Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority (CPRA) selected the Louisiana Diversion Company (LDC) to provide Construction Management At-Risk (CMAR) services for the Mid-Breton Sediment Diversion Project, the agency announced last week.
The CMAR model integrates the construction contractor during the early design phase of the project to obtain input on cost, scheduling and constructability, a process that is expected to lower costs and increase the pace of construction. The CMAR contractor will work collaboratively with Stantec, the project’s designer that was selected in February 2018.
In October, CPRA issued a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for eligible firms interested in providing CMAR services for the project. Proposals were evaluated by a selection review committee on criteria such as company structure, qualifications of key personnel, relevant project experience and approach to construction. The CMAR model in Louisiana involves two contracts: a pre-construction phase contract and construction phase contract. CPRA’s selection of LDC for the pre-construction phase contract is estimated to be valued at $12.4 million, with the scope of this contract including design of temporary works, constructability reviews, and project cost estimating throughout the design process of the project. Once the design is complete, CPRA will negotiate a Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) of construction with LDC. If negotiations are successful, the construction phase contract will then be awarded for the agreed upon GMP.
“This competitive process produced three quality proposals from experienced local and national firms that all have a strong presence in Louisiana,” said CPRA Executive Director Bren Haase. “The state is confident LDC brings the necessary experience and team members needed to construct this transformational restoration project.”
LDC is a joint venture (JV) of Brown and Root, Massman Construction Co., Parsons Construction Group, and Traylor Bros, Inc., four long-established and well-acquainted firms with nearly 400 years of combined experience in meeting the unique flood control and water resources challenges found in southeastern Louisiana. The LDC JV team members have an excellent reputation as accomplished heavy civil and marine contractors skilled in delivering technically challenging projects, such as the IHNC Surge Barrier Project in St. Bernard Parish and the Huey P. Long Bridge Widening Project in New Orleans.
“Using the CMAR method of project delivery brings the construction contractor to the table during the design phase of the project,” said Mid-Basin Sediment Diversion Program Manager Brad Barth. “This early collaboration between the contractor and designer provides a unique opportunity to reduce project time, costs and risks.”
“While the CMAR delivery method hasn’t been used often in Louisiana, it gives us the best opportunity to construct this large and complex project in the safest and most cost-effective manner,” said CPRA Chairman Chip Kline. “We’re in a race against time, and CPRA is committed to finding innovative and ambitious solutions to address Louisiana’s coastal crisis.”
The Mid-Breton Sediment Diversion Project is part of the Mississippi River Mid-Basin Sediment Diversion Program, which also includes the proposed Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion. The proposed location for the Mid-Breton project is on the east bank of the Mississippi River at Wills Point, about seven miles north of the Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion. These two projects will be the first controlled sediment diversions reconnecting the Mississippi River with its delta. A cornerstone of Louisiana’s Coastal Master Plan, these diversions will provide sediment, water and nutrients to the basins in order to build, maintain and sustain the wetlands, complementing the billions of dollars that have been or will be invested in coastal protection and restoration projects, such as marsh creation projects, which utilize Mississippi River dredging.
To learn more about the Mid-Breton Sediment Diversion, visit the program’s webpage.
Story by CPRA
