Responsible Division: Vice President for Finance and Administration

Approving Official: Vice President for Finance and Administration

Effective Date: April 8, 2019

Last Revision Date: New Policy

1. INTRODUCTION
   1. To provide guidelines for the selection of Design-Build entities.
2. POLICY
   1. This procedure provides the guidelines for selecting Design-Build firms (DBs) for Florida State University construction projects. It describes conditions for use of Design-Build, development of selection committees, advertisement for services, development of a shortlist and the interview process.
      1. CONDITIONS OF USE OF DESIGN BUILD
         1. The criteria to be used in determining which projects are candidates for Design-Build are:
            1. The Project requires an aggressive schedule which necessitates a fast-track method overlapping design and construction activities;
            2. The Project will re-utilize existing plans with only minor changes;
            3. The Project is a renovation, and it is anticipated that work will need to accommodate scheduling which includes demolition/uncovering concealed conditions concurrent with design phases;
            4. University Facilities determines it to be in the best interest of the University to consolidate responsibility for design and construction into one contract.
      2. SUMMARY OF DESIGN-BUILD APPROACH
         1. The design criteria may consist of existing plans to be re-used. If the Project requires design services, the design criteria will consist of a detailed Feasibility Study, Facility Program, or other document that establishes the goals to be achieved by the Project. The design criteria may be developed by FSU Facilities Planning or Design & Construction Office(s) or may be developed by an outside Design Criteria Consultant selected via a Continuing Services Contract. The Design Criteria Document shall be signed and sealed by a State of Florida licensed consultant in the discipline primary to the Project. The Design Criteria Consultant shall not perform design services for the Project.
         2. The Design-Build firm is selected after the design criteria have been established. The Selection Committee is formed and a Recommendation for Award is presented to the President. The President shall award and execute the Design-Build contract.
         3. Contracts for Design-Build consist of three phases. The first phase is for design services. During this phase, the appropriate design professional, under contract to the Design-Builder, investigates the needs of the project and develops the Construction Documents for review and approval by the University. The second phase of the contract is for pre-construction services and shall include value engineering, scheduling, constructability analyses, etc. and the development of a Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP). If the GMP is accepted, the third phase (construction) is implemented. During the construction phase, the Design-Build entity ceases to be an agent of the Owner and becomes the single point of responsibility for performance of the Construction Contract for the Project. As such, the Design-Builder functions in the role of an independent contractor, publicly bidding trade contracts.
         4. The University may elect to hire an independent Design Review Consultant pursuant to F.S. 287.055 to provide review and consultation regarding the provision of the Design-Builder’s services.
      3. FORMATION OF THE SELECTION COMMITTEE
         1. Design-Builder Selection Committee should be formed simultaneously with the approval of the design criteria and shall include the Design Criteria Consultant or University Facilities professional responsible for the development of the design criteria. The Committee shall:
            1. Review the design criteria and the standard criteria listed on the Design-Builder Qualifications Supplement (DBQS) form. Based on unique requirements of the project, the Committee may add up to three (3) additional selection criteria to the DBQS form. The Committee reviews weight factors to be applied to each of the categories on the Design-Build Shortlist Worksheet and revises those factors, as necessary, according to the needs of the Project.
            2. Determine any additional criteria for interview questions.
            3. Review the standard reference check questions and add additional questions pertaining to the unique requirements of the Project, if necessary.
      4. ADVERTISEMENT
         1. The University places an advertisement for Design-Build services in the Florida Administrative Register (FAR), as described in Florida State University Policy OP-B-11-A, Advertisements for Architect/Engineer, Construction Manager Services, Call for Bids, and Design-Build Services. The advertisement shall provide information regarding the Project and direct the Applicants to the FDC website for the application forms and additional project information.
      5. PREPARATION OF DBQS FORM
         1. The Project Manager develops the DBQS form for the Project, including any revisions requested by the Committee. The bonding information on the first page is to be completed by referring to the Project Manual. If three (3) additional questions are included as Questions 9-11, the acknowledgements and certifications are re-numbered as Question 12.
      6. INFORMATION POSTED TO WEB PAGE
         1. When the advertisement is submitted for publication in the FAR, a copy of the ad, the Project Fact Sheet, and the DBQS form are posted to the Facilities Design & Construction (FDC) website. The Project Fact Sheet shall be generally in the form as that for Architect/Engineer selection (see Florida State University Policy OP-B-11-C1 Architect/Engineer Selection Process.)
      7. DEVELOPMENT OF A SHORTLIST
         1. After receipt of submittals, copies are provided to each Committee member. They are reviewed for completeness by the Project Manager or designee and irregularities documented for the Committee. The Project Manager or designee also provides the Committee with past performance ratings for the Applicant firms. Firms are rated annually while under contract to Florida State University. Applicants will be assigned a past performance rating based on their actual performance or if no rating exists for the firm, they will be assigned the University average rating at that time. Ratings will be provided in a separate memorandum and included in the summary section at the end of the Shortlist Worksheet.
