Photo courtesy of WSDOT Staff from Parametrix and WSDOT shared an office and reported to one another during the Hood Canal Bridge project. The “blended team” approach worked so effectively that WSDOT starting using it for other major projects.

The Hood Canal Bridge is essentially two separate structures that carry 15,000 to 20,000 vehicles a day.

The west half, which sunk during a severe storm in 1979, was rebuilt and reopened in 1982. In 1997, the Washington State Department of Transportation began work to replace the east half, which was nearing the end of its useful structural life.

By 2004, the project was facing severe challenges: a shortage of resources from WSDOT, outdated engineering documents from the 1982 rebuild, the discovery of an ancient tribal village at the graving dock where the pontoons were to be built, and a potential for huge claims from the contractor if the project had to be rebid.

In response, WSDOT and Parametrix formed a “blended team” approach in which staff from WSDOT and Parametrix co-located in an office, allowing the owner and consultants to work as a single unit.

WSDOT then negotiated a change order with general contractor, Kiewit-General Joint Venture, to complete the project under a “target pricing/alliance contracting” agreement, the first application of this approach in the U.S. by a public agency. Through this approach, the client, contractor and consultant formed an alliance and worked together toward the ultimate success of the project. The new bridge reopened last year, a week ahead of schedule.