Challenge
The Shell Creek Water Treatment Facility supplies water to Punta Gorda Utility customers throughout the city and surrounding areas. The existing plant, originally built in 1964, treats surface water and is rated at 10 mgd and traditionally struggled to process the higher total dissolved solids during the dry season. The utility required a temporary exemption from the Department of Environmental Protection while the design and construction of the 4 mgd reverse osmosis plant addition took place to meet the updated standards by blending the two product waters. The City also used state revolving funds and grants to help fund the project, which introduced added challenges of ordering materials compliant with American Iron & Steel guidelines and providing certified payroll for Davis-Bacon prevailing wages.
Approach
This project was the first time the City of Punta Gorda had used a collaborative delivery method for this type of construction. The project served as a major infrastructure investment, and Wharton-Smith worked with the City’s Utilities and Procurement Departments to guide them through the process. With the development of detailed bid packages, solicitation for bids, value engineering efforts, and overall construction, the construction team was able to successfully build the project within the owner’s budget and end-use goals in the forefront.
Results
Throughout the lifespan of the project, the project team collaborated to identify and vet possible value engineering that would save the City both construction and long-term operations costs. The project team practiced transparency throughout the entire project and worked alongside the owner to ensure its expectations were met. Midway through construction, a policy change prompted the City to request a major design change to structures and treatment processes. The project team was able to expedite the redesign of associated components by holding coordination workshops and collaborating throughout the process. The project was ultimately completed successfully without major delays or financial impacts due to this major change.
Other WCDA member involved: Ferguson Waterworks (supplier of piping, valves,and fittings)
“ I have always been a huge proponent of the CMAR process in large projects. This process allows the team to work in concert in solving any issues and produce value engineering items that we cannot do in a hard bid. It is flexible to allow negotiations, development of allowances for unknowns, and both parties reap the benefits at the end if it comes in under the GMP.”
—Marian Pace, Procurement Manager, City of Punta Gorda, FL
