QBS offers best design for your buck

By Carol Godiksen

The Wisconsin Legislature recently introduced legislation that would require local units of government to procure the services of a design professional through a Qualifications-Based Selection process.

Co-authored by Republican state Rep. Mark Gottlieb, a professional engineer representing Port Washington, and state Sen. Jeff Plale, D-South Milwaukee, this bipartisan proposal has 19 co-signers. The American Council of Engineering Companies of Wisconsin supports this legislation, which is tagged AB553 in the state Assembly and SB295 in the state Senate.

Our member firms represent the business side of the consulting engineering industry. More than 4,000 engineers, architects, land surveyors, planners, geologists, soil scientists, hydrologists and other professionals are employed by our members, and they understand that selecting the most qualified firm provides the best value for an owner and will result in the highest level of satisfaction over the life of the project.

QBS emphasizes qualifications. Using this procurement process, an owner selects a design professional initially based on the owner’s full satisfaction with that professional’s qualifications.

The price is secondary. But using QBS does not mean there’s a blank check given to the design professional. Price will always be a factor and, for state projects, providing value to the taxpayers of Wisconsin is paramount.

The difference in this procurement method is that price comes into play after the highest technically ranked firm is selected and the scope of work is fully defined. The owner is not obligated to contract with the top-ranked firm if the two parties cannot agree on the tasks and money.

The owner is never obligated to pay more than it can afford or has budgeted. The owner can simply move to the next highest-ranked firm.

This bill requires local units of government to use the QBS process for the design of projects costing more than $250,000, including state funding. QBS ensures safe, quality design work while saving taxpayers money, which is why states and local governments mandate it across the country. In fact, Wisconsin is one of only four states without QBS legislation on the books.

This is best-value procurement legislation that is time-tested, fair and equitable. In 1972, Congress required QBS in order to save money and ensure quality design on all projects using federal funding.

According to a U.S. Senate report that accompanied the federal legislation, the law’s purpose was to codify practices of the previous 30 years of federal, state and local governments to “retain the present practice of selecting the best qualified design professional, subject to the negotiations of compensation that is fair and reasonable to government.”

This bill hopes to capture similar savings by having local governments use QBS. Here in Wisconsin, both the Department of Administration and the Department of Transportation have realized exceptional results by using the QBS process in the selection of engineers and architects.

Design costs typically represent 10 percent to 15 percent of construction costs, and, factoring design into the total life-cycle cost of projects, they represent 1 percent of the project. Yet the design professional incurs a significant responsibility in shaping the owner’s concept into a workable project and a biddable set of drawings and specifications.

It makes sense to hire the best-qualified design professional in order to reduce construction costs and longer term operations and maintenance costs. The small increases in design fees are more than offset by the long-term savings.

Procurement of design services using QBS provides value and saves Wisconsin taxpayers money. We hope the entire construction industry will voice its support for this long overdue legislation for Wisconsin.

As an industry, you know this procurement process offers the best value for the successful projects that you build.

Carol Godiksen is the executive director and a lobbyist for the American Council of Engineering Companies of Wisconsin. She has been an association executivefor more than 25 years.