Program

On Jan. 28, 2022, the Fern Hollow Bridge in Pittsburgh collapsed. Miraculously, no lives were lost. More than 21,000 vehicles traverse this critical bridge daily. Within days, PennDOT, the City of Pittsburgh and FHWA, used an emergency declaration to re-establish this crucial route in the requisite timeframe and budget by the only possible means, a “hybrid” design-build process that allowed: sole selection of HDR and Swank Construction based on strong working relationships with PennDOT; work to begin immediately on a T&M basis so the coordination with all interested parties could start work immediately; flexibility for all parties to provide their input and make changes without disproportionate risk being placed on any party such that all parties were able to work through design, coordination, third-party concerns and construction without undue risk, thus resulting in a win-win for all parties; the design to be developed to 100% to address outstanding issues before Swank provided their GMP. The “hybrid” design-build process allowed the bridge to be designed and constructed in an unprecedented 11 months. Due to the success of this project, PennDOT is re-evaluating its project delivery methods to increase design-build use and allow procurements to follow DBIA Best Practices.

SESSION EVALUATION