NEW PUBLICATION: The Design-Builder’s Guide to Design Management
The Charles Pankow Foundation (CPF) is pleased to announce the publication of the latest update to an existing resource on managing the design phase of design-build projects, the Design-Builder’s Guide to Design Management, which provides targeted guidance for a critical role in the process—the design integration manager.
Within the design-build method of project delivery, the design integration manager is the design-build team’s “master integrator.” The design integration manager sits at the intersection of multiple disciplines and must organize and manage the activities of the owner, builders, architects, engineers, interior designers, landscape architects, and specialty consultants to conceptualize and develop the project design. The activities of the design integration manager span every stage of the project, starting with the proposal/pre-award phase and continuing until the completion of construction and project handover. Ultimately, the design integration manager assumes responsibility for ensuring that the design and construction are developed in unison. It would not be an overstatement to say that the design integration manager is the most fundamental ingredient—the secret sauce, maybe—of a successful design-build project.
This guide is designed to act as a resource for those who have been assigned the role of design integration manager and is dedicated to explaining their responsibilities in each phase of a design-build project. It contains practical explanations of what tasks the design integration manager does on a design-build project, when the tasks need to be performed, and why those tasks are vital to success. Where relevant, proven procedures are described that can be applied to specific situations. In addition, design integration managers are expected to possess a breadth of core competencies that are often found separately among designers, construction managers, and owner representatives. This guide identifies these specific competencies to assist in the hiring, training, and development of effective design integration managers. While the guide is intended for the design integration manager on the design-build team, the principles in this guide are also relevant to the owner and designers who interface with the role.