         2. After review, the Committee convenes to develop the Shortlist. The committee members individually evaluate the Applicant firms and determine a score for each category on the Design-Build Shortlist Worksheet (except for “Past Performance” which is provided by the Project Manager). Each Committee member ranks the firms, avoiding ties, and this information is recorded on the Shortlist Proposal Worksheet (Forms section). The Design Criteria Consultant is responsible for ensuring that the Committee considers the approved design criteria relative to the experience and expertise of the Applicants.
         3. The firms with the lowest total rank points will be short-listed for interview. Total rank points and shortlist rank are entered on the Design-Build Selection Evaluation Form “A” and signed by each member of the Selection Committee. The Shortlist is no fewer than three (3) and no more than five (5) firms. For a project having three (3) or fewer Applicants, each firm is included on the Shortlist. Rank established on the shortlist portion of the selection is only considered in the interviews in the event of a tie.
      8. REFERENCE CHECKS
         1. The Committee determines the references to be checked for the firms to be interviewed and designates a person to conduct the reference checks. Reference checks should be made from among those provided for projects on which members of the proposed team were involved. Reference checks are documented using the Design-Build Firm Reference Check form (Forms section) and presented to the Selection Committee for its consideration in scoring the interviews.
      9. NOTIFICATION OF APPLICANTS
         1. Applicants are notified of the shortlist results by posting the results on the FDC web site. The notification is to include the following statement: “Failure to timely file a protest or failure to timely deliver the required bond or other security in accordance with the Board of Governors’ Regulations 18.002 and 18.003 shall constitute a waiver of protest proceedings.” The University sends the firms which were short-listed the following: a description of the interview requirements; a copy of the standard FSU Agreement Between Owner and Design-Builder; the time, date and location of the interview; and the length of time allotted for the interview and for questions and answers. Each firm should be requested to provide (1) electronic file copy and a written summary of its presentation for each Committee member at the conclusion of the interview.
      10. ORAL PRESENTATIONS
          1. Interviews for the selection of a Design-Builder should be held as soon as possible after the approval of the design criteria. A member of the Committee introduces the voting members and the visitors present. Once an Applicant has begun the presentation, the door will be closed to minimize interruptions to the Applicant’s presentation. Applicants are rated in the following areas:
             1. Construction Experience/Ability of Team The team’s construction members’ past construction experience and ability is scored, with consideration given to any special expertise or credentials possessed by the Applicant’s team, experience of the team working together, proximity to the project location, etc.
             2. Related Experience - Construction The related projects presented by the Applicant are evaluated for their relevance to the current project.
                1. Cost Control
                   The Applicant’s approach to managing project costs is evaluated.
                2. Quality Control
                   The Applicant is scored relative to their approach to ensuring that the Owner’s expectations for quality are maintained or exceeded.
                3. Scheduling
                   The Applicant is scored relative to their ability to provide scheduling services, maintain a project schedule, and demonstrate a method to ensure timely delivery of the Project.
                4. Design Related Experience
                   The design team’s experience with related project design is considered. The ten (10) submitted projects in the Applicant’s proposal are evaluated for characteristics similar to the Project.
                5. Experience & Ability – Design
                   The Applicant’s design team is evaluated relative to their professional experience, special credentials, previous experience working with the same team members, ability to be available to the Project, location, etc.
      11. QUESTION AND ANSWER PERIOD
          1. Following each presentation, a period of time may be set aside for the Committee to ask questions of the Applicant team.
      12. COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
          1. Immediately following the conclusion of the interviews, the Selection Committee should ask for input from user representatives who attended the interviews, which the Committee may consider in developing their scores. The Committee discusses the presentations. Committee members individually evaluate the firms based on the Design-Build Selection Interview Worksheet (Forms section). Based on their individual scores, committee members rank the interviewed Applicants. The individual ranks are added to obtain the Committee score for each of the firms interviewed. The firm with the lowest total (rank) score is the firm listed first, etc. In case of a tie, the shortlist rank breaks the tie. If the shortlist rank was tied, the firm with more total points from Design-Build Selection Evaluation Form “A” breaks the tie. The Committee’s total rank points and final recommended rank are entered on Design-Build Selection Evaluation Form “B”, which must be signed by all members of the Committee.
      13. APPROVAL OF COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
          1. Facilities Design & Construction submits the Committee’s recommendation to the President for approval. The Committee shall not divulge its recommendation to anyone prior to approval of the Committee’s recommendation by the University President or designee.
      14. NOTIFICATION OF INTERVIEWED FIRMS
          1. Upon approval by the President, the results are posted on the FDC website. The notification must include the following statement: “Failure to timely file a protest or failure to timely deliver the required bond or other security in accordance with the Board of Governors’ Regulations 18.002 and 18.003 shall constitute a waiver of protest proceedings.”
      15. MAINTENANCE OF SELECTION RECORDS
          1. The completed original Design-Build Selection Evaluation Forms “A” and “B” (Forms section), related correspondence, notes kept by Committee members throughout the selection and the proposals of the Applicant firms are filed in the selection file in electronic format and shall become part of the Project’s permanent file. NOTE: The selection committee may reject all proposals and may stop the selection process at any time.
3. LEGAL SUPPORT, JUSTIFICATION, AND REVIEW OF THIS POLICY
   • F.S. 287.055, 1013.45