. The list includes Suncor, Husky, TransAlta, ABB, BC Hydro and Orbis Engineering. In this role, we provide direction to the engineering and contracting teams and provide reporting to the GC or owner.
When providing this PM service, we do not provide engineering services, as it would be a conflict of interest.
Qualifications Based Selection (QBS)
QBS is an objective, flexible, and competitive procedure for obtaining professional engineering services. It is a step-by-step process that facilitates the selection of the best-qualified and most compatible firm for a specific project.
Although price is an important component of procurement, considerations should include personnel and team or corporate experience, local knowledge, innovation, past performance, schedule and availability.
The Consulting Engineers of Alberta (CEA) endorses the QBS process.
Project Delivery Methods
An appropriate Project Delivery Method is imperative to maximizing the probability of success. The strategy is dependent on the size and complexity of the project – one size does not fit all. For a simple Tenant Improvement, a modest amount of planning is required, but for a larger multi-million project, the Front-End Loading (FEL) phase involves many factors and can last months or possibly years before execution begins.
However, in every project, large or small, the Project Owner’s requirements and goals must be clearly understood, and the Project Delivery Method must align accordingly.
Project Delivery Methods describe how the participants are organized to interact, transforming the Owner’s Project goals and objectives into a finished Project. The following are the most common methods that Lexus Engineering uses, for small and medium projects.
Design-Build (DB)
DB projects have a single point of accountability to the Owner for both design and construction services. Typically, the owner hires a Contractor (or GC), who in turn, hires the design professionals (architects, Engineers) as required to complete the design documents. The GC then proceeds to construct (or the GC hires contractors to construct). The owner will mostly interface with the Contractor (or GC), except for some design meetings at the start of the project. DB is aka “The Turn-Key Approach”.
Design- Build (Small Projects)
Design-Build (Large Projects)
Design-Bid-Build (DBB)
In this approach, the design team (Architect, Engineers) works directly for the owner and produces a set of construction documents that are used as the basis of a competitive bidding process.
Usually, the lowest price wins, which may lead to other issues, qualifications should always be part of the selection process.
The owner has separate contracts with the design professionals and general contractors.
Design-Bid-Build
Contact Details
Headquarters:
Unit 208, 8716-48 Avenue NW
Edmonton, Alberta
T6E 5L1
