In response to a population boom in Southern Hillsborough County in Florida, PCL constructed a new booster pump station and pipelines to provide up to seven million more gallons of water per day to the area.

The 6,500-square-foot Brandon Booster Station project required the construction and installation of five 250-horsepower horizontal split case centrifugal pumps, an electrical room, control room, storage room and restroom. Utilizing the Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) delivery method provided the most effective approach to meet the accelerated schedule required for this project. In this method, the contractor oversees a project from the design phase through final completion, streamlining delivery and creating greater efficiencies within the project management.   

From day one, risk management workshops were implemented to identify overall project risk and owner priorities. During the workshop, the PCL team identified material and equipment procurement as a concern due to already extended lead times. Traditionally, lead times for pumps, piping, valves and accessories on similar projects would be anywhere from 12 to 30 weeks, but manufacturers indicated that lead times were at least double that. The integrated project team chose to execute an Early Procurement Guaranteed Maximum Price (GMP) to lock in pricing and accelerate procurement, which began almost eight months ahead of the anticipated final GMP date.

From inception through construction, time was of the essence and every possibility for reducing the time-to-market for the booster station was evaluated. By leveraging the CMAR methodology effectively, the project team adeptly managed challenges, expedited procurement processes, and mitigated potential delays to expedite time-to-market to maintain the community’s water supply needs.