Transtech Engineers, Inc. has been selected for the 2014 Project Achievement award by the Construction Managements Association of America, CMAA Southern California Chapter for Construction Management Services for the Cactus Ave. / Nason St. Improvement Project, City of Moreno Valley, in the category of Public Works / $11-$50 Million.
The project was completed in 2013. Project improvements included, roadways, wet and dry utilities, relocation of power poles, bridge, traffic signals, street lighting system, Class II and III bike lanes, landscaping, sidewalks, curb&gutter and other improvements. Transtech provided Project and Construction Management Services, including Constructability Review, Value Engineering, Bid Management, Construction Management, PW Inspection, Bridge/Structural Inspection, Contract Administration, Labor Compliance. The mile long Cactus Avenue segment required coordination with Edison to remove 37 power poles to underground the overhead electrical infrastructure, all while maintaining power to the adjacent Riverside County Hospital.
The following is project schedule and change order summary:
- Original Planned Construction Project Duration (Calendar Days): 424
- Final Actual Construction Duration (Calendar Days): 390
- % Change Orders: 0.81%
- There were no claims submitted for the project.
- There were a total of 45 RFIs for the project.
Transtech managed and administered the project incompliance per FHWA and Caltrans Standards. Caltrans Local Assistance Manual Procedures were followed.
A Master Schedule was developed and reviewed weekly at the normally schedules project meeting onsite and adjustments were made as applicable with all parties, especially when change orders were involved. The open-door and open-discussion TEAM concept reflected in proper scheduling to keep the overall project tasks in line with effecting timely completion of the project with budget constraints. Our approach to scheduling involved understanding how the component pieces of the Project and the necessary sequencing were critical to the successful completion of the Project. Transtech ensured that the construction baseline schedule properly identified the project scope, critical path, project milestones, target dates, phases, and sequences of work, activity durations, activity float and relation¬ships between activities. Interrelationships with various projects phases, and interfaces with Owner activities are verified to ensure proper coordination with the existing operations. The baseline schedule considered access coordination; staging and lay-down areas and seamless transition and inter¬faces between the new and existing facilities, and any operation to be maintained on-site.
Transtech’s approach to Cost Control and Change Orders revolved around two goals. A proactive approach to cost control was achieved by putting sufficient effort into the plan and specification preparation to minimize potential change orders. Another cost control goal occurred during the review of change order requests submitted by the contractor. A variety of techniques were employed when reviewing submitted change order requests. Transtech evaluated monthly costs/expenditures based on actual field review and documentation. The documentation was used as both criteria for evaluating the accuracy of costs/expenditures, and as input for review of the cost-loaded monthly progress schedule. An accurate schedule of values and baseline schedule were fundamental to this analysis.
This was the City’s first experience in “Public Private Partnership”. The project required extensive communication and efficient coordination efforts by Transtech with various public and private parties, including City of Moreno Valley, Developer, Riverside County Flood Control District, Eastern Municipal Water District and Utility Companies. Furthermore, crucial coordination efforts took place with Riverside County Hospital (Trauma Center) and the County EMS to maintain emergency vehicle access to the hospital along Cactus Avenue during construction.