You may have heard of Morton designBUILD, but what does it really mean? For starters, it’s helpful to understand the industry term, “Design-Build”. Design-Build is a project delivery method that involves a comprehensive process of planning, design and construction required to execute and complete a building facility. The two most common project delivery methods are Design-Bid-Build and Design-Build.
Design-Bid-Build involves three sequential project phases:
- Design -- requires the services of a designer who will be the “designer of record” for the project
- Bid -- a contractor is selected
- Build -- construction phase, where the project is built by the selected (typically low bid) contractor
This method is presently a very common approach for public entities due to procurement statutes under which they operate. The process is longer because all design work must be completed prior to the solicitation of the construction bids, and construction can’t begin until the design and procurement phases are complete. There is no contractual relationship between the contractor and designer, and there is no opportunity for collaboration during the design phase.
In contrast, Design-Build involves one entity, the design-builder, which enters into a single contract with the owner to provide both design and construction services. With one Design-Build entity, the designers and builders transform into an alliance that fosters teamwork.
With sole-source responsibility of a single contract for both design and construction, the responsibility for coordinating all project elements falls into the hands of the Design-Build team. In contrast, in all other project delivery systems, the owner must manage two separate contracts, one for design and one for construction. That is why a single contract is a distinctive feature — if there is more than one contract, it is not Design-Build. Design-Build is intended to be highly collaborative, built on trust, mutual respect, teamwork, innovation and creative problem solving. Owners find their level of engagement with the entire team is more meaningful than an experience with other methods.
At Morton Buildings, Morton designBUILD is a team and a process in which we construct a vast majority of commercial projects, from concept to completion. The types of buildings that are normally considered Morton designBUILD are:
- Activity Centers
- Banks
- Breweries, Wineries, and Distilleries
- Daycare and Schools
- Funeral Homes
- Commercial Equestrian Facilities
- Kennels
- Churches
- Municipal
- Office/Warehouses
- Restaurants
- Retail Outlets
- Veterinary Facilities
- Wind Farms
Morton designBUILD Benefits:
- Single-source accountability -- We design it, build it, manage construction and warranty it
- Customer involvement -- You have input throughout the process and make the informed decisions
- Budgeting -- In our PDS, the budget is constantly evaluated against the project scope
- Construction time -- We reduce the construction timeline by having a well-defined scope and reduce or eliminate the need for change orders
